Borrow abroad and profit | The Indian Express

Borrow abroad and profit | The Indian Express

Written by Surjit S Bhalla |Updated: August 3, 2019 6:51:58 am

The writer is Contributing Editor at The Indian Express, and Consulting Editor at Network 18

Borrow abroad and profit

Cross-country evidence supports the conclusion that the sooner India engages in foreign currency borrowing, the quicker it can profit from this market imperfection

Every budget has good, bad, and ugly components. And critics are free to choose and comment on what they like, or hate. (Illustration by C R Sasikumar)

The finance minister’s budget speech contained a new policy statement — GOI was planning to issue 10 year bonds denominated in foreign currency. This proposal has generated a controversy, unlike most others. Every budget has good, bad, and ugly components. And critics are free to choose and comment on what they like, or hate. There are very few, if any, analysts who believe that the income-tax proposals in Budget 2019 have any merit. Likewise, there are very few experts who believe that issuance of foreign currency bonds is a good idea. Indeed, the list of eminent experts who think it is an ugly idea is near endless.