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Here are the new Income Tax Rates for Indian Citizens for Financial Year April-1st 2010 to March-31st 2011. [See Chart Below]
In case of resident women (below 65 years of age) and resident senior citizens, the amount of INR 160,000 shall be replaced with INR 190,000 and INR 240,000, respectively. The proposed changes in tax slabs would result in (maximum) savings of INR 51,500.
Everest Kanto Cylinder (EKC), a pioneer in development and production of industrial and CNG cylinders, has received orders for export of CNG cylinders amounting to about $5 million. The execution of these orders is expected to be completed by May 2010.
Besides, the company’s overseas subsidiaries have also received orders in their respective locations. EKC International FZE, a wholly owned subsidiary of the company in Dubai, has received orders for the supply of CNG cylinders aggregating about $20 million. The execution of these orders has already started and is planned to be completed by May this year.
Read moreEverest Kanto and its arms bag orders aggregating $27 million
The growth of Indian private life insurers normalised to 14% YoY (-33% MoM) in January 2010, post December 2009, when growth had jumped to 59% YoY, ahead of the withdrawal of noncompliant products from January 2010. The industry APE growth was up 3% YoY (-27% MoM).
ICICI’s market share gains sustained (11.1% currently – up 190 bp over the last six months), whereas Bajaj and HDFC witnessed a sharp rise in this month (+127 bp and +94 bp MoM). SBI continued to be the strongest performer, with 27% YTD APE growth, whereas Kotak was the weakest performer (-21% YTD).
Read moreLife insurance sector growth normalizing + Valuation
HDFC Bank, over the weekend, raised deposit rates by a sharp 50-150 bp, which follows the 25-50 bp rate hike by ICICI Bank and IDBI earlier this month. Notably, this deposit rate action has come, even as system liquidity currently appears adequate (reverse repo outstanding at about USD 15 bn). As the loan growth (14.8% currently) accelerates and central bank tightens, this liquidity will also dry up soon.
As deposit growth (17%YoY) has fallen to a four-year low, with real deposit rates negative, banks need to raise rates.
As India is entering the peak season for construction (January to June), the industry reported a surge in cement demand of around +13% in January, Y-o-Y. Cement companies have witnessed strong volume growth on the back of increased government spending on housing, roads, ports & power stations and the momentum is expected to continue.
There is more to India’s food price inflation – which touched a decade-high 20% YoY in December 2009 – than just the drought. A fundamental tightness in the domestic demand-supply balance of food seems to have emerged over recent years. The spurt in wholesale prices of some food items in 2009 – sugar 35%, pulses 41%, milk 13% and eggs 24% – was the highest in over a decade and that could complicate monetary policy. Global food price trends alone do not explain the acceleration in food price inflation in India.