By next May, the Railway Ministry will invite bids for the first phase of the 1,483-km western freight corridor. The move is part of a strategy to de-congest freight lines and accommodate the growing industrial traffic. The 640-km project-part of the 920 km Rewari-Vadodara stretch-is awaiting approval from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which is funding the project, to begin financial bidding.
Category: Infrastructure Finance
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Govt optimistic on loan recovery by banks
Some finance ministry officials expressed confidence that the public sector banks (PSBs) would achieve remarkable improvement in reducing bad loans. Bad loans of state-run banks have been rising because of the slowdown in the economy and weak financial position of
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Companies show strong interest in banking venture
According to informed sources, over 100 entities have shown interest in venturing into banking business following the release of the final guidelines by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). It may be recalled that in February 2013, the central bank released its guidelines for licensing of new banking operations and invited applications for licenses before July 1, 2013
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Finance ministry gives nod to RBI proposal
The union finance ministry officials gave in-principle approval to the proposal of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to do away with the cumbersome procedure of incorporating a company by non-residents and facilitate foreign direct investments (FDI). Reports indicate that the proposal may facilitate inward remittances to meet pre-incorporation expenses of a co
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Assocham urges govt to support aviation sector
Industry body ASSOCHAM urged the civil aviation ministry, the Planning Commission and the RBI to work out a joint and a clear mechanism to give a boost to the aviation sector. In a communication to the government, the chamber raised concern that the sector faces policy and regulatory issues besides lack of finance, especially the equit
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OIL may raise Rs $250 mn via dollar loan
Media reports indicate that public sector energy explorer Oil India (OIL) plans to raise a maximum of $250 million through dollar-denominated five-year long-term loan in the next few weeks. The company plans to raise dollar loan because this is a cheaper source of finance compared to rupee debt. Some reports indicate that the firm may pay an interest rate of around 2-2.5 per cent
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RBI simplifies norms on foreign investment in bonds
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has simplified investment norms for foreign investors in the bond market. Earlier, there was a restriction that foreign investors can invest a maximum of $10 billion in treasury bills. Now, the central bank prescribed a overall cap of $25 billion on investment in government bonds, including both long- and short
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Baring PE raises stake in Manappuram Finance
In the last five months, Baring Private Equity Partners India increased its shareholding, in tranches, in the gold loan firm Manappuram Finance by 2.3 per cent. for around Rs 45-50 crore. Following this, the PE firm holds 9.48 per cent stake in the gold loan company, the fund said in a communication to the stock exchange
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NHB to raise funds through ECB
In order to lend to low-cost housing projects, National Housing Bank (NHB) plans to raise $200 million through external commercial borrowing (ECB) in 2013-14. The NHB plans to seek approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for raising the amount through ECB. In 2012-13, the housing finance regulator could raise funds under ECB as the approval from RBI came in the latter
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Bank credit to infra projects may suffer under Basel III
A recent report by ratings agency Icra said bank credit to infrastructure sector may be affected by the norms of the Basel- III regulation. Credit to infrastructure is long-term in nature, while the deposits of banks is short-term to medium-term. This raises asset-liability mismatch. According to the Basel-III norms, banks must maintain a strict net stable funding ratio (NSFR), which is designed to ensure that long-term assets are funded with