Exchange Rate Regimes: International Gold Standard (1875- 1914)

Though in Great Britain currency notes from the Bank of England were made fully redeemable for gold during 1821, the first full-fledged gold standard was adopted by France   in 1878. Later on United States adopted it in 1879 and Russia and Japan in 1897, Switzerland, and many Scandinavian countries by 1928. An international Gold Standard is said to exist when; Gold alone is assured of unrestricted coinage There is a   two way convertibility between gold and national currencies at a stable ratio And gold may be freely imported and exported. In order to support unrestricted convertibility into gold, bank notes need to be backed by gold reserve of a minimum stated ratio. In addition, the domestic money stock should rise and fall as gold flows in and out of the country. In a version called Gold Specie Standard, the actual currency in circulation consists of gold coins with Continue reading

Four Approaches to the Determination of Exchange Rates

In simple terms, it is the interaction of supply and demand factors for two currencies in the market that determines the rate at which they trade. But what factors influence the many thousands of decisions made each day to buy or sell a currency? How do changes in supply and demand conditions explain the path of an exchange rate over the course of a day, a month, or a year? This complex issue has been extensively studied in economic literature and widely discussed among investors, officials, academicians, traders, and others. Still, there are no definitive answers. Views on exchange rate determination differ and have changed over time. No single approach provides a satisfactory explanation of exchange rate movements, particularly short- and medium-term movements, since the advent of widespread floating in the early 1970s. Some approaches to exchange rate determination: 1. The Purchasing Power Parity Approach Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) theory Continue reading

Types of Debt Mutual Funds

Debt mutual funds are those that predominantly invest in debt securities. Since most debt securities pay periodic interest to investors, these funds are also known as income funds. However, it must be remembered that funds investing in debt products can also offer a growth option to their investors. What is more important is that the portfolio is predominantly made up of debt securities. The universe of debt securities comprises of long-term instruments such as bonds issued by central and state governments, public sector organizations, public financial institutions and private sector companies; and short-term instruments such as call money lending, commercial papers and certificates of deposits and treasury bills. Debt funds tend to create a variety of options for investors by choosing one or more of the segments of the debt markets in their investment portfolio. Liquid Funds And Money Market Funds: These debt funds invest only in instruments with maturities Continue reading

The Importance of Brand Perception

The perception of Branding holds great significance since many years; it is the explanation to distinguish the goods and services from one to another. Customer’s simple understanding of brand is to relate and consider with simple information processing about products purchasing and being positive about the brand to construct their trust with time. Branding is a method that is utilized by the enterprises to utilize trading schemes to enhance their merchandise or service likeness in order that it is more gladly recollected by the customer. Branding assists the goods or service to make a favorable influence on the goal customers while the branding notions assist in explaining the guidelines that should be pursued throughout the branding process. Brand equity is primarily constructed by laying a base of brand perception – finally forming affirmative brand images – and is finally maximized by high grades of brand commitment. The significance of brand equity comprises Continue reading

The Payment of Wages Act, 1936

The Payment of Wages Act, 1936 is a central legislation which has been enacted to regulate the payment of wages to workers employed in certain specified industries and to ensure a speedy and effective remedy to them against illegal deductions and/or unjustified delay caused in paying wages to them. It applies to the persons employed in a factory, industrial or other establishment, whether directly or indirectly, through a sub-contractor. The Central Government is responsible for enforcement of the Act in railways, mines, oilfields and air transport services, while the State Governments are responsible for it in factories and other industrial establishments. The basic provisions of the Act are as follows: The person responsible for payment of wages shall fix the wage period up to which wage payment is to be made. No wage-period shall exceed one month. All wages shall be paid in current legal tender, that is, in current Continue reading

Lending procedures of development banks

Development banks follow a procedure for evaluating a proposal for a project. The basic objective is to check whether the applicant fulfils various conditions prescribed by the lending institution and the project is viable. The acceptance of a wrong proposal will result in the wastage of scarce resources. These banks adopt the following procedure for lending: 1. Project Appraisal and Eligibility of Applicant Every financial institution serves a particular area of activity or there are certain limits prescribed beyond which they cannot go. Before processing the application, it is important to find out whether the applicant is eligible under the norms of the institution or not. The second aspect which is looked into is to determine whether the enterprise has fulfilled various conditions prescribed by the government. In case some license is required from the government. It should have been taken or an assurance is received from the licensing authority. Continue reading