S&P 500 closes above 1,800 first time

The stock market brushed past another milestone Friday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index closed above 1,800 for the first time, capping seven straight weeks of gains. The broader index is on track for its best performance in 15 years as a combination of solid corporate earnings, a strengthening economy and easy-money policies from the Federal Reserve draw investors to stocks. Stocks have also gained because they offer an attractive alternative to bonds, where interest rates remain close to all-time lows. "You can't really get better returns other than in the stock market," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital. "It's been a quality run-up in stocks." The S&P 500 index rose 8.91 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,804.76. The index has advanced 26.5 percent in 2013. If it finishes at that level, it would be its strongest year since a 26.7 percent gain in 1998. The Dow Jones industrial average also continued its upward march after finishing above 16,000 for the first time Thursday. The index gained 54.78 points, or 0.3 percent, to 16,064.77. The Nasdaq composite rose 22.49 points, or 0.6 percent, to 3,991.65. On Friday, health care stocks led the market's rise. Biotechnology company Biogen Idec surged on reports that it won market exclusivity for its top-selling multiple sclerosis drug in Europe. The company's stock jumped $33.19, or 13 percent, to $285.62. Health care stocks have also led gains in the S&P 500 this year, rising 38 percent. The industry is attractive to investors. Some of its companies, including Biogen, offer the possibility of explosive growth.

Bharatiya Mahila Bank

Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has given the speech at the inauguration of Bharatiya Mahila Bank in Mumbai. "I am grateful to the Chairperson of the Bharatiya Mahila Bank for the warm welcome. I am happy to add my words of welcome to the Prime Minister, the Chairperson of the UPA, the Governor, the Chief Minister, Shri Sharad Pawar, Farooq Abdullah, Ministers, Members of Parliament and this distinguished gathering. I had asked M.B.N. Rao, former Chairman, Canara Bank, to head a committee to draw the blue print for the Mahila Bank. 

The report was submitted in a record time of two months and, six months later, after working FM said "Empowerment of women is one of the articles of faith of the UPA government. The Bharatiya Mahila Bank is not – I repeat, not – a symbol of empowerment of women. It is the substance of empowerment of women, along with many other measures that the Government has taken and will take in the future. Only 26% of women in India admit to having a bank account. On the other hand, four public sector banks including State Bank of India and several private sector banks have a woman at the head of the Bank, and I am glad many of them are here today. The obvious conclusion is that, despite good intentions, there is deep-seated bias, at the institutional and individual levels, against women. 

Since fewer women than men have bank accounts, fewer women are able to get loans. Per capita credit in the case of women is 80 percent lower than in the case of men. Hence the need for a bank that predominantly serves women – from the self-help groups to the small business women and from the working woman to the high networth individual." "Bank credit is expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 16.5 percent during the twenty year period from 2010 to 2030. That will mean a twenty-fold increase from the level of credit in 2010. 

The deposit base is expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 14.6 percent, that is 14 times the level of deposits in 2010. Assuming that the share of credit for women remains the same – which should not be the case and the share must increase – even at that level total credit to women will grow to Rs. 25 lakh crore. There is, therefore, an opportunity to reach more credit to more women. I am sure the Bharatiya Mahila Bank will seize the opportunity and multiply it manifold.