Chidambaram Favours Cheap Loans For Exporters

The finance ministry is in talks with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to make bank loans cheaper for exporters, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said on Friday, a move that could help reduce wide current account deficit by boosting export income.

Exporters have been lobbying to be included in a category of priority lending that guarantees easier access to bank credit and lower interest rates, a privilege usually reserved for agriculture and small businesses.

India's has the world's third largest current account deficit, a major factor in a recent rout of the rupee currency. Exports account for some 25 per cent of GDP.

(Reuters)