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COVER STORY
Protectionism : Threat to Global Prosperity
-- N Janardhan Rao and PS Sarath Chandra
A wind of protectionism is sweeping across the globe as governments are increasingly
erecting trade barriers to fight rising unemployment, falling exports and bank's credit crunch. Measures
like blocking imports unfairly would set global growth prospects back for years and would
prevent effective restructuring of financial institutions and corporates across the globe. If left unbridled,
the rise of protectionism will kill the global economy as we know of
it.
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
Private Equity : Soured Dream?
-- N Janardhan Rao and V Ratna
Surrounded by the phobia created by the Satyam scam, the failure of discount retailer Subhiksha, and
the economic downturn, leading Private Equity (PE) players are altering their investment strategy for India.
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
The Silicon Valley : Sowing the Seeds of Revival
-- Y Bala Bharathi and Sanjoy De
The Silicon Valley, which mesmerized the entire world with its tech novelty, has received a major jolt in
recent times, thanks to the all-pervading global slowdown. But the region, with its indomitable spirit for innovation
and technological brilliance, is all set to fight it out.
BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
The US Sarbanes Oxley Act : Corporate Governance Lessons for India
-- Andrew J Sherman and Kartikeya Tanna
In the light of the Satyam scandal, it is imperative on the part of the regulatory bodies to give the victims of
any crisis the necessary wherewithal to come up with an effective way of dealing with transactions that
endanger ethical governance in the corporate sector. The US Sarbanes Oxley Act provides some lessons in this regard.
INTERNATIONAL FINANCE
The Euro : Testing Times
-- T Jyotsna
The global financial crisis is posing different kinds of challenges to the euro and is calling for a greater
political and economic integration among its member countries.
INTERNATIONAL FINANCE
US Treasury Bonds : Losing Luster?
-- T Jyotsna
The US Treasury's decision to issue bonds to help finance the government's hefty fiscal deficit and bank
bailouts has underwhelmed the US Treasury bond market, which remained the preferred destination for global
investors in the not too distant past.
INTERNATIONAL FINANCE
US Financial Crisis : Swedish Lessons
-- N Janardhan Rao and PS Sarath Chandra
While US officials are hunting for solutions to the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression,
they could try and take lessons from Sweden's successful crisis management of its real estate bubble in the
early 1990s, as both countries have many common traits.
APOLITICAL
General Elections : Where Are We Heading?
-- grk
Here are the elections again, elections to the Lok Sabha.
A typical urbanite may wonder: "So what?" "Would it
be in any way different from the usual display of rude
exuberance of cacophony by/of the contestants?" Or, "Will the
activism of the Election Commission make any difference to
elections?" Nonetheless, its sheer magnificencethe majesty
of going for elections term after term with clinical
precisionis sure to humble every believer in democracy.
INDUSTRY
Domestic Airlines : Joy of Flying, No More!
-- Amit Singh Sisodiya and Sudesh Gonela
Despite the lifeline extended by the government in the form of a series of fuel tax cuts, domestic air
carriers continue to fly in the `no joy' zone, amidst falling load factors and mounting costs.
INDUSTRY
Retailing : Battling Slowdown
-- Amit Singh Sisodiya and Sudesh Gonela
Receding footfalls, tumbling sales, squeezed margins, ballooning debts, slowed expansion plans, lack of
access to credit.... It looks as if the list of worries knows no bounds for India's $350 bn retailing industry.
MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
Pfizer-Wyeth Deal : More Questions than Answers
-- N Janardhan Rao and PS Sarath Chandra
The strategic deal by the expanding drug giant is expected to help push back the fallout from patent
expirations and alter the global drug industry. However, there are still questions weighing heavy on the investors' minds.
PERSPECTIVE
Urban Poverty and Corporate Social Responsibility : Of Slumdogs and Millionaires
-- R Venkatesan Iyengar
The predicted growth in urban population due to the continuing influx of migrants is bound to concurrently
result in an increase in urban poverty and in the number and density of slums in the coming years. India Inc. has
a moral as well as social obligation to help governments tackle this problem.
CORPORATE STRATEGY
Coca-Cola : Sparkling Show
-- Amit Singh Sisodiya and Ramana Pemmaraju
The Coca-Cola Company serves a refreshingly exciting FY08 performance at a time when corporate results,
in general, are nothing but a portrayal of the gloomy sentiment that engulfs global businesses.
CORPORATE STRATEGY
Toyota : The No. 1's Ordeals
-- Y Bala Bharathi and Sanjoy De
Despite being the number one carmaker, Toyota is in deep trouble.
CORPORATE STRATEGY
UBS : Reputation on the Line
-- Y Bala Bharathi and G P Mrudhula
It's been a double whammy for the beleaguered Swiss bank, UBS, thanks to the piling up of subprime losses
as well as the recent tax dodging deal.
BY INVITATION
Global Financial Crisis : Passing the Parcel Game
-- Sunil Poshakwale
The current financial crisis has widespread implications for the financial markets, banking
industry, shareholders as well as the man on the street.
ARTS & ARTISTS
Lessons from a Road Warrior
-- Sanjoy De
As the title suggests, the book is about invaluable lessons on value investing from a great warrior who fell off
a horse, earned 15 million air miles, got sand in his shoes and learned how to invest.
ARTS & ARTISTS
Walden's Economy
-- Dr. Nirmala PG
When I wrote the following pages, or rather the bulk of them, I lived alone, in the woods, a mile from any neighbor, in a house
which I had built myself, on the shore of Walden Pond, in Concord, Massachusetts, and earned my living by the labor of my hands only.
I lived there two years and two months. At present, I am a sojourner in civilized life again.
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