Slippery slope: impasse over oil reforms puts India's loans at risk

Article Abstract:

The Asian Development Bank and the World Bank have witheld loans to India due to noncompliance with its promise to reform the petroleum industry. The reforms, which include price rationalization and greater access by foreigners and private citizens, are meant to improve the operating climate for foreign firms wanting to participate in the development of India's petroleum discoveries. However, the sweeping reforms met resistance from some cabinet members and also got entangled in the Petroleum Ministry's bureaucracy. The situation jeopardizes India's plans to increase petroleum production.

Laws, regulations and rules, Petroleum industry, World Bank, Asian Development Bank (Manila, Philippines)

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Smugglers squeezed: Indian gold reforms help the economy

Article Abstract:

The easing of restrictions on importing gold into India in Feb 1992 has significantly reshaped the country's gold market. Smuggling has declined and the approximately 8 to 10,000 tons in privately owned gold can now provide revenue to assist the government's efforts to improve the economy. Bullion markets such as the Kucha Mahajani in Delhi have thrived since the reforms were enacted. The reforms allow Indian expatriate workers and some foreign nationals of Indian ancestry to bring as much as five kilograms of gold with them every six months when they go back to India.

International trade, Gold

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The money juggernaut

Article Abstract:

The Indian government has finally allowed the rupee to float freely and be fully convertible on trade account as part of its economic reform program. In doing so, the government has put the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the defensive. The BJP had been exploiting the economic stagnation in the country to further its religious-tinted nationalist agenda. To boost foreign investments, the government has also slashed tariffs on imported capital goods and declared a five-year tax holiday for the power-generating sector.

Cover Story, Monetary policy, Convertible money

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