Is India headed for a recession
A question I get asked often these days is this: Is India headed for a recession? The standard definition of recession is a drop in GDP for at least two consecutive quarters. […]
ROUGH TIME FOR INDIAN EQUITY MARKETS
The 2019-20 budget is done and dusted. As with most Indian budgets, this one too was a big yawner except in its implications for the stock market.
Any prediction about the […]
MODI HAPPENED AT THE RIGHT TIME FOR INDIAN DEMOCRACY
Truth is not the first casualty of war alone; it is the first casualty of populism
Today’s world is being increasingly shaped by charismatic leaders. In the US, Europe, and more […]
INDIA’S FIRST REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST (REIT)
Stable, liquid and transparent financial markets are a necessary condition for the growth of a modern economy. An economy grows by developing new products and services and incubating new ideas, and this […]
CONTRADICTORY MOVES IN INTEREST RATES
There are broadly two kinds of pension plans. In defined benefit plans, the employer guarantees a fixed (defined) pension benefit to the employee upon retirement. The risk associated with investing the pension […]
ABOLISH THE ANGEL INVESTOR TAX
We live in the age of entrepreneurship. The vast majority of products, services and technologies we use today come from new start-ups, and over 70 per cent of global employment is attributed […]
INDIA’S LOST DECADE
Countries pass through stages on the road to economic prosperity. Economist W.W.Rostow postulated five such stages of economic development: the traditional society, pre-take-off, take -off, drive-to-maturity, and period of mass consumption.
<p style="text-align: […]INDIA’S ATLAS SHRUGGED
It is estimated that since 2014 about 23,000 millionaires have left India to settle in other countries (Morgan Stanley). The vast majority of […]
TIME TO SELL STOCKS?
In an article dated May 31st, 2017, I wrote that the Indian stock market had room to run on the upside and that a 20% increase over the next two […]
WATERING DOWN EMINENCE
What comes to mind when you hear the word “eminent” ? Most reasonable people would associate eminence with someone that has attained a level of achievement far beyond others through years of hard work, […]
NOT HEDGING OIL PRICES IS REALLY DUMB
Governments and bureaucracies were never designed to produce strategic thinking and efficient outcomes. Decision making requires courage, and when the primary objective is […]
WHAT MODI CAN LEARN FROM TRUMP
The New York Times (NYT) is as rabidly anti-Trump as any other newspaper in the world. So recently (June 1, 2018) when the […]
POOR PLANNING SCREWS UP THE AIR INDIA DEAL
Recently the government put Air India up for sale. Predictably, they made the terms of the deal so onerous that there were no […]
POLITICS AND INDIA: A DEEP EMOTIONAL CONNECT
India will hold its national elections in the next 12 months. Indians love their politics and emotions are sure to get charged up. The evening news will be full of shouting matches, […]
TIME FOR INDIAN VOTERS TO WAKE UP
Governments never learn–only people learn. Voting, therefore, is a right best exercised by people who have taken time to learn about the issues
It will soon be election time in India–a […]
INDIA NEEDS LEADERS NOT POLITICIANS
We need leaders not in love with money but in love with justice. Not in love with publicity but in love with humanity. Leaders who can subject their particular egos to the pressing urgencies […]
INDIA NEEDS A STRONGER RUPEE
Since January 2018 the Indian Rupee (INR) has depreciated almost 6% against the US Dollar. Over the last seven years, the INR has depreciated 35% against the USD in nominal terms.
<p style="text-align: […]DOES INDIA’S SHAME-BASED CULTURE ENCOURAGE WRONDOING?
The recent rape and brutal murder of an 8-year old girl in Kathua ( Jammu ) have been universally condemned. What is equally […]
SKILLING MODERN INDIA’S WORKFORCE
Education and skill development fulfil two goals simultaneously: an economic goal to provide businesses with a skilled workforce necessary to enhance productivity, improve competitiveness and increase economic growth, and a social goal […]
MORE SELF-RESPONSIBILITY, NOT MORE REGULATIONS
You signed on to Facebook, voluntarily. You posted information on it freely. You liked other people’s posts and commented on them willingly. You […]
INCOME INEQUALITY: FACTS AND FICTION
There is a world of difference between treating people equally and attempting to make them equal
It appears […]
INDIA NEEDS PRINCIPLES NOT POLICIES
I hate watching evening debates on Indian television. Besides the uncontrolled shouting and the lack of intelligent and respectful discussion, it is always […]
CRYPTOCURRENCIES: MONETARY FUTURE OR FAD
Imagine a world with no controls on how you exchange money with people. There are no global boundaries on where goods and services are […]
MOODY’S HELPS MODI
Various Indian governments have been pushing the global credit rating agencies (CRA’s) to reexamine the country’s credit rating given its clean seventy-year credit history and recent economic growth. Last week Moody’s finally […]
INDIA’S BIGGEST PROBLEM: BIG GOVERNMENT
November 8th, the “ anniversary ” of demonetization, was also a day that hazardous airborne pollutants crossed critical levels in Delhi. One event caused […]
LAISSEZ FAIRE–LESSONS FOR INDIA’S BIG GOVERNMENT
Even Mr.Modi’s most ardent critics will acknowledge his immense enthusiasm and self-belief. But it is his misguided belief that he can somehow “fix” […]
REFORMING INDIA’S WELFARE SYSTEM
Most countries provide some form of welfare assistance to those who are less fortunate. And while there might be disagreement on how to […]