Archive for the ‘Economy’ Category

India: Statistically speaking

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

Indeed they do. India — despite its globally prominent outsourcing industry, its well-educated, English-speaking middle class and its comparatively large number of billionaires — is still a poor country. Anyone who has seen “Slumdog Millionaire” can attest to that. In fact, with 1.2 billion people, its economy, at official exchange rates, is smaller than Canada’s, which has a population of 33.5 million.

Even looking at the economy on a purchasing power basis, which provides what many economists consider a fairer comparison between developed and developing nations, India’s gross domestic product is only one-sixth the size of the U.S. economy.
“Forty percent of our fresh fruit and vegetables perish before reaching consumers,” Mr. Mitra said. “We waste more fruits and vegetables than are consumed throughout Britain.”

Enthusiasm, Tempered With Concern, About Business in India. By Tom Redburn. Published: IHT, July 8, 2009

Posted in Economy, India in Numbers | No Comments »

There’s Hope!Obama Puts $3.6 Trillion Where His Mouth Is

Friday, February 27th, 2009

By Daniel Politi for Slate
Posted Friday, Feb. 27, 2009, at 6:47 AM ET
President Obama presented his budget and left no doubt that he was being serious when he promised change. The $3.55 trillion spending plan included broad goals and few details, but outlined how Obama plans to finance more spending in health care, energy, and education while increasing the taxes on the top 5 percent of taxpayers, the oil and gas industry, and hedge fund managers, among others. In short: Bye, bye Reaganomics. The 134-page budget “is unprecedented in size, breathtaking in scope and sure to have a major impact on millions of Americans,“ declares USA Today. The Wall Street Journal notes that the spending plan “marks a significant change in nearly 30 years of governing philosophy.”

Posted in Economy | No Comments »

Meltdown effect: 20,000 Indians return losing jobs abroad

Thursday, February 26th, 2009

26 Feb 2009, 1348 hrs IST, PTI

NEW DELHI: About 20,000 Indians have returned home after losing their jobs overseas due to the global economic crisis, the government said on Thursday.

Though the exact number of people who have returned is not available, there are reports which indicate that between 16,000 to 20,000 Indians have come back here after the economic slowdown, overseas Indian affairs minister Vyalar Ravi told the Rajya Sabha during Question Hour.

To a supplementary, the minister said that the number of incidents of overseas employers keeping passport of Indian employees have come down by 50%. But he did not provide the period when this reduction has been witnessed.

He said the government is aware that some employers keep the employees’ visas with themselves and do not renew these in time, rendering them illegal immigrants. The government is holding talks with foreign countries on the issue.

The UAE has issued direction to employers not to keep the visa of their employees, he added.

The Minister also said there is a need to make changes in the Immigration Act, which was last amended in 1983.

On the issue of migrant workers, he said the government has taken a number of initiatives, including signing of bilateral agreements to protect their interests.

Asked how many Indians are in jails abroad, he said the government does not have the figure, but it is very vigilant and would collect the information.

Posted in Careers, Economy, Work | No Comments »

Is Dubai becoming a ghost town?

Friday, February 13th, 2009

With Dubai’s economy in free fall, debt-ridden foreign workers are fleeing, leaving parts of the once booming city looking like a ghost town. Even selling or abandoning their cars. Read the complete article.

Posted in Economy, Gulf: Dubai | 2 Comments »