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    Indian private banks' bond buys hit near three-yr high in Dec

    Synopsis

    INDIA-BANKS/Indian private banks' bond buys hit near three-yr high in Dec

    Indian private banks' bond buys hit near three-yr high in DecETMarkets.com
    Indian private sector banks are set to post their biggest monthly purchase of government bonds in the secondary market in nearly three years in December, largely due to a rise in deposit growth, bankers said on Monday.

    Private banks have bought bonds worth a net of 216.20 billion rupees ($2.61 billion) this month through Friday, the most since March 2020, Clearing Corporation of India Ltd data showed.

    Bankers said higher yields make for an attractive entry point, while the pick-up in deposit growth has also been a key reason for banks to invest more in government securities, a trend they expect to continue this week and beyond.

    "The major reason why private banks have increased buying bonds is because of the deposit growth that they have witnessed recently," said Arun Bansal, executive director and head of treasury at IDBI Bank.

    "Banks may also be looking to buy at high yields, with expectations of (interest) rate cuts next year, and gain on the holding period."

    India's benchmark 7.26% 2032 bond yield was trading at 7.33% on Monday, up five basis points so far in December, but off the low of 7.18% hit earlier in the month.

    Treasury officials said as banks' deposit growth increases, so does the demand to meet statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) requirements, which is another reason for the recent rise in bond purchases.

    SLR is the minimum percentage of deposits that commercial banks are required to invest in liquid assets, such as government bonds and state debt. The ratio is currently 18%.

    "As bank balance sheets expand, the need to hold something more will keep banks on the investment book as well. It is not going to decline," said Rajeev Mohan, president and head - treasury and global markets at Kotak Mahindra Bank.

    Banks have been raising funds through bonds, certificates of deposit and by raising fixed deposit rates over the past few weeks.

    Bankers said while state-run banks have been holding excess SLR, that was not the case with private banks.

    "When there is an increase in economic activity, the speed of money going around increases and the need to maintain frictional liquidity (short-term funds) at banks also increases," Mohan said.

    "In this case, banks need to be more liquid ... Hence, I am not expecting a dip in demand from banks." ($1 = 82.7800 Indian rupees)



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    Download The Economic Times News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.

    Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the Economic Times ePaper Online.and Sensex Today.

    Top Trending Stocks: SBI Share Price, Axis Bank Share Price, HDFC Bank Share Price, Infosys Share Price, Wipro Share Price, NTPC Share Price

    ...more
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