A need to regulate the regulator
Ever since control came to be regarded as a four letter word by India's economic administration, they appear to have approached its distant cousin regulation, with some trepidation as well. India's first attempt at economic regulation appears to have already run into rough weather with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), flexing its muscles in an attempt to establish its presence.
Priority-lending
The proposal to reduce the priority sector lending limit to 10 per cent of total advances, by a panel of the Indian Banks' Association, reflects the pressures on the banking system. Bankers have, in recent years, been instructed to concentrate on profitability and the target-oriented lending of the previous two decades has been summarily jettisoned.
Fiscal transparency
The International Monetary Fund is planning a code of conduct which aims at more transparency in the way governments raise and spend money. One of the major contributing factors leading to the flight of capital from Asian countries was the lack of accurate information about the level of short-term indebtedness.
Balsara is a promising prospect
In a country of 950 million, imagine the number of teeth that have to be brushed everyday. Now imagine the volumes and the financial dynamics involved for just such a market, which makes it easy to understand why multinationals have been tripping over each other to grab a piece of this attractive Indian toothpaste market.
Max India: The warrant connection
The share price of Max India, never very volatile, has shown a phenomenal jump of 171 per cent to Rs 152 in a short-span of the past five weeks. However, it is extremely unlikely that the rally will be sustained. This is simply because factors which have been affecting the stock price are not just fundamentals, but several other reasons have a role to play.
The Index
The impressive financial performance turned in by Infosys Technologies seems to have vindicated the market's fancy for the scrip. In fact, it was expectation of just such a performance that had fuelled the stocks' northward spiral from Rs 1,145 in February to a high of Rs 2,230 on Friday.
