Further money tightening may slow growth: CII
New Delhi: Industry chamber, CII has said that any further tightening of money supply by the Reserve Bank of India will trigger a slowdown of the economy.

"Signals in the form of slowdown in the automotive sector and retail banking have already emerged," said CII president R Seshasayee in a statement in New Delhi.

He said while inflation control is legitimately at the top of the national agenda, "it is important that growth is not traded off in the bargain."

The RBI recently announced another increase of 25 basis points in the repo rate (the rate at which RBI lends short-term money to banks) to 7.75 per cent and increased the cash reserve ratio to 6.5 per cent from 6 per cent.

RBI's move would suck up Rs15,000 crore liquidity from the system.
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Foreign reserves almost at $200 billion
Mumbai: India's foreign exchange reserves have risen by $45 billion during 2006-07 to $199.179 billion - touching the $200-billion mark. The reserves stood at $154.209 at the beginning of the last fiscal.

Forex reserves have risen by $1.433 billion to $199.179 billion in the week ended March 30. During the previous week, the reserves expanded by $1.789 billion. Forex reserves have seen an accretion of around $4.7 billion in three consecutive weeks.

Treasury officials said companies may have also been repatriating funds and locking it in Indian deposits to take advantage of the high interest rates.

Gold reserves dipped by $99 million to $6.784 billion. SDRs and the country's reserve position in the IMF remained unchanged at $2 million and $469 million, respectively. Forex reserves have seen strong accretion since November as the RBI has been intervening to rein in the appreciating rupee. The RBI is believed to have bought $8 billion from November to January and around $12 billion in February.
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Vijaya Bank to enter insurance sector
Bangalore: Vijaya Bank is planning to enter into the insurance business directly after it finalises its exit from the three-way life insurance joint venture that it had entered into along with Principal Financial Group of the US and Punjab National Bank.

Vijaya Bank is a 19 per cent stakeholder in PNB Principal Insurance Advisory Company Private Ltd.

Its exit is due to objections raised by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), over it being a corporate agent directly for the public sector National Insurance Company Ltd and at the same time participating in a broking company vending insurance products.

The bank is considering entering into the insurance business directly or through the joint venture route.
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Citigroup, others vie for stake in UTI Securities
Mumbai: International brokerage house Citigroup, Australia's Macquarie Bank, Standard Chartered, France's Societe Generale and Kuwait-based Global Investment House are contesting to acquire a 49-per cent stake in UTI Securities, currently owned by Securities Trading Corporation of India (STCI).

STCI, which bought 100 per cent stake in UTI Securities for Rs 265 crore last year from Specified Undertaking of UTI (SUUTI), is looking to sell 49 per cent stake to a strategic partner.

As per the deal, STCI has a minimum lock-in of 51 per cent stake in UTI Securities for three years, which ends in 2008.

UTI Sec is said to be prefer a foreign player, because of the expertise it would bring.

Citigroup's private equity arm Citigroup Venture Capital International took 19.97 per cent stake in Mumbai-based Anand Rathi Securities. Another retail brokerage firm Motilal Oswal Financial Services placed 9.48 per cent of its stake with private equity venture New Vernon Private Equity Ltd and Bessemer Venture Partners, valuing the company at Rs13.45 billion.
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