Banking Awareness of 11, 12 and 13 May 2024

Topic: Indian Economy/Financial Market

1. China was the largest trading partner of India with $118.4 billion trade in 2023-24.

• According to the data of economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), US was India’s second largest trading partner with $118.3 billion.
• US was the top trading partner of India during 2021-22 and 2022-23.
• As per the data, India’s exports to China increased by 8.7% to $16.67 billion in the last fiscal.
• Imports from China increased by 3.24% to $101.7 billion.
• India’s exports to the US declined by 1.32% to $77.5 billion in 2023-24 in comparison to $78.54 billion in 2022-23.
• India’s imports from US declined by about 20% to $40.8 billion, the data showed.
• India’s exports to China declined marginally by 0.6% from $16.75 billion to $16.66 billion.
• India’s imports from China increased by 44.7% from $70.32 billion to $101.75 billion.
• Trade deficit between India and China has increased from $53.57 billion in FY2019 to $85.09 billion in FY2024.
• India’s exports to US increased significantly by 47.9% from $52.41 billion to $77.52 billion.
• Imports from the US increased by 14.7% from $35.55 billion to $40.78 billion.
• As a result, trade surplus for Indian grew from $16.86 billion to $36.74 billion.
• In 2023-24, the UAE was India’s third largest trading partner with USD 83.6 billion.
• It was followed by Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore.

Topic: Regulatory Bodies/Financial Institutions

2. Competition Commission of India (CCI) has changed its confidentiality ring regime to make it more modern and efficient.

• Under the amended regime, involved parties must self-certify their confidentiality claims through affidavits.
• Strict timelines for setting up a Confidentiality Ring has been introduced by CCI.
• The timeline to request the setup of a Confidentiality Ring has been extended by CCI from 7 to 10 days after receiving the non-confidential investigation report.
• CCI has increased the duration of access to file inspections. The fees for access to file have been increased from ₹ 1,000 to ₹ 2,500.
• CCI has increased the duration of the slots from 1 hour to 2 hours.
• About Confidentiality ring:
  • Confidentiality ring regime provides access to commercially sensitive and confidential information to such authorised persons who are appointed by the parties during proceedings before CCI.
  • CCI introduced this “Confidentiality Ring” concept in April 2022.
  • This was introduced to provide comfort to the corporates sharing commercial information with CCI.

Topic: Indian Economy/Financial Market

3. FPIs have withdrawn Rs 17,000 crore from Indian equities in first ten days of May.

• This amount is higher than a net withdrawal of Rs 8,700 crore in April.
• In April, the concerns for withdrawal were changes in India’s tax treaty with Mauritius and a sustained increase in US bond yields.
• In May, FPIs have withdrawn because of political uncertainty amid general election coupled with high valuations and profit booking.
• FPIs have made a net investment of ₹35,098 crore in March. They have made a net investment of ₹1,539 crore in February.
• FPIs have withdrawn a net amount of ₹14,860 crore in equities in 2024 so far.
• However, they made investment of ₹14,307 crore in debt market.
• The volatility index (Vix) reached 18.4 (the highest in 2024) this past week. It is also known as a fear gauge.
• Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) experienced a net outflow of ₹17,083 crore in equities till May 10.

Topic: RBI

4. R Lakshmi Kanth Rao has been appointed as Executive Director (ED) by RBI.

• He has been appointed with effect from 10 May.
• He was earlier serving as Chief General Manager-in-Charge in the Department of Regulation.
• He has now been promoted as ED. He will look after the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation, Right to Information Act and Department of Communication.
• He has experience of more than three decades in the Reserve Bank.
• He has worked in the areas of Regulation of Banks and NBFCs, Supervision of Banks and Consumer Protection.
• He had served as Banking Ombudsman at RBI Chennai.
• He had served as Regional Director of Uttar Pradesh at Lucknow.

Topic: Banking System

5. Yes Bank and Ebanx have partnered to facilitate cross-border e-commerce for customers.

• The aim of the partnership is to facilitate for global merchants to sell to Indian customers.
• The partnership also aims to make cross-border shopping easier for Indians.
• Ebanx is a fintech focused on cross-border e-commerce payments.
• Yes Bank was founded in 2004. It is headquartered in Mumbai. Prashant Kumar is its MD and CEO.   

Topic: Reports and Indices

6. According to the PM-EAC study, the Hindu population in India decreased by 7.8%, and the Muslim population increased by 43%.

• According to a study published by the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM), the share of India's majority Hindu population declined by 7.81% between 1950 and 2015, while the share of the Muslim community increased by 43.15% over the same period.
• According to the study "Share of Religious Minorities: A Cross-Country Analysis," during this period, India's Hindu population share decreased from 7.8% to 78.06%.
• On the other hand, during the same period, the proportion of Muslims and Christians increased from 43.15% to 14.09% and 5.4% to 2.36% of the total population respectively.
• Similarly, during the same period, the share of Sikh and Buddhist population witnessed an increase of 1.85% and 0.81% respectively.
• However, the share of Jains and Parsis in the population mix declined and stood at 0.36% and 0.004% respectively in 2015.

Topic: RBI

7. RBI lifted restrictions from Bank of Baroda's BoB World app.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to lift restrictions on Bank of Baroda's BoB World app.
• RBI has allowed the Bank of Baroda's BoB World app to onboard customers.
• In October 2023, the RBI directed the Bank of Baroda to suspend any onboarding of customers onto its 'BoB World' mobile application due to certain supervisory concerns.
• Before the ban (September 2023), the app saw 7.95 million daily transactions which dropped to 7.19 million by December 2023 (post-ban).
• The percentage of fixed deposits (FDs) and recurring deposits (RDs) opened through Bob World also declined.
• As per the RBI directive, the Bank of Baroda has implemented corrective actions to rectify the issues.
• Bank of Baroda has improved its security procedures for onboarding new customers.

Topic: Reports and Indices

8. India is poised to become the world's third-largest consumer market by 2026, surpassing Germany and Japan.

• According to UBS's 'India Economic Perspectives' report, India is set to consolidate its position as a global economic powerhouse and become the world's third-largest consumer market by 2026.
• The forecast has been revealed as India's consumer market continues to grow and expand.
• Over the past ten years, the country's consumer market has grown and shown extraordinary resilience and growth despite facing many challenges.
• According to the report, India will overtake Germany by 2024 and Japan by 2026 and strengthen its position as a global economic superpower.
• In 2023, India's household consumption is projected to grow to US$2.1 trillion with a compound annual growth rate of 7.2%, almost double from the previous decade.
• This growth rate has overtaken major economies like China, America and Germany.
• The impressive growth trajectory positions India as one of the fastest-growing economies and the fifth-largest consumer market globally.

Topic: Indian Economy/Financial Market

9. India’s industrial production increased by 4.9% in March 2024.

• The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) increased by 4.9% in comparison to the same period last year.
• As per Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation’s latest data, the quick estimates of IIP for March 2024 stood at 159.2.
• Manufacturing sector has shown the highest growth rate of 5.2%.
• It is followed by electricity at 8.6%, and mining at 1.2%.
• Within the manufacturing sector, basic metals, pharmaceuticals, and other transport equipment have shown growth rates of 7.7%, 16.7%, and 25.4% respectively.
• The cumulative growth rate for April-March 2023-24 was 5.8% in comparison to the previous year.
• In March 2024 compared to March 2023, primary goods, capital goods, intermediate goods, infrastructure/construction goods, consumer durables, and consumer non-durables all have shown growth.

Topic: Corporates/Companies

10. ISO 42001:2023 Certification for Artificial Intelligence Management System is granted to Infosys.

• Infosys announced that it has been certified with ISO 42001:2023, the world's first international standard on AI management systems.
• Infosys is among the first IT services companies globally to earn certification for implementing an Artificial Intelligence Management System (AIMS) framework.
• The Artificial Intelligence Management System (AIMS) framework will promote AI practices and adherence to regulatory requirements for enhanced efficiency and accountability in AI initiatives.
• This AIMS framework is part of the Infosys Topaz Responsible AI Suite.
• The ISO 42001:2023 certification will provide a roadmap and systematic approach for AI management.
• The Infosys Topaz Responsible AI Suite objective is to monitor and protect AI models and systems from risks and threats.

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