ICICI Bank, India’s largest private sector lender, reported a 17 per cent growth in its standalone net profit to Rs 2,655 crore in the April-June quarter, compared with Rs 2,274 crore in the year-ago quarter, on the back of both higher core and fee income.

The profit numbers were slightly higher than a Bloomberg consensus estimate of Rs 2,592.8 crore. However, the stock closed lower by 1.1 per cent to Rs 1,473 a share on the BSE on Thursday, while overall indices were down 0.74 per cent.

MUMBAI: Solid gains in Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank and HDFC shares helped the benchmark sensex on Wednesday log its first rise in three sessions and end about 96 points higher to reclaim the 26,000 level despite sharp losses suffered by Larsen &Toubro.

Following the Reserve Bank of India's move to exempt cash reserve ratio and statutory liquidity ratio on funds raised via long-term infrastructure bonds, ICICI Bank, the country's largest private sector bank, is planning to raise Rs 1,000 crore of funds by issuing such papers.

The lender is planning to issue 10-year bonds worth Rs 500 crore with an equal over-allotment option, people familiar with the development told Business Standard. The coupon rate of these semi-annual, 10-year bonds is likely to be 9.15 per cent.

Banking shares are trading higher by up to 6% in early morning deals on National Stock Exchange (NSE) after consumer price index (CPI)-based inflation fell to 7.31% in June, the lowest since its launch in January 2012.

Its wholesale counterpart declined to a four-month low of 5.43% in the month and wholesale price inflation eased to a four-month low in June after the new government curbed farm exports.

ICICI Bank, the largest private sector lender in the country, has outpaced its rivals in growing its credit card base during financial year 2013-14 (April-March). The lender, which had reduced its unsecured lending following the global financial crisis, has now started offering credit cards selectively to individuals who did not have a prior banking relationship with it. But its primary focus remains offering cards to its existing customers.

The country's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank on Monday said it plans to open branches in Australia, South Africa and Mauritius.

The city-headquartered bank has received the regulatory clearances to open the branches and will also upgrade its representative office in China, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Chanda Kochhar told reporters on the sidelines of its 20th annual general meeting here.

The benchmark BSE Sensex bounced back by 225 points in early trade on fresh buying in banking, capital goods, consumer durables, power and realty stocks on the back of higher Asian cues.

Asian stocks firmed up ahead of a packed week of economic data that will test investor hopes for a pick-up in the US as well as the global economy.

Markets have come off morning highs as weakness in counters like ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel and M&M weighed on the indices. At 1130 hrs, the Sensex was up 80 points at 25,143 and the Nifty was up 22 points to trade at 7,514.

In the broader markets, the smallcap index surged 0.6% and the midcap index was up 0.4%, both outperforming the Sensex which was up 0.3%.

Private banks appear to have managed credit risks better than their state-run counterparts, trimming their exposure to stressed sectors and shifting focus to the retail segment.

“Most private banks continued to report healthy asset quality, driven by the retail segment. Though there is some visible stress in the corporate sector, this remains manageable, given limited exposure...Some banks, with meaningful exposure to power, infrastructure, etc, have been reducing their exposure through recent years,” Deutsche Bank said in a note, after analysing the annual reports of private banks for 2013-14.

Markets extended gains in noon deals with the benchmark indices at day highs, led by gains in realty, power and consumer durable companies.

At 1400 hrs, the Sensex was up 377 points at 25,409 and the Nifty advanced nearly 100 points to trade at 7,590.

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