RBI becomes first central bank in Asia to cut rates this year

STOCK MARKET - The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut its main policy rate on Wednesday by a quarter percentage point to a more than 6-1/2 year low, saying a slump in inflation opened room for monetary easing, while pinning further action on upcoming economic data.

The rate cut is the RBI's first easing move since one of the same size in October and the first by a central bank in Asia since December - a show of confidence in a country that has experienced a surge in foreign investments into debt and shares this year.

Cutting the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.00 per cent - the lowest since November 2010 - had been widely anticipated as a slump in food prices sent June consumer inflation to a more than five-year low of 1.54 per cent.

The RBI said easing prices had provided "some space" for monetary policy accommodation: inflation is now well below the RBI's 4 per cent target and its projection of 2.0-3.5 per cent in April-September.

The rate cut will likely ease some of the pressure from the government and markets for action to lift the economy, which had annual growth in January-March of 6.1 percent - fast by global standards but India's lowest number in over two years.

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Rate sensitive stocks slip as RBI cuts repo rate by 25 bps to 6%

STOCK MARKET - Shares of rate sensitive sectors such as financials, automobiles and real estate were trading lower after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the repo rate and reverse repo rate by 25 bps at 6% and 5.75%, respectively, at Wednesday's third Bi-monthly monetary policy, keeping in line with what analysts and experts had forecast.

At 2:55 PM; Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Private Bank index trading lower by 0.3% each, while Nifty Auto, Nifty and Nifty Realty indices fell 0.4% each on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), as compared to 0.4% decline in the Nifty 50 index.


Only Punjab Nation Bank and Axis Bank were trading in green while IDFC Bank, IndusInd Bank, Canara Bank, HDFC Bank, Federal Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), and Bank of Baroda were quoting in red on NSE.

Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) and Bajaj Auto from automobiles and Unitech, Oberoi Realty, Godrej Properties and Sobha from real estate were down in the range of 1% to 4%.

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Your Loan Eligibility Holds the Key to Your Dream Home

LATEST NEWS – Have you ever been hounded by telemarketers urging you to apply for a loan? Calls, text messages, WhatsApp or even meeting you in person, representatives of financial companies leave no stone unturned when it comes to convincing you to take a loan.

But how is the LOAN ELIGIBILITY application processed? Do lenders really bend over backwards to hand you the loan cheque? It does not quite work that way.

Yes, sales personnel employed by financial institutions are aggressive in their attempts to lure you. They have to be; their commissions depend on it. And if one takes the bait and applies for a loan, the situation is likely to change by the time the application is processed.

It is the borrower who is expected to satisfy the credit parameters and fulfil all the eligibility criteria for the Home Loan.

Let’s get down to the basics. What do you think is the main eligibility criteria for taking a Home Loan?

The simple answer is the borrower’s ability to repay the loan.

This means the income of the loan applicant must be enough to pay the instalments on time. The lender provides a schedule for paying the equated monthly instalments (EMIs).

With interest rates favourable, now is as good a time to take a Home Loan as any. And non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) such as BAJAJ FINSERV offer instant approvals and Home Loans at attractive interest rates when you apply online.

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