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The Panorama newsletter is sent to Moneycontrol Pro subscribers on market days. It offers easy access to stories published on Moneycontrol Pro and gives a little extra by setting out a context or an event or trend that investors should keep track of.
Sometime in the next four months, the Federal Reserve expects to taper its extraordinary stimulus that was rolled out in 2020 to counter the pandemic’s economic ill-effects. That message from Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole was on expected lines. But he walked a fine line in giving an indication on how soon he expected it to happen, cautioning against jumping the gun on inflation. It had something for those who dismiss the taper as a risk for markets and also those holding their breath to see what happens when it becomes a reality.
Equity markets are in the former camp. US markets cheered his speech and Asian markets followed suit today. India’s broad market indices were up by around 1 percent at 12.30 pm. This is being interpreted as relief that the taper may take place only later this year, but that’s only four months left for the event to take place. So, what will happen when the Fed finally puts a firm date to the T-word?
Will it be a repeat of the Fed’s withdrawal from the stimulus it unleashed in response to the 2008 global financial crisis? What’s different now compared to then, not just in the global markets but more specifically how is India placed this time? Our research team’s insightful analysis of the situation reveals that India is in a much better position now than it was in 2013. Read here to know why this time may be different and what investors can expect to happen once taper becomes a reality.
A hat-trick for the South West monsoons looks unlikely as this year’s rainfall is 10 percent below the long period average, finds this week’s update of the Monsoon Watch. While the overall stock market itself may not get affected much by the monsoon’s tardiness, it’s a matter of concern for the agriculture sector and related stocks.
No week goes without some action on the electric vehicles’ front, be it the government coaxing companies to wholeheartedly embrace the shift or the industry asking the government to put the infrastructure in place first. The government may be seeing the logic in the industry’s insistence on the infrastructure front. What could be the way forward? Read here for more.
And, change will be not just for the automakers but their component suppliers as well. Here’s an interview with Arathi Krishna, Managing Director, Sundram Fasteners, on how they are preparing for the shift and the outlook for the industry. Don’t miss it.
In today’s FT selection (free to read for Pro subscribers), Martin Sandbu writes about how high-income economies are seeing an increase in productivity and what is causing it. While businesses may complain that they are not finding people to fill jobs, the fact that they are still growing means that productivity is going up. Do read. While it may not apply to emerging markets overall, it gives an interesting perspective into what tech companies may be facing, what with hiring managers complaining about not being able to fill positions even after dangling hefty pay hikes.
More investing insights from our research team:
Burger King India: Will the proposed acquisition create shareholder value?
Gulf Oil Lubricants: Is it the right time to invest?
What else are we reading today?
The Eastern Window: Many pieces in Afghan political puzzle
Is your portfolio making losses? Perhaps, you’re listening to too much noise
The Modi government’s courage in biting the bullet on asset monetisation deserves kudos
India’s news drone policy cuts red tape and opens the skies GuruSpeak | Tarun Nayak uses algos to automate trading, freeing up time for his full-time day job
Big Four accounting firms rush to join the ESG bandwagon (Republished from the FT)
Ravi Ananthanarayanan
Moneycontrol Pro
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