Bank stocks advance on hopes of interest rate cut by RBI

Shares of seventeen banks rose by 0.88% to 5.38% at 12:15 IST on BSE on hopes that the Reserve Bank of India could ease interest rates further after latest data showed that consumer price inflation eased to a six-month low in March.

Among public sector banks, Union Bank of India (up 3.26%), State Bank of India (up 2.29%), Punjab National Bank (up 2.22%), Syndicate Bank (up 0.88%), Corporation Bank (up 1.28%), Indian Overseas Bank (up 0.82%), Bank of Baroda (up 1.81%), Vijaya Bank (up 1.62%), IDBI Bank (up 1.58%) and Canara Bank (up 2.55%) edged higher.

Among private sector banks, ICICI Bank (up 5.38%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 2.35%), IndusInd Bank (up 1.02%), Federal Bank (up 1.36%), Yes Bank (up 1.4%) and HDFC Bank (up 1.29%) edged higher.

Axis Bank gained 1.9% after the bank said that the Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate (MCLR) for overnight loans will be 8.95%, for one month will be 9.05% and for three months will be 9.25%. The MCLR on 6-month loans will be 9.3% and for one-year loans the rate would be 9.35%. MCLR on two-year loans will be 9.45% and for three years loans will be 9.5%, the bank said. Meanwhile, the bank also announced reduction in the base rate by 5 basis points to 9.45% from 9.5% effective from 18 April 2016. The announcement was made before market hours today, 13 April 2016.

The cut in lending rate follows reduction in policy rates by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) after a scheduled policy review on 5 April 2016. The RBI cut its benchmark policy rate viz. the repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.5% from 6.75% on 5 April 2016. At that time, the central bank also announced the fine-tuning of its liquidity management framework. While retaining the accommodative stance of the monetary policy, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan indicated in his monetary policy statement that the RBI may cut the repo rate further in the coming months if macroeconomic and financial developments provide room for further rate cut.

The BSE Bankex was up 2.38% at 18,510.93. It outperformed the S&P BSE Sensex, which was up 1.63% at 25,554.78

The BSE Bankex had outperformed the market over the past one month till 12 April 2016, rising 12.61% compared with 1.73% rise in the Sensex. The index, however, underperformed the market in past one quarter, falling 7.73% as against Sensex's 1.88% rise.

On the macro front, data showed that inflation based on consumer price index (CPI) dipped to six month low of 4.83% in March 2016, with the index easing for second straight month. The CPI inflation for February 2016 was revised slightly upward to 5.26% from the provisional figure of 5.18% reported earlier. Both the CPI and industrial production data were announced after market hours yesterday, 12 April 2016.

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