MUMBAI: The govt on Friday said that it plans to borrow Rs 8.2 lakh crore between April and Sept this year under its Budget-approved borrowing programme, roughly half of the Rs 16.2 lakh crore in total. The borrowing for the first half of fiscal 2027 would be spread over 26 weekly auctions with about 25% of the total borrowing coming from longer-duration govt securities, that of 30-50-years tenures.Earlier in the day, the benchmark yield on the 10-year gilts hit an intra-day high at 6.95%, the level not seen since July 2024, as the war in West Asia is now threatening the govt’s fiscal numbers and raising chances of an economic slowdown.

Against the backdrop of a very uncertain market environment with high energy prices, currency depreciation and rising global fixed income yield, bond market players said that the govt’s announced borrowing calendar is likely to provide some relief to the ovareall market sentiment.According to Ramkamal Samanta, CIO, Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance, gilt market participants would feel positive from three factors: The recently concluded switch of govt bonds, the equally spread borrowing in FY27 and the lower share of long-dated papers compared to in FY26.

NEW DELHI: The Centre’s move to slash excise and impose windfall tax on diesel and aviation fuel will leave it poorer by around Rs 1.3 lakh crore if the energy crisis due to the West Asia conflict persists for a full year.An early resolution will reduce the pressure on oil prices and consequently on govt and oil companies. On Thursday, ratings agency ICRA had said that the recently set up Economic Stabilisation Fund can help offset some of the fiscal impact.For the moment, it has managed to ensure that consumers are fully protected as the oil retailers and govt will split the burden of higher crude prices. For the oil marketing companies (OMCs), which will have to take a hit during the March quarter, the impact will not be significant if the Indian basket remains around the current level of $112 a barrel.“With the recent reduction in excise duty and no change in the retail prices of petrol and diesel, OMCs are expected to break even at a crude oil price of around $106 a barrel for their refining and retailing operations, vis-à-vis around $90 a barrel before this excise duty cut,” CareEdge Ratings said in a note.For the current fiscal year, however, oil companies are fully protected as they raked in profits on every litre of petrol that was sold by them until the war broke out, just as the Centre was mopping up revenue, as the gains from lower oil prices were not passed on.For the states, revenue from VAT is likely to increase by at least Rs 25,000 crore in FY27, with Karnataka being the top gainer, SBI Research said in a report, while suggesting that they should lower the levy in line with the Centre.

MUMBAI: Credit-deposit ratio of banks hit an all-time high of 83% as of March 15, 2026, after deposits fell and credit continued to expand during the reporting fortnight.Aggregate deposits declined by Rs 1.8 lakh crore duCredit growth outpaced deposit mobilisation through the current financial year, with incremental credit at Rs 25.3 lakh crore exceeding incremental deposits of Rs 24.3 lakh crore. As a result, the incremental credit-deposit ratio stood at 103.9%. Historically, an 80% credit-deposit ratio is seen as healthy as it factors in the 3% of bank deposits that have to be maintained as cash reserves (CRR) and 18% in liquid govt bonds (statutory liquidity ratio) ring the fortnight to Rs 250 lakh crore, while bank credit rose by Rs 18,672 crore to Rs 207.6 lakh crore. According to data, the divergence between deposits and credit pushed the ratio to a record level.Credit growth outpaced deposit mobilisation through the current financial year, with incremental credit at Rs 25.3 lakh crore exceeding incremental deposits of Rs 24.3 lakh crore. As a result, the incremental credit-deposit ratio stood at 103.9%. Historically, an 80% credit-deposit ratio is seen as healthy as it factors in the 3% of bank deposits that have to be maintained as cash reserves (CRR) and 18% in liquid govt bonds (statutory liquidity ratio)The decline in deposits alongside the expansion in credit widened the gap between credit growth (13.8%) and deposit growth of (10.8%) for the financial year.Before the current financial year, the last period when credit-deposit ratio consistently crossed 100% was between late 2022 and late 2023, covering FY23 and early FY24. During the pandemic recovery phase, pent-up corporate and retail credit demand surged at 16%-17% YoY, while deposit growth lagged at 9%-10%, keeping the ratio in the 100%-130% range.Part of the recent credit surge reflects a change in reporting dates from alternate Fridays to the 15th and 30th of each month, which captures quarter-end disbursements by banks.

MUMBAI: The day the war in West Asia completed a month, Dalal Street witnessed one of its most brutal sell-offs since the conflict began on Feb 28. During Friday’s session, with sensex-heavyweight Reliance Industries tanking 4.6%, the index closed 1,690 points or 2.3% lower at 73,583 points.The crash in RIL’s stock price that came on the back of imposition of windfall tax on petro-product exporters by govt, the rupee’s slide to a record low level against the dollar, rising bond yields and strong foreign fund selling, all because of the war in West Asia, led to Friday’s slide in stocks, market players said.

Sensex tanks 1690 points

The sell-off left investors poorer by nearly Rs 9 lakh crore with BSE’s market capitalisation now at Rs 422.2 lakh crore, exchange data showed.Foreign funds were again the main sellers of stocks with the net outflow figure at Rs 4,367 crore, BSE data showed.Since the war between the US-Israel and Iran started, the sensex has lost a little over 7,700 points or 9.5% while investors are poorer by about Rs 41.4 lakh crore. During the same period, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have net taken out a little over Rs 1.1 lakh crore from the domestic stock market, data from NSDL and BSE showed.

According to Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments, Indian equities ended lower after a volatile session as rising bond yields coupled with negative cues from western markets and mixed Asian performance kept investors on the edge. Nair feels that the near-term sentiment for market remained fragile amid geopolitical risks and potential earnings downgrades due to supply shocks.

MUMBAI: For the first time in nearly 15 years, the RBI has placed curbs on the size of bets that banks can take in the currency markets, taking away powers, hitherto, vested with bank boards. The move comes at a time when the rupee is under pressure due to a combination of sales by foreign institutional investors, a rise in the oil import bill, and the overhang of tariffs and visa curbs on exports.RBI’s direction on Friday caps banks’ net open position in rupee at $100 million, effective April 10, 2026, citing “market conditions.” Hitherto, the net open position limit was fixed by the boards of banks.Bankers said that while speculation helps provide liquidity in the forex market, in volatile times, when markets are one-sided, such bets can be self-fulfilling.Post-2013, banks set their own Net Overnight Open Position Limits (NOOPL) up to 25% of Tier I/II capital, with RBI reserving discretion to impose market-driven caps. In Dec 2011, RBI had curbed net open position limits in currency trading by 75% for some banks and 50% for top banks. The move had come after the domestic currency weakened by as much as 20%.

Incidentally, RBI had in Jan issued draft directions on calculating net open position and capital charge for foreign exchange risk, inviting comments from stakeholders. The central bank had proposed the new rules to come into effect from April 1, 2027. The new norms also seek to remove the separate calculation for offshore and onshore net open positions.