Business

RBI data shows that the number of credit cards issued by banks has also increased sharply to 10.61 crore by September 2024 from 9.3 crore in September 2023, 7.36 crore in March 2022 and 6.20 crore in March 2021.Credit card repayment defaults are on the rise, reflecting growing stress and debt burden among customers. Credit card repayment defaults or portfolio risk (PAR) in banking parlance for credit cards with 91-180 days past due (DPD) have increased by 110 basis points to 7.6 per cent by June 2024 from 6.5 per cent in June 2023, a study said.This means that defaults or delays in repayment of credit card dues by customers even after 180 days have increased. The study conducted by CRIF High Mark, a credit information bureau registered with the Reserve Bank of India, said that credit card...

According to CLSA, the Indian cement sector may see a price increase of 4% in the second half of FY25 and this will be good news for companies that have been affected by low prices across India for the last several quarters. However, the sustainability of these price increases remains a key monitorable factor, according to the brokerage. Cement prices increased by Rs 10-30 per bag in early December. The increase was the highest in the eastern and central regions of India at Rs 20-30 per bag, while the rest of the regions saw an increase of Rs 10.This means that cement prices across India have increased by 3.5% quarter-on-quarter so far in the third quarter. However, prices are still down 5% year-on-year. According to CLSA, cement demand remained weak throughout October, but it gradu...

According to data compiled by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association, retail sales of vehicles across categories in India rose 11.21 percent to 32,08,719 units in November as against 28,85,317 units in the same month last year. Retail sales of two-wheelers rose to 26,15,953 units in November as against 22,58,970 units in the same month last year. This shows a robust growth of 15.8 percent.

Oil prices rose more than 1% on Monday, as top importer China took its first step toward easing monetary policy for the first time since 2010 to boost economic growth, state media reported, citing a politburo meeting. Brent crude futures rose $1, or 1.4%, to $72.12 a barrel at 1356 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $1.09, or 1.6%, to $68.29. "Oil prices are likely to jump as monetary policy easing in China has boosted risk sentiment," said UBS analyst Giovanni Stauno. China's growth has stalled, as a slowdown in the property market has hit confidence and consumption. China's slowdown also led oil producer group OPEC+ to decide last week to postpone its plans for higher output until April. China will adopt a "moderately loose" monetary policy, a ter...

The State Bank of India (SBI) has projected that India's gross domestic product (GDP) will grow at 6.3% during the current financial year (FY25), lower than the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) forecast of 6.6%, which was revised upward from 7.2% earlier. "We believe GDP growth for FY25 will be lower than the RBI forecast and are pegging it at 6.3%," SBI said. On Friday, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das announced the central bank's revised estimate for GDP growth. This came after the country's economy grew at 5.4% in the July-September quarter of FY25, the lowest growth in seven quarters. This marked the first time in five years that the RBI revised its growth forecast upwards - in this case from 7% to 7.2% - but later lowered it. While such adjustments were common in previous years, th...