Impact of dollar fluctuations on the Indian economy

Indian foreign exchange rate system   was on the fixed rate model till the 90s after that was switched to floating rate model. Fixed FX rate is the rate fixed by the central bank against major world currencies like US dollar, Euro, GBP, etc. Like 1USD = Rs. 40. Floating FX rate is the rate determined by market forces based on demand and supply of a currency. If supply exceeds demand of a currency its value decreases, as is happening in the case of the US dollar against the rupee, since there is huge inflow of foreign capital into India in US dollar.

Jet Airways seeks rail service deals in Europe to expand its presence

In a first for any Indian carrier, Jet Airways (India) Ltd plans to strike deals with European railway operators to let passengers reach destinations its air network doesn't cover.

Foreign airlines such as Lufthansa, Air France SA, Emirates and Continental Airlines Inc. already have such arrangements with railway firms, allowing passengers to carry on with their journey by train after a flight, or vice versa, on a single ticket. The concept is particularly popular in Europe.

Jet Airways has sought the civil aviation ministry's approval to sign such agreements before it approaches European governments for similar clearances, said a government official, requesting anonymity.

Case Study

The minister for civil aviation, Shri Praful Patel informed the Lok Sabah today that the domestic passenger growth has declined to negative 1.94% during the period January to October, 2008 as compared to growth of 46.5% & 32.5% in the full calendar year 2006 & 2007 respectively.

Passengers carried by domestic airlines from January to October, 2008 were 346.81 lakhs against 353.67 lakhs in the corresponding period of 2007. Domestic Airlines carried 31.80 lakhs passengers in the month of October, 2008 as compare to 36.01 lakhs in the month of October, 2007. Aviation Sector was first greatly affected due to rise in fuel prices. Thereafter the slowdown of the global economy has caused decline of aviation sector growth. The decline in Indian aviation growth is not due to lack of infrastructure since there is adequate capacity at Indian airports to handle the existing demand. To meet the challenges of slowdown in the aviation industry, the Government has taken various steps which inter-alia are as under:

Business News

·        Lingua Next acquires Image Point

·        Emani on hunt for acquisitions

·        Govt to take up new SEZ requests in Jan

·        India, China agree to resolve visa issue

Campus Buzz

Students seeking placement and recruitment related assistance can contact Mr. Mohammad Imran (YES BANK - Branch Service Delivery, Leader Branch Banking) at his cell # 9899279984

Thought of the day

"Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things."                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  - Lao Tzu

HR Glossary

Autocratic leadership

Leader determines policy of the organization, instructs members what to do/make, subjective in approach, aloof and impersonal.

Balanced Scorecard

A popular strategic management concept developed in the early 1990's by Drs. Robert Kaplan and David Norton, the balanced scorecard is a management and measurement system which enables organizations to clarify their vision and strategy and translate them into action. The goal of the balanced scorecard is to tie business performance to organizational strategy by measuring results in four areas: financial performance, customer knowledge, internal business processes, and learning and growth.

Discover How to Communicate Better At Workplace

One of the major reasons for this common workplace phenomenon is people’s different behavioral styles. You can be naturally conflictive when you behave naturally!

The four major behavior patterns are dominance, influencing, steadiness and conscientiousness (DISC). Each of us is a combination of all four, but almost everyone finds at least one or two of the styles most comfortable.

Dominant styles are easy to detect. They sport a strong handshake, steady eye contact and exhibit a confidence that may overwhelm less powerful people. They prosper by solving challenges … and often are a challenge for others. They don’t get ulcers; they are carriers. They are risk takers and thrive as CEOs of their own companies and big corporations.

To get along better, provide brief, direct answers. Stick to business and the results they desire. Ask “what” questions.

Investment Strategies for portfolio management

Balanced investment strategy is perhaps the most followed and successful investment strategy for portfolio management. Its primary aim is to keep a balance between investment risk and return. A balanced investment strategy combines the merit of aggressive and defensive investing strategies.

Aggressive investment strategy involves investing in high return high risk investments with the sole purpose of maximizing return from investments. It involves allocating major portion of portfolio capital to invest in equities, equity based funds and highly volatile markets. Investors following aggressive investment strategy often look for comparatively short-term profiting and wish to invest more in growth stocks, and small caps and mid cap stocks. Advantages of aggressive investing include quick profit, high return over investment and no need of large portfolio capital. It can work really well for experienced investors and investors who are very strict in their money management. Disadvantages include high risk, high volatility in total portfolio value and no surety of profit. It less supports novice investors and investor looking for monthly earnings or living costs.

Unilever’s Packaging Practices – Innovation and Insights

The case examines how Anglo-Dutch retail giant Unilever Group used innovations in packaging to differentiate its products. It explains how Unilever used packaging as a marketing tool to launch prelaunch, reposition and increase demand for its products and attract new customers.

Several instances; where innovative packaging helped Unilever increase revenues of its products are discussed in the case. At the same time, Unilever tried to minimize the impact of its packaging on the environment by adopting recycled materials, introducing concentrated version of detergents and also by using fewer colors on its labels.

Question:                                                              

» How can packaging help a company differentiate its products?

» Examine how the adverse impact of packaging on the environment can be reduced.