Insured funds v mutual funds

The S&P 500 is down about 3.7% year-to-date as of market open on Dec. 17, 2018. Market analysts have begun to very vocally sound the alarm about the possibility of a bear market — but if you listen close enough, you'll also hear whispers about a looming recession. There are certainly ways that investors can protect themselves against potential losses in the event of a market downturn. Still, market capitulation , or the phenomenon in which investors give up earlier gains when they sell off their positions out of panic, remains a real possibility. To make matters worse, it could be some of the biggest players in the financial world — hedge funds — who end up leading the trend. Where Do Hedge Funds Piece Into a Market Sell-Off? Hedge funds could contribute to a prolonged stock sell-off into the future. According to a recent report by Bloomberg , Sundial Capital Research found that hedge funds as a group bought heavily into American equities, and moreover that many of … [Read more...] about Why Hedge Funds May Still Have More to Contribute to a Stock Sell-Off

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The Rs 35,000 crore earmarked in the Budget towards energy transition and energy security would be largely used to fund retrofitting of refineries and other units to meet emission norms, the finance ministry clarified on January 4. Some portion of these funds will also be utilised to augment strategic petroleum reserves. In her budget speech earlier this week, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, this budget provides Rs 35,000 crore for priority capital investments towards energy transition and net zero objectives and energy security by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. BUDGET 2023 : FULL COVERAGE The budget document did not clarify what these funds would be utilised for. The ambiguity led to speculations that these funds may be utilised to augment strategic gas reserves and gas-based infrastructure, in line with India's gas-based economy ambitions. TV Somanathan, finance secretary in a post-budget media briefing … [Read more...] about Union Budget 2023 | Energy Sector: Allocated funds to be used for refinery retro-fitting, petroleum reserves

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin TOPLINE As jobless claims surged last week to 22 million nationwide, nearly half of all states have reported double-digit percent losses to the cash reserves they use to pay unemployment claims, according to a new analysis by the Wall Street Journal , raising the possibility that states may need a federal bailout in order to help keep the unemployed afloat. KEY FACTS Nearly 50% of states including California, New York and Massachusetts have drained almost half of their total trust fund reserve in funding unemployment payments for those out-of-work due to the coronaviru pandemic, per WSJ . With unemployment rising week over week, states could run out of money and need loans from the federal government, say economists . While the federal stimulus package pays for an additional $600 per week for those who are out of work due to the crisis,, states still pay the pre-coronavirus unemployment rate to … [Read more...] about Report: States Are Rapidly Draining Their Unemployment Funds

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Over the last year a number of you have pointed out the odd typo or two in my Sunday note. For example, one eagle eyed reader in Brazil registered that I had written ‘South China Sean’ rather than ‘South China Sea’, which is a Freudian slip of sorts. The real reason the quality of the note may have slipped is that this time last year my ‘editor’ Nicholas Benachi, passed away. In addition to being a good friend, he made sure that the logic and quality of the note were up to scratch. One of his favourite greetings and ‘sign-offs’ was ‘Strength and Honour’, which may have been inspired by his love of bushido and his family’s ties to Greece, not to mention a sweeping appreciation of history. It is a phrase that comes to mind more and more often in a world where the moral pendulum is swinging wildly, and I often find myself using it as a maxim to scrutinise people, places and projects. Here are a few examples. Strength … [Read more...] about What Makes Economies Strong?

The current law provides for taxation of leave encashment received by employees while in service. Maintaining continuity and stability in taxation, simplifying and rationalizing various provisions to reduce the compliance burden, promoting an entrepreneurial spirit and providing tax relief to citizens were some of the objectives of Budget 2023. Budget announcements inter alia included amendments to provide relief to salaried taxpayers withdrawing their provident fund balance or receiving leave encashment from their employers. TDS on withdrawal of Provident Fund balance The law provides for tax to be deducted at source on payment of accumulated PF balance due to an employee at the time of withdrawal if the period of contribution is less than 5 years. Also read | Tax exemption removed in insurance policies with premium over Rs 5 lakh Read More TDS is required to be deducted at the rate of 10 percent on the accumulated balance due to an employee if the … [Read more...] about Budget 2023: All you need to know about EPF withdrawal, leave encashment

The financial news portal named by ChatGPT provides financial news, analysis, and information on stocks, mutual funds, and other financial instruments. (Image Courtesy: NURPHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES) OpenAI's generative bot, ChatGPT, reached 100 million users in January, according to reports from Reuters. What makes this interesting is that the bot was only opened to the public in November last year, but it is already on track to acquire 100 million active users in just two months. Within the first month of availability, ChatGPT accumulated 57 million active users, and by January, it is now being visited by almost 13 million users daily. Also Read | MC Explains: Everything you need to know about Midjourney AI This makes it one of the fastest growing online platforms. In comparison, it took TikTok nine months to acquire 100 million users, and as Engadget points out, it took Meta's Instagram two-and-a-half years to reach that number. Read More Since … [Read more...] about ChatGPT hits 100 million users in January: Report

Representative image The Indian fintech ecosystem is perhaps the most unique in the world, with hyperscale payment infrastructure, thriving lending innovations, digitally savvy banks, and market-driven open-banking frameworks. This has helped the country achieve a scale of unheard levels — 71 billion digital payment transactions, Rs 11.8 trillion lent to retail and SME customers, and 55 million active neobank (online bank) accounts. The Indian fintech ecosystem has broken the barriers of language, location, and illiteracy. Fintech firms have helped onboard new-to-credit as well as sub-prime customers. Jan Dhan and neobanking are helping ensure that every citizen has access to banking. A case in point is the high penetration of UPI. Earlier, Indian fintech would imitate developments abroad, but now the reverse has begun. With a focus on speed, cost, and scalability, homegrown innovations like UPI, the India stack, and lending frameworks have become global benchmarks. Indian … [Read more...] about The Indian fintech ecosystem is setting global benchmarks

ILLUSTRATION BY ALBERT RODRIGUEZ It’s been six months since President Marcos was sworn into office. If we liken Mr. Marcos’ six-year term to the well-loved game of basketball, we are now in the second half of the first of six games. The first half of Game 1 was filled with many challenges. A Pulse Asia survey last September 2022 showed that the top concerns of Filipinos are controlling inflation, increasing the pay of workers and creating more jobs. Unfortunately, these continue to burden Filipinos into halftime of Game 1. Before the first “game” ends on June 30, 2023, we’d like to share some of the administration’s notable wins during its first six months and some reflections on how to sustain the fight against these challenges. Wins First among Mr. Marcos’ wins is the appointment of credible and experienced economic managers. This means that we have a strong team to overcome the pandemic’s lingering effects on the economy. Second, several executive actions were made … [Read more...] about Reflections on Marcos’ 1st 6 months

Hydrogen is the new aspiration in India’s energy landscape that has the potential to wipe out the country’s annual fossil-fuel import bill of a staggering $160 billion, and place Indian entrepreneurship at the forefront of the green industrial revolution that is sweeping the planet. Hydrogen is increasingly being seen as the ideal green fuel that can replace polluting fossil fuels in the world where a strong consensus against fossil fuels has emerged as climate change has caused severe droughts, floods and extreme temperatures. However, hydrogen as a source of genuinely clean energy is still work in progress. The problem is that globally, almost the entire production of hydrogen is based on the use of fossil fuels, which dents its green credentials, even though its use to power fuel-cell based motors is totally emission free. The solution is to use clean electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, but the cost of doing this is currently prohibitive. Hydrogen produced … [Read more...] about Clean Energy | Betting on hydrogen is the right way to go ahead

College students who struggle to afford their required books each year now have another funding option: a buy now, pay later service called Sezzle. Sezzle, a fintech firm, has partnered with the Independent College Bookstore Association to launch its payment option amid the rising cost of college books and other college expenses. Offered at 230 college stores in the U.S. and Cananda, Sezzle allows students to make purchases, including books, school supplies and gear, and then pay them off over time in four installments. Essentially, as a buy now, pay later service, it allows the consumer a payment option that works similarly to a credit card, but with no interest charges. “No student should ever lose out on educational opportunities because they’re worried about the ability to pay at the time of service,” Sezzle CEO Charlie Youakim said in statement. The high cost of college textbooks can negatively impact a students finances and ability to get an education. To afford … [Read more...] about New Buy Now, Pay Later Service Targets College Books