Counter with bourbon and pecan nuts

"In a circular last week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allowed overseas branches of authorised dealer (AD) banks to open rupee accounts for non-resident Indians (NRI)," so that "They will be able to hold rupees received for exports to India and use the rupee balance for business payments to a person resident in India." The RBI is trying to transform the rupee into an international currency. Mint. The problem with holding on to a large amount of rupees is that rules change suddenly in India. Last week, the RBI liberalized Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) rules to prevent trading in dollars because of the rupee's depreciation against the dollar. An NRI can now pay another NRI in rupees for business transactions. TNIE. If the RBI can change FEMA rules this week, it can change them back next week. Why take a risk? Taxes also change suddenly. In December, "The GST (goods and services tax) council, led by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, proposed 5% GST for non-branded popcorn with salt and spices, 12% for pre-packaged and branded varieties and 18% for caramel popcorn, classified under sugar confectionery. TOI. Building a factory in India is much more difficult than building one in Thailand, wrote Andy Mukherjee. Land is more expensive, taxes are much higher, rules are restrictive and public services are erratic. "At every step of dealing with petty bureaucracy, some money needs to change hands to speed up the process. All told, 19% of a $2.3 million factory in India is an extra burden of governance - or lack of it - that doesn't exist in Thailand." DH. "India displaced Britain in 2022 as the world's fifth-largest economy, and by next year it is expected to push aside Germany in fourth spot." But, "The stock market, which soared for years, has just erased the past six months of gains. The currency, the rupee, is falling fast against the dollar, making homegrown earnings look smaller on the global stage. India's new middle class, whose wealth surged like never before after the pandemic, is wondering where it went wrong." DH. On Tuesday, 21 January, "The BSE Sensex plummeted by 1,235.08 points to end the day at a more than 7-month low of 75,838.36," which "left investors poorer by Rs 7.52 trillion. Investors took risk off the table, spooked by US President Donald Trump's idea of universal tariffs." FE. To placate Trump, "Officials in the Modi-led administration have sketched out various scenarios to counter any steps a new Trump administration may take to narrow India's trade surplus with the US which was $35.3 billion for the year ended March 31." "Among the options discussed, the government could buy more whiskey, steel and oil," and also reduce import tariffs on "bourbon whiskey and farm goods like pecan nuts." ET. Excellent idea. With Holi, the festival of colors on 14 March (bankbazaar) we could celebrate with bourbon and pecan nuts. Colors will be sho bright. Cheers.