MUMBAI, 10 November: Indians are borrowing faster than they are saving in banks. Bank credit rose to ₹2,27,42,777 crore in the fortnight ended October 15, about 18.2% more than a year earlier, while deposits grew about 16.7% to ₹2,78,75,910 crore, according to Reserve Bank of India data released.
Over the year, banks added ₹35,07,023 crore of loans against ₹39,92,695 crore of new deposits. That means about ₹88 of every ₹100 of fresh deposits went straight back out as lending.
Strong lending usually means families buying homes and vehicles and companies borrowing to expand. The other side is that banks will need more deposits to keep it going. For savers, that tends to mean slightly better rates on fixed deposits.
SBI’s earnings gather pace as bad loans shrink
MUMBAI, 10 November: State Bank of India, the country’s largest lender, earned a standalone net profit of ₹23,038 crore in the July-September quarter, 14.3% more than a year earlier, according to its November 3 results as reported by JM Financial and Equitybulls.
Interest income from lending, net of what it pays depositors, rose 14.69% to ₹49,143 crore.
Bad loans kept shrinking. Gross non-performing assets fell to 1.39% of loans from 1.47% in the previous quarter, and net bad loans to 0.36%, Sarkaritel reported. Cheaper provisioning for bad loans did much of the work in lifting profit.
SBI is majority-owned by the Government of India, so a stronger SBI also means a larger dividend to the exchequer.
India crosses the 100-GM milestone
CHENNAI, 10 November: Indian chess reached a round number. Anuj Shrivatri of Madhya Pradesh became India’s 100th Grandmaster by winning the 7th ASEAN Plus Individual Open Chess Championship in the Philippines, All India Radio and The Week reported on November 9 and 8.
He is also Madhya Pradesh’s first Grandmaster. The 22-year-old, rated 2450 by FIDE, lost his first-round game and then fought back through the rest of the event, according to reports.
“Congratulations, Anuj! A proud moment for Indian chess. Onwards to 200 Grandmasters!” All India Chess Federation president Nitin Narang wrote on X.
The milestone says something about where Indian chess now grows. For years the title came mostly from Tamil Nadu and other southern centres. A first Grandmaster from Madhya Pradesh is a sign that coaching, online play and tournament access have spread inland.
Niveditha fires India to double medal success
DOHA, 10 November: Niveditha Veloor Nair won bronze in the women’s 25m standard pistol at the ISSF World Championship in Doha with a score of 567-13x. China’s Xiao Jiaruixuan won gold with 569 and Hungary’s Veronika Major silver with 568.
Nair then teamed up with Manvi Jain and Simranpreet Kaur Brar to win the team silver with 1,682-33x, All India Radio reported on November 9. Jain finished 8th and Brar 10th in the individual event.
India’s tally at the championship has risen to seven medals, one gold, five silver and one bronze, according to All India Radio.
Medals in a non-Olympic pistol event still count. They show depth in women’s pistol shooting heading into the cycle for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
