The Hindus were probably wondering what took Joseph Schumpeter so long. By the time the German economist had popularized the term “creative destruction” in the early 1940s, Shiva – sometimes referred to as na?ar?ja (literally “Lord of Dance”) – had been performing a kind of cosmological two-step for an eternity. Hindus believe Shiva maintains the delicate balance of the universe through simultaneous acts of creation and destruction. Today, the bustling subcontinent seems only to grow stronger under assault from the destructive forces rained down upon her. All the while, we in the west stifle our own progress with mindless acts of uncreative construction. Worse still, we surrender our freedoms to the government in the expectation that it will perform the dubious task of economic devolution on our behalf.
[Read more...]Intel vs. India
On April 2, 1997, your editor nervously took the podium of the Grant’s Spring Investment Conference in New York City to present an argument for buying Indian stocks. In a 40-minute speech entitled, “Intel vs. India – The Quest for Value,” your editor argued that Indian stocks were woefully underappreciated…at least in relation to tech stock “darlings” like Intel.
[Read more...]The First American Brain Drain
Baris Guzel is the kind of fellow who used to find his future in America. Not anymore.
Guzel is a 25-year-old student from Turkey working on his master’s degree in engineering management at Duke University. He and four friends plan to launch a company offering a free online tool that would allow website operators to poll their readers.
[Read more...]An Impressive Résumé for Long-Term Indian Expansion
This weekend we went to a wedding reception in Mumbai.
There were beautiful women dressed in brightly colored traditional gowns. Men favored western business suits, but a few sported the outfits usually worn at Hindu weddings…with flowing, colored tunics, baggy white pants and little embroidered slippers.
[Read more...]Investing in India: News and Forecasts for the Long Haul
The private sector ruined itself in the bubble of ’03-’07. Now, it’s the public sector’s turn. All over the developed world – with a few exceptions – the feds are adding debt at an alarming rate.
The US has already passed “the point of no return,” says a report from Casey Research. Ken Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart put that point where external debt passes 73% of GDP or 239% of exports. IMF data, says the Casey team, shows the US has already gone too far on both scores, with external debt at 96% of GDP and 748% of exports.
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Indian Markets Open the Foreign Floodgates
Ease of access is a staple of market booms. It's hard to imagine American stocks, for example, surviving these days without support from retail, institutional and international investors alike. In the same way, much of China's incredible market boom is thanks to Hong Kong, whose exchange opens the gate to millions of investors who want a piece of the world's hottest market.
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