Economy News Notes:

Finance Ministry is working on savings bank account number portability that will allow a customer to retain his account number while changing his bank.
Banks would have to work on the identification code, Know Your Customer (KYC) norms and core banking solution (CBS) for implementing the savings bank account number portability.
- The move would help customers change banks, without the need of going through the KYC norms again.
Last year, the government had allowed portability of mobile numbers and health insurance policies.
In October last, the Reserve Bank of India had deregulated the interest rates on savings account deposits, following which few private sector lenders have hiked the rates to as much as 7 per cent.
The government has made a budget provision of Rs.6,000 crore for capital infusion in PSU banks in the current fiscal.
- State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, IDBI Bank and Syndicate Bank are some of the lenders which will be benefited by the capital infusion initiative of the government.

The banks in India will reportedly need up to Rs. 2.7 lakh crore in fresh capital if Basel III guidelines are implemented as per the proposed deadline set by Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Reports further said that with the proposed norms, the capital adequacy ratio will increase 2.5% to 11.5% by March 2017. Also, for the first time, banks have to maintain a leverage ratio, which will determine the extent of leverage of a bank.
The norms of RBI are stricter than those proposed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS), with respect to stipulated capital and leverage ratios being higher by 1% and 2%, respectively, and the implementation period being shorter by two years, added reports.

India's services sector grew at its fastest pace in five months in December riding on a surge in new business and expansion in employment, but rising input prices will likely add to inflationary pressures in the coming months, a survey showed.
The employment index, which expanded for the first time in six months, also added to the positive mood of December's survey.
Optimism over future business prospects remained strong and improved slightly in December from a near three-year low in November.
India's services sector includes the software services industry which gets more than 90 percent of its revenue from overseas clients.
The Reserve Bank of India, which has been consistently raising its key interest rates to battle inflation, kept rates on hold at its December 16 meeting as concerns over growth are seen taking precedence over inflation in 2012.
A similar survey of the manufacturing sector on Monday showed India's manufacturing activity hit a six-month high in December as factory output and new orders from domestic and international firms spiked.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs is likely to consider on Wednesday a formal proposal to mobilise additional resources through public sector undertakings.
- Such a policy is expected to cover the shortfall of disinvestment target of Rs 40,000 crore.
After feedback from various ministries, the Finance Ministry is expected to push for only buyback, not crossholding.
- Buyback of equities will make the companies part with reserves and surpluses.