Top 5 Things to watch out for in 2017

    2018-12-05T13:07:46+00:00January 17th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

    If last year was one marked by turbulence, this year is one that has begun with hope. Hope for the long-delayed and much needed Goods and Service Tax to become a reality – despite some last moment political opposition; hope for the bold demonetisation initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to start paying dividends, later this year, in terms of higher growth and lower levels of corruption; hope for lower interest rates that will restart the investment cycle and a [...]

      Rewriting India’s social contract

      2018-12-05T13:35:30+00:00January 9th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January Edition, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

      A financial services expert talks ‘India Investment Journal’ through India’s bold demonetisation move and why it is good news for investors. On November 8 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made what will be long-remembered as one of the most audacious policy announcements in the history of India: 500 and 1,000 rupee notes, which made up 86 per cent of all outstanding legal currency, were 'demonetised' and ceased to be legal tender with immediate effect. This, along with a series of [...]

        Crude prices and US rate are the X factors

        2018-12-06T13:08:22+00:00January 9th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

        RBI Governor Urjit Patel may be able to cut rates but only later this year. We take a look at what this would mean for the Indian economy. When will Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel cut interest rates? Speak to analyst, economist or businessman; that will be among his top two or three concerns. The background The central bank dashed hopes for a rate cut in December when the six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which sets rates, [...]

          Goods and Services Tax: Impact on Indian economy

          2018-12-05T13:37:36+00:00January 9th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

          A tax expert analyses what GST would mean for the Indian economy. The India structure, like in any other country, has developed in response to many influences – social, political and economic. These ranged from divided powers between the Centre and states to levy different taxes, distinction between goods and services, tax cascading and arbitrage on rates. Foreign investment decisions and the expected rate of return from projects often suffered due to these distortions. The proposed Goods and Services tax [...]

            Will GST keep its date with April 1 this year?

            2018-12-05T13:39:10+00:00January 9th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

            Does the government have sufficient time to roll out the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is, arguably, the biggest tax reform ever attempted in India? “I am trying my best,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said when asked about the April 2017 deadline for GST. But experts and analysts feel it will be difficult for the government to meet this rollout schedule as the GST Council, the apex dispute resolution body for the tax, has not yet resolved several [...]

              Good show in crucial state polls will give a fillip to reforms

              2018-12-05T13:38:35+00:00January 9th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

              Elections to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly this year lead the charge of five state polls which will not only reflect the nation’s mood but also determine the pace of reforms in the country. Five states will elect new governments in the first half of this year. Of these, elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly are considered the most important and Punjab slightly less so. The other three states – Goa, Uttarakhand and Manipur – are small and politically less [...]

                Job creation may gather pace from second half of 2017

                2018-12-06T13:09:24+00:00January 9th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

                The immediate impact of demonetisation will mean a slower pace of job creation but, overall, there is some good news in store for the New Year. How long will the current phase of jobless growth in India, which began during the UPA II regime continue? And when will the Narendra Modi government’s flagship schemes such as Make in India, Start-up India, etc., start generating jobs – which, for many Indians, remains the true touchstone of the achcche din (good times) [...]

                  India’s daring demonetisation move

                  2018-12-05T13:34:34+00:00January 6th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

                  The impact of the Indian government’s move to decommission some high value notes from circulation will fully pan out in the New Year. The 50-day window sought by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for completing the demonetisation of high value Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes is now over but the jury is still out on the impact of the move that is, arguably, the most daring, and far reaching, economic reform ever undertaken by any Indian government. Though it is [...]

                    Is an interest rate cut on the horizon?

                    2018-12-05T13:41:20+00:00January 6th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

                    The questions on everybody’s lips are: When will the RBI cut rates? And when will banks pass on RBI’s previous rate cuts to customers? The logic behind those questions is evident. The short-term economic forecasts are not very encouraging. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) expects the country’s GDP to grow at 7.1 per cent in 2016-17, a sharp half percentage point lower than its previous growth estimate of 7.6 per cent. This contraction in growth estimates is mainly because [...]

                      India’s big job crunch

                      2018-12-06T13:13:09+00:00January 6th, 2017|2018/2017, India Investment Journal January 2017, Top 5 Things to Watch in 2017, Year|

                      With a million people entering the job market every month, India’s economy desperately needs to find a way to make space for them. The morning of September 17, 2015, India woke up to a curious headline: PhD holders among 2.3 million applicants for peon jobs in UP. The response to 368 vacancies for peons in the most populous state of the country had been a record of sorts. The minimum qualification for the post was no more than school education [...]