Top listed firms report an improvement in their debt servicing ability

There is some good news for banks struggling with higher non-performing loans in the corporate sector, as top listed firms reported an improvement in their debt servicing ability as defined by the interest coverage ratio (ICR) during nine months of FY18.

However, this was true only of firms with lower debt or light assets. Debt-laden ones reported a further decline in their debt servicing ability during 9M FY18.
 
The ICR for 1,056 firms (ex-financials, energy & IT services) improved to 4.4 during the April-December 2017 period.
 
Analysts attribute this to an improvement in corporate profitability in the