Prajna Capital - An Investment Guide

A ir travel... don’t bother to fasten those seat belts. Flying has become too much of a luxury even for the well-heeled. For the rest, it’s good old Laloo rail. Before complaining about those stinking toilets, remind yourself you’re saving on astronomical airfares. Corporate honchos aren’t on this track just yet but they’ve been forced to downgrade from the luxuries of business class to humble economy. Just last month, a leading Indian bank asked its entire investment banking division to stop travelling business class. Babus, too, have to look for the cheapest flight deals after the Centre’s warning that leave travel allowance (LTA) isn’t a ticket to splurge. B ollywood’s shouting ‘cut, cut, cut.’ The stars have cut fees and producers their budgets. Actor Sanjay Dutt, who was charging Rs 15 crore, is back to a more affordable Rs 4-5 crore. Sanjay Dutt Productions CEO Dharam Oberoi explained that the actor thought it would be “unfair to hike his prices at a time when the industry i...

Year 2008 has been an action packed one in all respects. It started off with stock market correction in mid January, later it turned out to be a bear market and eroded Billons of dollars of investor money. By then sleeping giant was awaken, the sub prime. It had cascading effect all walks of the economy only in US nut all across the world. Then came the big investment bank failures. Fed has to Bail out leading mortgage lenders of the country Fannie Me, Freddie Mac. But, worst was yet to come, Lemon Brothers, a hundred year old investment bank went bankrupt. It was the situation with Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley as well. Goldman Sachs was also taken a beating but was slightly better off. Merrill Lynch was acquired by Bank of America. Wachovia acquired by Wells Fargo, Washington Mutual (WaMu ) acquired by JP Morgan. Both Goldman and Morgan were converted to conventional banks. Meanwhile, Warren Buffet, greatest investor that the world has seen also showed confidence in Goldman. On th...