tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-258404722009-12-10T04:37:35.670+05:30Cognitive-content is defined as the sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned. All we write here is based on the result of our perception and learning and reasoning. We sincerely hope you will enjoy our writings.Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.comBlogger32125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-12315425191806287242009-05-20T23:56:00.012+05:302009-05-21T03:32:37.838+05:30

The longest civil war in Srilanka would not have come to an end if China dint help Srilanka with its arms and ammunitions. When India and other western countries restricted the supply of arms to Srilanka due to the human rights issues, China was the largest arms supplier. In 2007 a classified amount to the tune of around $38 mn was used by Sri Lanka to procure arms from China. China gave six F7

Sugunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14467219126487409026noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-31528201413081582009-04-07T16:17:00.002+05:302009-04-07T16:21:33.949+05:30

What would you do when you are frustrated or angered by a leader’s action (or the lack of it)? You can spit, call names, shout, burn effigies, bite your lip and remain silent, or keep listening to your MP3 and pretend you never thought or heard about it. And, you can also throw a shoe. At least that’s how people seem to express their anguish in recent times. Throwing a shoe at leaders is globally

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-61334166885823074982009-03-15T00:31:00.009+05:302009-03-22T19:04:31.499+05:30

Part of my job description demands me to teach, my fellow colleagues, about various types of securities including the US Treasury Securities. And, I try hard to justify my paycheck. Treasury Securities, be it a T-bill, T-note or a T-bond, are issued by a country’s central government to raise capital. The general perception is that Treasury securities issued by US Government are virtually free of

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-62382895710461480962009-01-16T00:36:00.004+05:302009-01-16T01:02:46.062+05:30

The ban slapped by the World Bank on Wipro and Megasoft following the Satyam saga seems to have raised more than just eyebrows. And rightly so. After all, the Indian software industry – perennially in the media limelight for the right reasons – is the centre of our sterling economic growth. Several Indian software companies have been showcased in the international markets as benchmark companies.

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-33490289009897747842008-09-16T17:12:00.004+05:302008-09-18T18:37:58.046+05:30

The Chapter 11 (Bankruptcy Protection) filed by the 158-year old Lehman Brothers, the $50-billion sale of Mother Merrill to Bank of America, and the ratings downgrade of AIG seems to have sent shiver down the spine of investors in both mature and emerging markets. A reflection of the same was seen in Wall Street, as it posed its worst losses since September 11, 2001. Fears that other big

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-7624330149212094512008-07-18T23:28:00.005+05:302008-07-19T00:17:06.459+05:30

Why including gold in ones portfolio doesn’t hurt?Everybody is talking about gold these days...Talk about Iran as an upcoming nuclear Arsenal or America's turmoil in the sub-prime mortgage crisis, not so far deep recession........I do not want to get into the deeps of macro economics as to why Gold may be a good hedge at these times... Having gold in ones portfolio can help in keeping investments

Sugunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14467219126487409026noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-19854648303873320082008-06-29T22:31:00.006+05:302008-07-09T01:41:56.826+05:30

Is it the economy that is behaving badly or is it us? Any article you read these days has references to the rising crude prices, Inflation problems, high interest rate regimes, mortgage problems and eventually some larger problems that with economy that a common man cannot understand. To not deviate from the trend, I have mentioned them here as well. Creating wealth may be easy when you follow

Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-68874076846423213102008-06-10T09:27:00.005+05:302008-06-12T16:48:34.573+05:30

My two cents Predicting the direction of market is like driving a car blindfolded taking directions from a man who is looking out of the rear window. Nevertheless, I am willing to stick my neck out and say that the chances of Sensex touching 20,000 again in 2008 is limited. I also expect the markets to remain volatile through the remaining part of the year, even as crude wreaks havoc on the

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-10321451172136949512008-06-04T12:35:00.009+05:302008-06-08T10:40:52.102+05:30

With key Indian benchmark indices, the 30-stock BSE Sensex and the 50-stock S&P CNX Nifty, moving like a swing over a broad range, some interesting questions emerge. Will Sensex touch 20,000 again in 2008? Will the volatility in the markets abate? Would the cost of imported commodities, such as crude oil, play a key factor in earnings growth and in turn on the value of index? Before attempting to

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-5035029626217675702008-02-03T21:41:00.000+05:302008-02-03T22:55:10.462+05:30

Nano if successful is expected to define a new segment, a segment somewhere between the two/three wheeler user market and the current entry level passenger car market. Both these segments need to be absolutely convinced that Nano is going to benefit them to turn this venture a success. Whether this initial pricing is based on a penetrative pricing strategy to gain market share or if it is

Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-11834212497860087262008-01-26T03:17:00.000+05:302008-01-26T03:31:23.418+05:30

Will Nano be the dream car that the common man wants? Tata's credentials and ability to deliver this car has never been in question, the moot point though is the price tag that the car carries. With a tag of Rs 1 lakh Plus vat and ..., this car is roughly about twice as costly as the best selling motor bike in India. Will Price alone be good enough to woo these customers to buy Nano? Many

Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-27291246796404909382007-12-26T05:26:00.000+05:302007-12-26T08:31:45.738+05:30

Summary*FIIs were net buyers in 2007*Inflows have surged multifolds since Sep 2007; surge in inflows coincides with the reduction in short-term rates by the Fed****************Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in Indian markets in 2007. According to the data published by Securities Exchange Board of India, FIIs have made a net investment (in both Equity and Debt) to the tune

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-66833087681241366692007-12-16T06:58:00.000+05:302007-12-17T02:12:10.976+05:30

In my post dated April 4th (American New Home buyers can wait), I had indicated that the Federal Reserve will be forced to ease the interest rates if the housing market crisis continues. This is what appears to be happening in the US economy. Between September and now, driven by an economic slowdown in the wake of housing market crisis coupled with rising oil prices, Fed has lowered the

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-85236950828349996342007-10-17T10:32:00.000+05:302007-10-17T11:01:34.512+05:30

Sensex  crashed 1500 points within 20 minutes of opening trade onWednesday, October 17, 2007.Thanks to SEBI wanting to introduce restrictions on participatory notes ( P-Notes) .What went wrong with P-NotesParticipatory notes are instruments issued by FIIs to entities that want to invest in the Indian stock market. Registered FIIs with SEBI can issue, hold or deal with P-Notes. Its a simple

Sugunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14467219126487409026noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-10439131989605485382007-10-04T00:14:00.000+05:302007-10-04T00:20:13.024+05:30

Indian equity market has been on fire for the last couple of weeks.From the moment Big Ben had made his decision, there has been a unbound optimism on part of Equity investors. It was no wonder that the sensex made it's quickest 1000 points recently and looking at the way it is going, it might as well break that record. Is this optimism based just on faith or is there a sound foundation behind it

Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-82983834061167428392007-09-02T21:40:00.000+05:302007-09-03T19:24:53.871+05:30

Estimated to have impacted about two million American homeowners with spotty credits, the sub-prime mortgage crisis continue to chug along. With their homes at stake, these homeowners and their lenders are increasingly finding the going getting tougher. According to NewYork Times, which cites the data of Realtytrac, 1.2 million homeowners have been forced to opt for foreclosures in 2006, a 42%

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1820943569161973332007-08-23T06:09:00.001+05:302007-08-23T08:09:33.893+05:30

My Family is an agricultural family. My grandma farmed. My father farmed. How did they farm? My grandma grew crops. Harvested them and saved the seeds for the next plantation. They exchanged seeds with the neighbouring farm for multi crop farming and everyone I knew did the same.....But Agriculture today has changed. Agriculture has evolved itself in the last 2 centuries. It has undergone

Sugunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14467219126487409026noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-49347103300157591802007-06-16T23:55:00.000+05:302007-06-17T00:04:30.039+05:30

Every now and then as bollywood goes into a slumber the Indian politicians put together exciting games that interests the country as a whole without any regional barrier. As the political parties in India start the president game, many players will come and go until they find the one who can play the president role to their liking. The president Of India is given the Honour of being the

Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1175633249238162002007-04-04T02:17:00.000+05:302007-04-09T05:18:22.276+05:30

Sharp decline in home prices, increase in backlog/inventory of homebuilders, reduction in housing starts, leading listed players posing losses or reduction in profits. None of this is new, as this has been the case in the US housing market over the past three quarters. The question is, will this continue? And if yes, when will the prices reach the rock bottom? What can a typical retail investor

Sugunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14467219126487409026noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1155901322737719592006-08-18T16:23:00.000+05:302007-05-09T01:55:21.966+05:30

In our earlier post 'Is it the beggining of an end for Dell?', during May 2006, we had thrown light on the various challenges faced by Dell Inc. The latest quarter (second quarter of FY07) results indicate that the company has no respite from its woes, even as it struggled to gain traction against its competitors - HP, Lenovo and Acer. Despite its aggressive pricing strategies, the company's

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1151313937473086792006-06-26T14:46:00.000+05:302007-05-09T01:52:00.552+05:30

A few months ago, when SemIndia decided to locate its semiconductor fabrication plant in Hyderabad, India at a cost of $3 billion, the media went ‘ga ga’ about it saying that it signals India’s entry into the manufacturing league, a stronghold of select few countries such as China, Taiwan and Singapore till recently. Yes. One cannot refute the fact this is the first time India has been considered

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1148716785572937352006-05-27T12:58:00.000+05:302007-05-09T01:53:37.899+05:30

In my previous post (Lessons from China - 1), i had promised that i will try to answer a few questions that i had raised. In this i have made an attempt to do the same.How successful is China in running its show? Can India emulate what it did? Where is India scoring ahead?One should look at multiple parameters to evaluate this. Looking at GDP alone will not suffice the requirements. This is

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1147629436630439202006-05-17T23:24:00.000+05:302006-05-17T19:47:53.040+05:30

Too often in recent times we have heard the news of ships with Toxic materials heading India's way for ship breaking, and the government doing nothing until the Supreme court intervening. Inspite of being aware of the pollution that a Toxic ship might introduce to the eco system, the government has been sitting tight lipped on the issue. It has been left to organisations like Green peace to

Sureshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15039084174561154163noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1147603815200028942006-05-14T15:11:00.000+05:302007-05-09T01:54:58.143+05:30

When Michael Dell founded Dell Computer Corporation, his philosophy was quite simple – small margins but large volumes. In short, he tried and succeeded in commoditizing the computer. He sold the PCs directly to the customers and pared the overhead costs. However, when Dell Inc., currently the world’s largest PC maker, announced a few days ago that it might miss its first quarter earnings target,

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25840472.post-1146339144096722692006-04-30T00:18:00.000+05:302007-05-09T01:53:11.176+05:30

Assume that you were born in a rural town and you want to migrate to a city to make a living. But the government restricts the rural-urban migration. Assume that you want to invest your money in safer options, but all you will get is 1.5-1.75% in returns for a 30 year long-term bond. Assume that the Government owns all the lands and is willing to lend it to you at a nominal rate. What would you

Madhan Gopalanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15610042213602170819noreply@blogger.com4