Rupee pares gains as bonds crash
Mumbai: The rupee shed gains closing at 45.84/85 per dollar, while bond prices crashed by over a rupee across maturities as yields hardened to historic highs.

Forwards Market: The six-month forward closed at 2.65 per cent (2.45 per cent) and the twelve-month closed at 2.20 per cent (2.05 per cent).

G-Secs: The yield on the benchmark 10-year paper, the 7.37 per cent 2014 paper rose to its highest levels in almost two years, touching 6.81 per cent at a price of Rs104.00. The yield on the 7.38 per cent 2015 paper rose to 6.93 per cent at a price of Rs103.40.

Call Rates: Steady between 4.50 and 4.60 per cent in the inter-bank market.

CBLO Market: 134 trades were transacted amounting to Rs4,999.20 crore.
Back to News Review index page  

Allahabad Bank H1 net up 91 per cent at Rs.303 crore
Kolkata: Allahabad Bank has posted a net profit of Rs.303 crore for the half-year ended September 30, 2004, as compared to Rs.143 crore in the corresponding year-ago period. Its aggregate business totalled Rs.55,350-crore mark by end-September, 2004.

On a year-on-year basis, the business has increased by 33 per cent against a growth of 12 per cent last year. The operating profit of the bank during the first half increased to Rs615 crore from Rs320 crore during April-September 2003, an increase of 91 per cent. Gross advances grew by 17 per cent against the growth of 4 per cent during the half-year ended September, 2003.

Net non-performing asset ratio declined to 1.65 per cent in end-September, 2004, down from 2.37 per cent as on end-March this year and 5.21 per cent in September last year.
Back to News Review index page  

Centurion Bank Q2 net up at Rs.5.26 crore
Mumbai: Centurion Bank Limited has ended the July-September 2004 quarter with a 171 per cent increase in net profit at Rs5.26 crore from Rs1.94 crore in the year-ago period, although this improvement is primarily because of a reversal of provisions, made previously, to the extent of Rs2.84 crore.

While total income edged down to Rs95.89 crore from Rs102.77 crore in the year-ago period, net interest income increased by 54 per cent to Rs42.94 crore during this quarter as compared to Rs27.83 crore in the year-ago period.

A decline in income was on account of a dip in other operating income at Rs12.64 crore (Rs26.07 crore) which includes a loss of Rs0.32 crore in treasury income.

Retail assets rose by 81 per cent to Rs1,658 crore from Rs914 crore in the year-ago period.

The bank's capital adequacy ratio stands at 9.51 per cent as compared to 2.15 per cent in the year-ago period. This is primarily because of the recent capital infusion through a rights issue. The bank raised Rs288 crore shoring up the capital adequacy ratio.
At the end of September 2004, gross NPAs stood at 10.24 per cent and net at 3.41 per cent.
Back to News Review index page  
Shriram Group set for insurance foray
Hyderabad: The Chennai-based Rs4,000-crore Shriram Group will become the 13 th life insurance player in the country with its foray into the insurance industry by the next fiscal.

The group says that it has already initiated negotiations with a couple of global insurance companies, which are keen to forge alliances with it both for life and non-life insurance businesses. The group proposes to consider entering the non-life insurance segment also if a good partnership model evolves.

According to the company though it would prefer to enter the insurance arena with a foreign partner, it was not very particular on this issue as it had all the strengths including the customer base, agents force and the capital required for entering into life insurance on its own.

The Shriram Group is also in talks with a few banks for roping them in as equity partners in the life insurance venture. The group estimates its initial investment requirements at around Rs100 crore with another Rs25 crore over the next few years.
Back to News Review index page