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Markets likely to stay bullish on hopes of major reforms
Investors hoping Manmohan will work his magic again
Rs 8k cr industrial investment came in 7 years in Haryana
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Aviation Notes
‘Time for govt to walk the talk on reforms’
personal finance
Give wings to your higher education dreams
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Markets likely to stay bullish on hopes of major reforms
New Delhi, July 1 Markets zoomed last week after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took additional charge of the finance ministry — following Pranab Mukherjee's resignation to contest presidential elections — and asked officials to help revive "animal spirit" in the economy. Investors also cheered the finance ministry's proposals of a monetary limit for invoking GAAR and use of the tax-avoidance rules only in cases where FIIs choose to take the benefit of double tax avoidance treaties. The BSE 30-scrip benchmark Sensex moved up 2.69% to close the week at 17,429.98. The index had surged by a whopping 439 points, its biggest single-day gain in 2012 so far, on Friday on the back of clarity on tax-avoidance rules and upbeat global sentiment. "The markets are likely to open with a bang on Monday but may shed some gains as the day progresses on back of profit- booking," said Kishor Ostwal CMD of CNI Research. "As far as July is concerned, markets are expected to remain buoyant amid expectations of announcement on reforms path, including allowing foreign direct investment in multibrand retail and aviation," he added. Besides, first quarter (FY13) corporate earning results, which will start trickling from the second week of July, will provide triggers for investors. Ambani said auto and cement stocks will be in focus as firms from these two sectors start unveiling monthly sales data from Monday. Policy initiative in Europe to ease the eurozone debt crisis will also aid investor sentiment. "With EU leaders intent on not allowing major defaults or bankruptcies, focus will likely shift to inflation and government reforms. We remain optimistic on the reforms front with the PM now handling the finance portfolio also," said Dipen Shah, research head at Kotak Securities. — PTI |
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Investors hoping Manmohan will work his magic again
New Delhi, July 1 On Friday investors drove the benchmark Sensex share index to a two-month high, spurred by hopes that the 79-year-old Singh can put the mojo back into the once-booming economy, which is growing at its slowest pace in nine years. "He's got the economy's pulse. There's a lot of hope building that he will take some right steps," Amisha Vora, joint managing director of one of India's leading brokerage houses, Prabhudas Lilladher, told AFP. A survey of India's top 150 chief executives by business group Assocham found expectations of "renewed energy being infused" into the economy since the ex-World Bank economist took control of the finance ministry last week. Singh, who replaced veteran politician Pranab Mukherjee after he stepped down to run for India's mainly ceremonial presidency, has already spoken of the need to revive the economy's "animal spirit". "We need to work to get the economy going again and restart the India growth story," Singh told senior finance ministry officials, calling for a reversal of "the climate of pessimism". As finance minister in 1991, Singh ignited the fuse for rapid growth as India teetered on bankruptcy, by embracing free markets and cutting through suffocating red tape. Many had hoped that as prime minister he would execute a "second-generation" of changes to propel growth into double-digits and allow hundreds of millions of Indians to escape poverty faster. But his Congress party-led coalition has dismayed investors by being unable to push through planned reforms due to opposition from within and a string of multi-billion-dollar corruption scandals. While Singh's rallying cry last week improved business sentiment, analysts say he must now find the deeds to match his words. "He’ll have to walk the talk and there will have to be a political signoff from coalition allies on his actions," CLSA economist Rajeev Malik told AFP. Singh has already signalled India may back away from moves that have rattled foreign investors, including efforts to aggressively tax past financial transactions involving firms like British phone giant Vodafone. "If Singh reversed even the Vodafone decision, that’d restore tremendous foreign investor confidence in India," Deepak Lalwani, head of London-based investment consultancy Lalcap,said. — AFP |
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Rs 8k cr industrial investment came in 7 years in Haryana
Chandigarh, July 1 The spokesman said there was great demand from industry for allotment of land in the industrial estates developed by the Haryana State Industrial & Infrastructure Development Corp (HSIIDC) and the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA). Investment worth Rs 61,000 crore has already come to the state and projects with investment of more than 94, 000 crore are still in the pipeline. Exports from Haryana which aggregated Rs 43,679 crore in the 2009-10 fiscal year, topped the Rs 48,530 crore mark in FY2010-11. Haryana is also developing industrial model townships at Faridabad, Rohtak, Mewat and Kharkhoda, besides expanding the IMT Manesar in Gurgaon and G.C. Bawal in Rewari district. The spokesman said Haryana will develop new industrial estates at Panipat, Karnal, Barwala in Panchkula district and expand and strengthen the already existing industrial infrastructure in Kundli, Rai, Barhi, Yamunanagar and Saha. |
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JAL looks to expand India ops
By K.R. Wadhwaney Japan Air Lines’ operations from India with the Boeing Dreamliner have taken off smoothly and serenely. According to analysts, the passenger-load between Delhi and Tokyo has shown marked improvement within two months. "India is one of our most profitable destinations", JAL's country manager Yasushi Isomura has gone on record saying. There is optimism at the Delhi international airport that the India-Japan route is gaining prominence and JAL might switch to daily flights soon. According to reports, India is among 15 countries shortlisted by the Japanese government to attract tourists. The emphasis is on the “leisure market”, which, for many Japanese, means playing a round of golf and, in Delhi, such opportunities are available at reasonable price. Statistics show there is a “bilateral” difficulty but Japan Air Lines officials are hopeful they will be able to solve this problem sooner than later. The Air India pilots' strike is expected to end within a week as most members of the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) feel "let down". But Air India has been further crippled with losses mounting to about Rs 560 crore. The analysts however maintain that the national carrier's turn-around will be easier and quicker if the government de-merge with Indian Airlines flying on domestic routes and Air India on international circuit, as before. The government, in the meantime, is considering a proposal to provide subsidy to private carriers to operate flights on loss-making routes in the northeastern region. If the proposal becomes a reality, the private airlines will get an annual subsidy of about Rs 25 crore. Meanwhile, trial operations for using three airport runways simultaneously have been successful. The authorities are optimistic such operations will be risk-free.
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‘Time for govt to walk the talk on reforms’
New Delhi, July 1 In an exclusive interview with The Tribune, Kumar, one of the most prominent industry voices. added there is a lot of uncertainty in the policy environment that is making business and industry nervous, who in turn are shying away from making investments, and the government needs to provide a stable policy regime. At a time when the economy is in doldrums and the government is making attempts to revive the economy and investor confidence, Kumar said: “Given the extent of the problem we require concrete and bold measures to raise investor sentiment. Markets expect the leadership to walk the talk. Otherwise markets will continue to discount economic prospects. Markets want action now”. On being asked as to why the industry is feeling low and investments are not happening, Kumar pointed out that the major problem behind fresh investments not taking place in the economy is that investor and business confidence has been dented in the last couple of years due to many measures. “Indian entrepreneurs are an otherwise resilient lot. Business is nervous because they don’t know what’s in store next. Investment is tight due to the policy uncertainty in the economy”, he said. Kumar added the government has to engage with domestic industry to make it feel assured and confident that state contracts would be honoured and goalposts would not be changed. “Investors and entrepreneurs can deal with risk, it’s a part of their business but uncertainty is different. The problem is that the level of uncertainty in the environment has risen sharply. Investors aren’t sure about the future regulatory regime in which they would have to operate, they’re not sure whether existing contracts would be honoured. This has happened as a result of number of instances where the rules of the game have been changed retrospectively. Industry doesn’t mind change in policy prospectively. That’s the nub of the problem. There is need for stability of the policy regime”. Kumar added. Replying to a question on whether he expects things to change now given that there have been some changes in government, Kumar said: “I’m hoping very much things will change. There is a short window of opportunity between the presidential elections and the Gujarat polls in the next 3-4 months, after which there’s a risk of things getting out of hand. Then we’d have opened the economy to a great deal of risk”. He added if this window of opportunity beginning now in the next three to four months was not utilized, it could have consequences like the rupee sinking, downgrade of credit ratings, the fiscal deficit shooting up. “There could be a 1991 like crisis if things don’t happen. There could be an aggravation in the European crisis situation and, if there’s a global shock and we’ve not done enough, then the economy will be hurt”, he said. FICCI, an apex industry body, is seeking a review of three bills — Food Security, Land Acquisition and Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation). While the view is that the Food Security Bill will worsen the fiscal deficit and explode the public expenditure, the other two bills will hinder development of industry and mining. The chamber is seeking action on its 12-point agenda for reviving economic growth FICCI has suggested moratorium on additional expenses on doles; expediting implementation of GST; bringing down interest rates by 200 basis points; stopping the passage of Land Bill in its current form; fiscal stimulus for investments through accelerated depreciation, investment allowance, scrapping MAT (minimum alternate tax) for infrastructure; FDI policy reforms in areas like civil aviation, multibrand retail; decontrolling diesel prices; reforms in mining and coal sector by fostering greater competition; strengthening framework for raising funds for infrastructure; productivity increase and agriculture marketing reforms for food security; fast track implementation of critical polices and projects; and addressing the issue of repatriation of black money to immediately mitigate BoP situation. On being asked as to what industry can do in this lull period, Kumar replied it can done through skill formation. “They can take this lull period to tie up technology, link up with joint venture partners, participate in the PPP (public-private partnerships) space in infrastructure so that when there is a rebound they are ready”, he said. On the recent big ticket investment decisions announced by Coca-Cola and IKEA, Kumar said: “We welcome it and hope they (the proposals) will be implemented soon”. |
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Health insurance for senior citizens
Akshay Mehrotra
The good news is that many companies are now coming up with health insurance policy specifically designed for senior citizens, for example, Star Health Senior Citizen Red Carpet Plan and Bajaj Allianz Silver Health. Tailor-made health covers
Likewise, Oriental Insurance's plan called Hope states no upper age limit for health insurance and covers 11 specified critical illness diseases like accidental injury, knee replacement, cardiovascular diseases, chronic renal failure, cancer, hepatobiliary disorders, chronic obstructive lung diseases, etc. As the market is abound with options it becomes all the more important to go through all the options and then zero down on one to buy the best health insurance cover for parents. Before you decide on purchasing a certain policy, we would recommend you scan all the possible options and decide on the one that is best healthcare policy suitable for you. The author is chief marketing officer at Policybazaar. The views expressed are his own |
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Give wings to your higher education dreams
A friend of mine, Ritu, whom I had bumped into in a local mall after many years, told me her daughter Ritika was pestering her for enrolling in an MBA course in France. Good, her child was brilliant so what was the hitch?
Ritu found the course cost prohibitive (upwards of Rs 50 lakh), particularly now when the rupee is at its lowest ebb. Going by my experience, I came up with an instant solution - an education loan. Ritu was pleasantly surprised at the suggestion and found it quite feasible too. She then wanted the details to proceed in the matter. Now it was my turn to dig deeper to further enlighten her on education loans. Education loans are gaining immense popularity in the recent times. Criteria for education loans
Most state-owned, private as well as foreign banks in India provide education loans. One of the important criteria for this loan is that the student should be over 18 years of age but, if he/she is not, then the loan is granted to the parents. So if you fulfill these criteria then proceed with the other factors like: Does my course qualify? How much loan can I get? What are the documents required? What will be the repayment schedule? What expenses does the loan cover? Do I have to provide collateral or a guarantor? However, the most pertinent factor is how to select the right lender? You should keep such things in mind as low interest rate, no prepayment penalty, minimum or no collateral requirement and flexible repayment options. An education loan may be viewed as an important means of value enhancement in a person's career. You can visit price comparison sites like to know rates offered by various lenders. A student can also exercise his choice between fixed and floating rate of interest. Loans offered by banks
Coming back to loans, banks generally offer loans for MBA, engineering, medicine and other professional courses whereas normal courses like BCom or BA don't find favour with lenders. Many banks have a tieup with various institutions and universities offering graduate/postgraduate courses recognized by the UGC, AICTE or the Indian government. The costs covered in the loan include: Fees payable to the college, school or hostel, including tuition fees, examination, library and laboratory fees, purchase of books, equipment, instruments and uniforms, caution deposit, refundable deposit supported by the institution's bills or receipts, travel expenses for studies abroad, buying computers essential for completion of the course and any other expenses needed to complete the course, like study tours, project work and theses. Documentation required
Many find it a cumbersome process to apply for an education loan as it requires lot of documentation. Unlike other loans where the talk of documents relating to say property, might come in at a later stage and may cause delay. In case of education loans, documents relating to admissions are mandatory even before the bank considers the loan application. The bank will verify the enrollment of the student from the concerned institute. One may also require collateral security such as papers relating to property to be mortgaged if the loan amount is above Rs 4 lakh. Loans up to Rs 4 lakh don't require any collateral or any income proof documents. State-run banks normally provide Rs 20 lakh as the maximum loan amount. That too is a great help towards fulfilling one's dream of higher education. The author is chief editor of Apnapaisa.com, an online insurance price & features comparison engine for loans and investments. The views expressed are his own |
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New Delhi, July 1
"The underlying bias has improved but further gains will hinge on policy interventions by the Centre to restore investor confidence," said IIFL's head of research Amar Ambani.
Pushed by Singh, his top advisors, including Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, and bureaucrats have started working overtime to deal with economic slowdown and low investor sentiment.
Besides, in the forex market, the rupee, which has lost over 25% against the dollar in the past 12 months, staged a strong comeback as it posted the second best gains of Re 1.19 in nearly a decade on Friday.
Stating this here on Sunday, an official spokesman said between July, 1991 and May 2012, 4,241 industrial entrepreneur memorandums (IEMs) were filed, out of which 2,663 were implemented with capital investment of Rs 1,578.06 crore and generating 392, 237 jobs.
Are you planning to buy health insurance and are above 60 years of age? Are agents not coming forward to offer you products? And, do you still want to know more about comparisons? The Indian market is currently abound with options on healthcare plans specifically designed for senior citizens and many insurance providers also offer family floater healthcare plans specifically designed for families consisting of senior citizens.
However, the options tend to limit down if the age of your age is more than 60. Also, while purchasing a health insurance policy for yourself you might have to pay a higher premium depending upon on your age. The primary reason is the age versus health risk metrics. As your age increases, the risk exposure of the insurance companies also rises. In order to maintain a balance, the firms have to insert some built-in buffers.
The Star Health Senior Citizen Red Carpet policy covers people in the age group of 60-69 years. Although there is co-payment of 50 per cent, there are no medical tests required at the time of the payment of the policy. Similarly, Similarly, Bajaj Allianz Silver Plan covers people till the age group of 75 years and the policy can be renewed till 80 years. The sum Insured options start from Rs 50,000 to Rs 500,000.