I-Sec, the investment banking arm of ICICI Ltd, will soon approach the market to garner Rs 750 crore debt, while the short-term debt programme of STCI has been enhanced from Rs 100 crore to Rs 500 crore.

The Credit Rating Information Service of India Ltd has assigned a `P1+' rating to the Rs 750 crore short term debt programme I-Sec and to the Rs 500 crore short term debt (enhanced from Rs one crore) of Securities Trading Corporation of India Ltd (STCI).

Another rating agency--Icra--has retained the `A1+' rating assigned to the Rs 100 crore short term debt of STCI for an enhanced amount of Rs 500 crore.

"The Crisil ratings indicate highest safety and reflects the strongnetworth, favourable market position in the debt trading business and good profitability performance of the two primary dealers (PDs)," an agency release issued in Mumbai on Monday said.

The favourable liquidity position of STCI on account of the refinance support provided by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to the primary dealers and STCI's conservative leveraging policies have also benn factored in the rating, it added.

"I-Sec's rating also reflects its strengths derived from its ownership by ICICI Ltd," Crisil said.

STCI was promoted by RBI along with some banks and development financial institutions and currently operates with a paid-up capital of Rs 500 crore --the highest capitalisation among the 14 PDs currently in operation. Its income for the year 1998-99 increased to Rs 264.2 crore from Rs 224.4 crore in the last fiscal, mainly as a result of increased underwriting income and higher average stocks of government securities.

"While the interest rate and liquidity risks are inherent to thenature of operations of STCI, Icra continues to draw a high level of comfortn from its strong capitalisation, prudential guidelines adopted by the PD and its institutional ownership," an Icra release said.

Icra has also assigned an `A1+' rating to the Rs 75 crore commercial paper (CP) programme of Escorts Ltd. The rating indicates highest safety and the prospects of timely payment of debt/obligation is the best, Icra said, adding that the highest safety rating takes into account the established position of Escorts in the competitive tractor industry, presence in diverse range of HP segments which is likely to help it maintain its market share in short to medium term.

"The highest safety rating also takes into account the expected inflows from proposed divestments and recovery of group advances which is likely to result in comfortable liquidity position in the short term," Icra said, adding that the company registered a 6 per cent decline in the net sales from Rs 144.46 crore in 1997-98 to Rs 1078.80 crorein 1998-99 on account of seven per cent decline in the tractor sales as the company faced loss of production due to labour trouble.

"In the short run Escort's operating margins are expected to improve on account of the BPR exercise and the new productivity norms being achieved at the plants," Icra said.