According to the latest data from Reserve Bank of India, Indian companies’ external commercial borrowings posted a 45 per cent drop to US$ 2.42 billion in January 2019, as compared to the corresponding period last year. The Indian companies, during January of the previous year, had raised $5.4 billion from international channels.
As per the Reserve Bank’s ECB data for January 2019, out of the total borrowings, Indian companies raised $2.27 billion through the automatic route of the ECB. The remaining $150 million was collected through the approval route. During the month of January, both in 2019 and 2018, no money was raised through rupee denominated bonds.
The biggest borrowers during the month under discussion were the state-owned oil marketing companies, which raised the money for their working capital requirement. These oil firms include Indian Oil Corporation Ltd which collected $900 million, whereas Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd raised $500 million and $200 million, respectively.
Another PSU, Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd, raised $228.55 million for power project meanwhile Reliance Home Finance Ltd collected $35.50 million for lending. Power Finance Corp was the only firm to raise $150 million for the sub-lending purpose.
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