Dear Niveshaks,

We hope that the first month of the year brought with it the spirit of starting afresh and realizing your dreams for you. This month saw Donald Trump officially coming to power as the 45th President of the United States, an event that could drastically change the way economies across the world operate with each other. The Economic Survey 2017 presented by the Finance Minister of India, Mr. Arun Jaitley, observed that the Indian Economy is still growing strong with relatively low inflation, fiscal discipline and a stable rupee-dollar exchange rate. With more currency notes being pumped in and withdrawal limits being gradually relaxed, this month also brought some relief for the cash-starved common people.

On the global front, Japan threatened to take India to the WTO, alleging that India’s restrictions over steel imports have halved Japan’s exports to our country – a step that could trigger more trade spats in the future which seems already vulnerable with high global tensions over steel and other commodities. The newly elected US President Donald Trump’s bold moves over US Visa and immigration rules also brought some turmoil for the US companies.

Our cover story for the month brings a comprehensive and exhaustive review of the Budget 2017 which was presented on February 1, throwing light on the possible implications it might have for the different sectors of our economy, while also identifying the areas that were overlooked in the budget. The Article of the Month on the Venezuelan Economic Crisis, which happens to be one of the most profound economic crises in recent history, tries to look into what led to this drastic change in fortunes for one of the star performers in Latin America. Under FinGyaan, “The Trident to Slay the NPAs” elucidates one of the most critical problems that the Indian Banking Sector is struggling with, explaining the 3 R method – Recognize, Reserve & Resolve - a modern approach adopted by the banks to deal with the problem.

Under the FinSight column, the author writes about the deregulation of Savings Bank Interest Rate – identifying is as a Slow Poison in Indian Banking sector. The FinaFame section highlights the immense contributions brought to the field of global finance by Jim O’Neill – the ex-chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM). The article under FinView offers detailed insights into shares with differential voting rights, and evaluates whether or not are they a good investment opportunity; whereas Classroom for the month would educate the readers about Beta – one of the most commonly thrown terms in the field of Finance.

To end this brief note, we would like to thank our readers for their immense support and encouragement. You remain our prime motivation factor that keeps our spirits high and give us the vigour and vitality to keep working hard.