Current Affairs For Bank, IBPS Exams - 25 August, 2015

Current Affairs for BANK, IBPS Exams

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) deputy governor S.S. Mundra on Tuesday reiterated that the central bank would step in to prevent an “unruly or undue” volatility in the rupee.
Speaking on the sidelines of a banking conference organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), Mundra said RBI cannot target a particular level for the rupee, but can step in to ensure the Indian currency is not volatile.
Mundra said that the country is on the right path when it comes to the level of foreign exchange reserves and current account deficit. “...I would believe that in the medium to long term, we are on the right path.
The reform agenda is progressing in the right direction,” Mundra said, adding that India cannot be disconnected from global events.
The deputy governor’s comments came amid a sharp fall in the rupee in the last couple of weeks, just a day after RBI governor Raghuram Rajan said that India has $380 billion of foreign exchange to support the rupee.
The rupee is trading near two-year lows against the dollar after a fresh bout of risk aversion in emerging markets due to concerns on China’s economic growth.
The economists expect $5 billion to $6 billion of outflows from India mainly for deferred oil payments to Iran to be funded out of either RBI’s foreign exchange reserves or its forwards with banks.

India produced 136 million tonnes of iron ore last fiscal year ended March 31. About 1.5 million tonnes of ore are needed to make 1 tonne of steel, implying India's ore output will have to more than triple in 10 years if steel companies are to be self sufficient.
Most of the iron ore mines being sold are in the southern state of Karnataka, known for its high-quality ore. This will greatly benefit local steelmakers like JSW Steel.
Led by JSW's purchases, India's ore imports hit a record of over 15 million tonnes last fiscal year as global prices .IO62-CNI=SI collapsed.
India's new law to auction mines instead of handing them over to private firms without competition could, however, prompt South Korea's POSCO to scrap plans for a $12 billion steel project it agreed to set up in India a decade ago.
Kumar is attending a meeting in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's office on Tuesday to consider options for POSCO's plans for the steel plant in Odisha state that was billed as India's biggest foreign direct investment.
India & world

The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) has put a “status quo” in the Italian marines case and asked both India and Italy to “suspend” all court proceedings and refrain from initiating new ones that might “aggravate or extend” the dispute that triggered a diplomatic row.
Hearing Italy’s appeal, ITLOS president Vladimir Golitsyn asked the two countries to submit the initial report on the entire incident by September 24.
A senior government official said it was a partial victory for India as the court did not allow one of the accused marines to go home from Indian custody despite Italy’s plea.
He said they would wait for the final verdict by the apex body of ITLOS Annex VII arbitral tribunal, which would hear the case later on.

Wrestling coach Anoop Singh and Paralympics coach Naval Singh were among the five names officially approved by the Sports Ministry for the prestigious Dronacharya Awards this year.
Based on the recommendations of the Committee and after due scrutiny, Anoop and Naval’s names were approved on the basis of current performance (2011-2014), while Nihar Amin (swimming), S R Singh (boxing) and Harbans Singh (athletics) were selected in the ‘Lifetime Achievement Category’ in which achievements over a period of 20 years is taken into account.
The Dronacharya Award, instituted in 1985, are given to honour eminent coaches who have successfully trained sportspersons or teams and enabled them to achieve outstanding results in international competitions.
Three-time national champion and international wrestler, Anoop has guided top grapplers such as Sushil Kumar, Yogeshwar Dutt, Satyawart Kadian, Bajrang, Amit Dahiya, and around 58 wrestlers to achieve their dream.
Romeo James (hockey), Shiv Prakash Mishra (tennis) and TPP Nair’s (volleyball) names were approved for the Dhyan Chand Award.
Romeo James is a former India goalie and also took part in 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles where the Indian team finished fifth.
He also coached the Indian team in 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima and guided them to a silver.
The awards are to be given away by the President Pranab Mukherjee on August 29, the National Sports Day.