Rbi Clerical Staff Stir Curbs Marts

The one-day strike by about 15,000 Reserve Bank of India (RBI) class III staff (clerical cadre) crippled activity foreign exchange and money markets as the clearing operations were virtually paralysed. The RBI's clearing houses clear cheques worth Rs 28,765 crore daily.

All India Reserve Bank Employees Association leader claimed that the strike is total and all clerks across RBI offices in India have abstained from joining work today.

The association called the strike to protest the central bank management's 'apathy and discrimination' towards its members. The RBI branded the strike as illegal. Trading in the call market was also very thin.

According to the dealers there were stary deals where the overnight money were dealt in the range of 6.80 per cent to 6.95 per cent. Large lenders rolled over trades struck on Wednesday. There was no bid for the one day repo auction though the some of the big public sector banks were flushed with liqudity.

Volumes in the government bond market were thin, with only a handful of bonds being dealt for settlement on Friday.

Total volumes at the debt market segment of the National Stock Exchange were to the tune of Rs 11 crore, down from an daily average of Rs 25 crore, dealers said. Trading in the corporate debt market was also subdued.

Foreign exchange dealers said cash dollar demand was slack due to the strike. In a thin market, the rupee closed at a new low today.

Earlier, the Forex Association of India, a grouping of authorised dealers, advised banks to roll over settlement of cash dollar deals by a day to Friday, due to the one-day strike as it had hit clearing operations. There were very few forward market deals as well.