Current Affairs For Bank, IBPS Exams - 20 May, 2015

Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams

20 May 2015

Investment through P-Notes shrinking

Investments into Indian markets through participatory notes (P-Notes) have dropped to Rs.2.68 lakh crore ($42 billion) at the end of April, after hitting over 7-year high in the preceding month.
According to data released by Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), total value of P-Notes investment in Indian markets (equity, debt and derivatives) declined to Rs.2.68 lakh crore at the end of April, from Rs. 2.72 lakh crore at the preceding month-end.
Market experts are of the view that fears and uncertainty over the levy of minimum alternate tax (MAT) may have a negative impact on investment sentiment in India. In March this year, investment through P-Notes surged to the highest level since February 2008, when the cumulative value of such investments stood at Rs 3.23 lakh crore. However, the quantum (percentage) of FII investments through P-Notes rose to 11.4 per cent last month from 11.3 per cent in March.
Till a few years ago, P-Notes used to account for more than 50 per cent of the total FII investments, but their share has fallen after SEBI tightened the disclosure norms and other regulations for such investments.
What are Participatory Notes?
Participatory Notes or P-Notes are financial instruments issued by foreign institutional investors to investors and hedge funds who wish to invest in Indian stock markets. These are also called offshore derivative instruments.

Union Govt. to do away with RBI mandatory approval for FDI

With the aim to attract more foreign direct investment (FDI), Union government is planning to do away with mandatory approval of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) which currently is needed after an investment proposal has been approved by the foreign investment promotion board (FIPB). Till now, the government and RBI shared oversight over direct and indirect foreign investments.
To delete the requirement of RBI consent for cross-border transactions and acquisition or transfer of immovable property to foreigners, Union Government earlier in this month has amended the Section 6 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) has been amended in the Finance Bill 2015 which was approved the Parliament.
Under the proposed mechanism, all foreign investment proposals requiring government approval will only need FIPB (Foreign Investment Promotion Board) nod. The regulation under FEMA that required foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals to be examined by RBI, is being done away with, they said.
Currently, foreign investment is permitted either through the automatic route or the government approval route. The proposals under the approval route envisaging investment up to Rs 3,000 crore are cleared by FIPB and beyond that require Cabinet nod. The foreign investment is also subject to sectoral caps which are specified in the FDI policy.
The move is aimed at making it easier for doing business in India. India currently ranks 142 out of the 189 countries on Ease of Doing Business list.

Investment in Gilt Fund rises

Aided by a few rate cuts, gilt funds have outperformed the Sensex over periods of three months, six months and one year.
Gilt funds invest in medium and longterm government bonds and fetch maximum returns in a bond rally when prices of underlying assets rise. High networth individuals (HNIs) who bought gilt funds have been well rewarded.
With oil and commodity prices cooling off, the rupee stable relative to other currencies, and the RBI cutting repo rates by 50 basis points in two tranches, gilt funds have done well. According to Value Research, over the past six months, gilt funds have returned an average of 5.73%, while the Sensex lost 1.7%. For a one-year period, gilt funds are up 15.2%, while the Sensex is up 14.7%.
Gilt funds saw massive inflows of Rs 7,712 crore during the financial year ended March 2015. In comparison, these funds had witnessed an outflow of Rs 1,868 crore during the last financial year.

Indian Navy launch Fourth Anti Submarine Warfare Kavaratti in Kolkata

The Indian Navy launched its Fourth Anti Submarine Warfare (ASW) Corvette of Project-28, christened ‘Kavaratti’. The four ships of Project-28 built by GRSE, Kolkata have been designed indigenously by the Directorate of Naval Design, New Delhi and bear testimony to the acclaimed legacy of Naval Designers.
The ships have been constructed using high grade steel (DMR 249A) produced in India. With a displacement of 3300 tonnes, the sleek and magnificent ASW Corvettes span 109.1 meters in length and 13.7 meters at the beam. They are propelled by four diesel engines to achieve speeds in excess of 25 knots and have an endurance of more than 3000 Nm.
The P-28 corvettes also boast of "firsts" such as the revolutionary Rail-less Helo Traversing System, Foldable Hangar Door, use of Personnel Locator System and use of Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) Superstructure integrated with the Steel Hull in the third and fourth ships of the Class. These ships have common raft mounted Gear Box and Diesel Engines, which give the vessels very low radiated underwater noise. This is well complemented with an efficient propeller with very high cavitation inception speed.
The P-28 Ships also have Total Atmospheric Control System (TACS) and an Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS) which include Integrated Bridge System as well as Battle Damage Control System. The ASW Corvettes also incorporate new design concepts for improved survivability, sea keeping, stealth and manoeuvrability. Enhanced stealth features have been achieved by including Low Radar Cross Section (RCS) signature through full beam superstructure, inclined ship sides and reduced Infra Red (IR) signature by use of ‘Infra Red Suppression System (IRSS) device’ for cooling the Engine and Diesel Alternator exhausts. The ships are also equipped to carry and operate one multiple role helicopter.
Kavaratti will also be packed with an array of state of art weapons and sensors, including a Medium Range Gun (from M/s Bharat Heavy Electrical Ltd), Torpedo Tube Launchers as well as Rocket Launchers (from M/s Larsen & Tubro), Close-In Weapon System (from M/s Gun and Shell Factory) and Chaff System (from M/s Machine Tool Prototype Factory).
With significant indigenous content, the Ship is a true hall mark of self reliance attained by our country in warship design and ship building.

BCCI technical committee submitted its report

BCCI technical committee headed Anil Kumble has submitted its report to BCCI. In their report, the committee has recommended changes in the Ranji Trophy points system, group system for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in place of zonals and new format for Deodhar Trophy. The other following measures recommended by the committee are

One bonus point will be awarded to the team scoring 300 runs in 85 overs and one bonus point for the team taking seven wickets in 85 overs. The current system of awarding six points for an outright win and a bonus point (for an innings win or a 10-wicket win) will continue.
Tournaments format changes: The committee proposed to revamp the Deodhar Trophy by having three teams taking part (Vijay Hazare Trophy champion and two teams chosen by national selectors). In place of the current zonal system, it was proposed to change the format of the inter-State one-day seniors’ tournament and Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament by forming four groups from across the country.
Other observations: The committee recommended that the ICC protocols be followed in toto, which would further strengthen the current process in case of suspect bowling actions and remedial steps.
Wicket preparation: The committee expressed concern on the wicket preparation undertaken at some of the venues and suggested various measures to improve the reporting process.