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Reserve Bank of India relaxes norms for FPI investment in bonds FPIs had lobbied with the RBI and finance ministry, as well as the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), that a huge lot of NCD issuance was stuck because of RBI rules The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday relaxed its April notification, which forbade FPIs from investing more than 20 per cent of their portfolios in bonds issued by a single corporate group. While the regulations remained the same as mentioned in April, the central bank said FPIs could carry on with transactions committed till April 27, when the notification came. In the April 27 notification, the central bank had said an FPI, or its entities, could not have more than 50 per cent of investment in a single corporate bond and their portfolios could not take more than a 20 per cent exposure in any single corporate group. On Friday, the RBI said its April provisions could be relaxed if a commitment for investment had been made by April 27

 Centre, state to share GST anti-profit funds Centre and the ‘concerned state’ will equally share the amount deposited by erring businesses in the consumer welfare fund set up as part of the GST anti-profiteering rules, as per a Finance Ministry notification. following the rollout of GST in july last year, the government set up a national anti-profiteering authority to penalise business for failure to pass on tax benefits to consumers. In case the customer is not identifiable, the money has to be deposited in the consumer well are fund. The Business Standard, New Delhi, 16th June 2018

Higher interest rate may cap GDP at 7.5%: Nomura Growth in the current fiscal year will be faster in the first half and will likely face pressure in the second half to end the year at 7.5 per cent, a Japanese brokerage said on Friday. The rate hike by RBI and the oil prices raise concerns over sustainability of what ws termed as a " cyclical, broad-based recovery", Nomura 's chief india economist sona varma said. "We feel growth will be front-ended in fy19. The first quarter can see growth of 7.5-8 percen," she said. The Business Standard, New Delhi, 16th June 2018

India's exports hit 6-month high; trade deficit widens as imports up 14.85% The aftershocks of the Rs 140-billion Nirav Modi scam continued to affect the gems and jewellery sector A rise in receipts of petroleum, engineering and pharmaceutical products boosted May’s export growth figures to a six-month high of 20.18 per cent, up from 5.71 per cent in April. Even then the trade deficit widened to a four-month high of $14.62 billion, compared to the Dollar 13.7 billion deficit in April as imports rose by 14.85 per cent during the month, compared to the 4.60 per cent rise in April. This could pressurise the current account deficit in the first quarter of the current financial year after it stood at 1.9 per cent of GDP in the fourth quarter of 2017-18, compared to 2.1 per cent in the third quarter. However, within exports, major labour-intensive sectors, such as gems and jewellery and ready-made garments, continued to see declines, which might affect jobs. The export growth r

PSU Bankers’ Union Challenges RBI’s Feb 12 Bankruptcy Circular Petition says provision will cause a loss of Rs 1 L cr, threatening viability of banks The biggest union of state-run banks has filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court challenging the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) controversial February 12 circular that bankruptcy proceedings will kick in 180 days after a borrower misses a payment without allowing even a day’s extension. The All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC), which represents 3 lakh supervisory staff and officers in public-sector banks, said the provision will cause a loss of Rs 1 lakh crore, threatening the viability of banks and consequently the livelihood of its members. AIBOC wants the high court to quash the circular. Members of the AIBOC said the court has issued a notice to the RBI after admitting the petition that was filed recently against the central bank and the government. In its petition, the union has alleged the circular violates

 ICAI opposes move to exclude CAs from carrying out valuation Rule 11UA provides for determining the fair market value of various specified assets under Section 56 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and four other accounting associations have written to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) opposing the latter’s move to amend Section 11 UA of the Income Tax (I-T) Act. The step will pave the way for excluding chartered accountants from carrying out valuation of unquoted shares. Rule 11UA provides for determining the fair market value of various specified assets under Section 56 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. One of its sub-rules provides an option to the assessee to determine the fair market value (FMV) of unquoted shares with the help of a merchant banker or an accountant. The recent amendment has excluded the term ‘accountant’. ICAI believes the paucity of available merchant bankers could jack up costs of determining the FMV o

  Fed hikes rates amid stronger inflation, shifts from crisis-era stance Policymakers projected a slightly faster pace of rate increases in the coming months The Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday, a move that was widely expected but still marked a milestone in the US central bank's shift from policies used to battle the 2007-2009 financial crisis and recession. In raising its benchmark overnight lending rate a quarter of a percentage point to a range of between 1.75 per cent and 2 percent, the Fed dropped its pledge to keep rates low enough to stimulate the economy "for some time" and signalled it would tolerate above-target inflation at least through 2020. The Fed has raised rates seven times since late 2015 on the back of the economy's continuing expansion and solid job growth, rendering the language of its previous policy statements outdated Inflation is also snapping into line, with fresh projections from policymakers on Wednesday indi