Expert Zone
Straight from the Specialists
Budget 2013: An opportunity missed
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author, and not necessarily of Thomson Reuters)
Industry leaders have hailed Budget 2013 saying that this is the best Finance Minister P. Chidambaram could have done under the circumstances. Opposition leaders have slammed the budget. Each had their own compulsions but I feel the truth lies somewhere in between.
It was no doubt a very fine tightrope walk but I would give Chidambaram full points for not yielding to temptation and taking populist measures ahead of elections due in 2014. At the same time, the finance minister should have concentrated on measures which may not have cost the exchequer much, but would have compensated by improving sentiment. Like they say, the “best things in life are free”.
Chidambaram emphasized the importance of foreign fund flows in his budget speech, noting that India needs $75 billion to meet its current account deficit.
Budget 2013: Visible impetus on growth
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author, and not necessarily of Thomson Reuters)
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram presented the annual budget at a time when India’s economy is going through a challenging period. India faces the four-pronged problem of high fiscal deficit, an unacceptably high current account deficit, declining growth and lower savings.
South China Sea: The zero-sum game
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author, and not necessarily of Thomson Reuters)
The Chinese have shown far greater alacrity in resolving disputes over land boundaries with neighbours than in drawing lines across international waters that they claim. A nation with land borders with 14 countries has settled its disputes with 10 of them, but finds it difficult to resolve its problems in the South China Sea.
Budget 2013: Balancing fiscal prudence and populism
(Rajiv Deep Bajaj is the Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Bajaj Capital Ltd. The views expressed in this column are his own and do not represent those of Reuters) With a four-month equity rally showing signs of fatigue, the focus is on Budget 2013 to provide further impetus.
India Markets Weekahead: Prudent to wait for the budget
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author, and not necessarily of Thomson Reuters)
After showing promise early in the week, the markets turned gloomy on Thursday with a sharp correction, ending the week with a 0.63 percent fall at 5850 – close to the support levels of 5840 which hasn’t been violated on a closing basis.
Budget 2013: Time for a responsible budget
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author, and not necessarily of Thomson Reuters)
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has promised a “responsible” budget this time around. According to Webster’s dictionary, “responsibility” is associated with a legal or moral accountability, reliability, trustworthiness in relation with some burden.
Budget 2013: Eye on short-term and long-term objectives
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and not of Reuters)
India’s annual budget always attracts a lot of interest and this year’s edition will be especially important. Budget 2013 is not just significant because it’s the last to be tabled before parliamentary elections due next year but also in light of economic headwinds.
Areas that require immediate attention include the need to invigorate investment, pacify rating agencies, lower subsidies, address structural bottlenecks and jump-start domestic growth. This will require the administration to make tough choices. A turnaround in investment, in particular, is unlikely in the short term.
Budget 2013: What the oil and gas sector expects
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and not of Reuters)
India’s oil and gas sector, often regarded as the country’s growth engine, has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade, but the quest to reach the top of global league remains a challenge because of rising under-recoveries and lack of policy incentives.
The sector is a key revenue earner for the central and state governments. In 2011/12, it contributed 2,327.69 billion rupees to central and state governments in taxes, accounting for 20.6 percent of total indirect taxes.
Budget 2013: Reduce fiscal deficit, make poor richer
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and not of Reuters)
A lot of expectations are riding on this year’s budget. And it’s not difficult to see why.
The last 18 months or so have been poor for the Indian economy with decelerating growth and a relatively weak currency reflecting the widening current account deficit. The persistence of inflation had kept the RBI on hold and this did not help the stock market. Financial scandals and seeming political indecision as far as deregulating the economy, at least till recently, were not conducive to confidence.
Pension plans are making a comeback
(Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and not of Reuters)
Life insurance companies had all but exited the pension sector after tough regulations were put in place to guarantee returns for the investor. This is a vital sector for insurance companies and hit overall business.
In 2010/11, new business of 122 billion rupees was added in the pension sector. This fell to 111.7 billion rupees in the following fiscal year. Worse, deletions in the business increased from 68.9 billion rupees to 195.2 billion rupees last year — surely that would have hurt.
