Financonomics

10 Timeless Lessons from Bernard Baruch Known as "The Lone Wolf of Wall Street" , Bernard Baruch was one of the the world's most famous speculators of the 20th Century. By the age of 30, Mr Baruch had amassed a fortune.  He went on to advise US presidents and congressional leaders from 1918 to 1948. His memoirs, "My Own Story" , written in 1957, provides a fascinating account of Baruch's life, his insight into human psychology and the history of speculation. His first hand account of market panics, bull markets and short squeezes and the associated emotional reaction of the markets provide timeless wisdom.   Mr Baruch lays down 10 guidelines from his lifetime of experience in the markets which he notes 'may be worth listing for those who are able to muster the necessary self discipline'. Like all of the Investment Masters there are many common threads that form the foundation of his success. With the exception of Mr Baruch's commentary on taxes,...

  Compound interest Govt has recently announced waiver of compound interest for 6 month period between Mar 2020 till Aug 2020 for borrower availing loan less than ₹2 cr in eight identified sectors (MSME, housing, education, consumer durables, credit card, auto, personal loan to professionals and consumption loan). Amount of relief will be calculated as the difference between simple interest and compound interest and this is expected to cost the exchequer Rs. 6500 cr.  Assuming interest rate of 9% p.a., the principal amount works out to Rs. 16 lakh crore. And further assuming average ticket to be Rs. 10 lakh, the number of borrowers benefiting from the scheme can be estimated as 1.6 crore which implies benefit per borrower as Rs. 4000 on an average. While for individual borrower, the amount is quite small, but the burden it creates on Govt is quite enormous. This money could have been effectively used elsewhere, may be for infrastructure development which gives long term divide...