Shrinkflation: Shrinkflation is the practice of reducing the size of a product while maintaining its sticker price. It is a form of hidden inflation. Raising the price per given amount is a strategy employed by companies, mainly in the food and beverage industries, to stealthily boost profit margins or maintain them in the face of rising input costs. Nowadays, …
The use of the dollar as a financial weapon against Russia by the U.S. has resulted in countries taking up accelerated measures to reduce their dependence on the U.S. dollar. Countries now want to hold fewer dollars and euros by switching to alternative currencies such as the yuan. Also, India is exploring trade with Russia …
Types of Unemployment in India Disguised Unemployment: It is a phenomenon wherein more people are employed than actually needed. It is primarily traced in the agricultural and unorganised sectors of India. Seasonal Unemployment: It is unemployment that occurs during certain seasons of the year. Agricultural labourers in India rarely have worked throughout the year. Structural Unemployment: It is …
What is a Non-Performing Asset? NPA refers to a classification for loans or advances that are in default or are in arrears on scheduled payments of principal or interest. In most cases, debt is classified as non-performing, when the loan payments have not been made for a minimum period of 90 days. Gross non-performing assets are the sum of …
Microfinance Institutions: MFI is an organisation that offers financial services to low income populations. These services include microloans, micro savings and microinsurance. Microfinance sector has grown rapidly over the past few decades and currently it is serving around 102 million accounts (including banks and small finance banks) of the poor population of India. Different types of financial services providers …
What is National treatment? It means treating foreigners and locals equally. Imported and locally-produced goods should be treated equally, at least after the foreign goods have entered the market. The same should apply to foreign and domestic services, and to foreign and local trademarks, copyrights and patents. This principle of “national treatment” is also found in all the three main …
What is MFN Status? World Trade Organization (WTO) members commit to treat other members equally so they can all benefit from each other’s lowest tariffs, highest import quotas and fewest trade barriers for goods and services. This principle of non-discrimination is known as Most Favoured Nation (MFN) treatment. This is one of the measures which ensures trade without discrimination. Another …
What is Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR)? The status of Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) is a legal designation in the United States for free trade with a foreign nation. In the United States, the name was changed from Most Favoured Nation (MFN) to PNTR in 1998. Why in news? US and other members of the Group of Seven (G7) will revoke Russia’s PNTR status …
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What is a Dollar–Rupee Swap auction? It’s a forex tool whereby the central bank uses its currency to buy another currency or vice versa. Dollar–Rupee Buy/Sell Swap: The central bank buys dollars (US dollars or USD) from banks in exchange for Indian Rupees (INR) and immediately gets into an opposite deal with banks promising to sell dollars at a …
Surge in global energy prices trigger a ‘terms-of-trade’ shock, where import prices rise faster than export prices, for large net energy importers like India, resulting in a hit on current account balances. The high fuel prices would result in higher inflation rates. The higher retail inflation would strain monetary policy and dampen economic growth and stress some bank borrowers. Additionally, this …
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