Here is today’s important banking news to keep you updated and help you prepare for IBPS and other bank exams:

Important Banking News: RBI Survey Projects 2016-17 Gross Value Added at 7.8%

• Professional forecasters expect real Gross Value Added at basic price (GVA) to increase to 7.8 per cent in the next fiscal year from 7.4 per cent expected in 2015-16, says a Reserve Bank of India survey released on Friday.

• Output growth, measured using GVA, is likely to improve marginally in 2015-16 and further in 2016-17 and quarterly growth projections for the next five quarters indicate that growth is likely to peak in July-September period of 2016-17.
• “Forecasters expect real GVA at basic price to increase by 7.4 per cent in 2015-16 (and) in 2016-17, GVA is expected to increase by 7.8 per cent, led by growth in ‘services’ by 9.3 per cent,” the survey result posted by the RBI said.
• GVA is an internationally accepted measure to gauge economic activity in a country.
• The Central Statistical Office (CSO) will release estimates of GDP and GVA on Monday.
• Consumer Price Index-based inflation, or retail inflation, is likely to remain below 6 per cent till the third quarter of 2016-17. Medium-term growth and inflation expectations remained unchanged from the levels indicated in the last round of the survey.
• The wholesale price based inflation is expected to turn positive from the fourth quarter of 2015-16 and increase to 3 per cent in the third quarter of 2016-17.
• The rupee is expected to remain stable against the US dollar in the near future, said the survey.
• “Indian rupee is expected to remain within the range of Rs. 67 to Rs. 68 per dollar till third quarter of 2016-17,” it added. Twenty four professional forecasters participated in the latest survey round (Round 38) conducted in January 2016, the RBI said.

Important Banking News: RBI Open to Regulatory Changes, Says Deputy Governor Khan

• Reserve Bank is open to regulatory changes so as to give a boost to investment in infrastructure sector, its Deputy Governor H R Khan said on Friday.

• “We are open for regulatory changes as situation demand as nothing is cast in stone. We are sensitive to demand,” he said at India Investment Summit here.
• RBI has announced several steps in the last few months including with regard to external commercial borrowings (ECBs).
• The apex bank had relaxed ECB norms with fewer restrictions on end uses and allowed loans from sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and allowed loans from sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and insurers to attract more overseas fund.
• On rupee volatility, he said, “On a specific rate, I can’t comment. Our approach is to avoid undue volatility.”
• He, however, admitted that international environment will have impact on India and this has been highlighted in the policy statement.
• There will be rough patches which we will be able to ride over and we should see a phase where there is some sanity and stability because of our strong macros,” he said. He further said RBI governor has been proposing coordinated action with regard to currencies.
• “As far as currency is concerned, we are proposing a coordinated action,” he said.
• The current international economic situation is such that emerging nations cannot be ignored, he said, adding, emerging countries account for 80-85 per cent of the population which has to be factored.
• When emerging countries get affected the whole world gets affected, he added.
• On deepening of corporate bond market he said: “There is one working group set up under FSDC which I am coordinating with ministry of finance. We have looked at few proposals. Some preliminary findings are with the government. I think they will take a view.”