Trouble ahead for banks

Higher provisioning to dent profit, return ratios of most in Q4 and beyond

If one goes by the initial March quarter (fourth or Q4 of 2016-17) results of the relatively stronger pack of individual loan-focused private banks, investors should brace for a weak show from the others.

This applies particularly to the corporate-heavy private ones, ICICI and Axis, as well as most public sector banks (PSBs). Notably, the continuing stress faced by corporate India has weakened their debt-servicing capability; this is reflected in the banks' books, as yet-burgeoning bad loans. Retail (sector jargon for individual)-focused private lenders such as HDFC Bank and IndusInd Bank, among others, have been relatively better off on the