C. Rangarajan

In spite of the lagging global economy, analysts believe that India could experience economic growth to the tune of 8% in the coming fiscal year.

A leading government panel in India is looking at Indian growth with an optimistic eye even though Asia’s third largest market lost some of its momentum as a response to the 13 hikes in interest rates by the central bank since March 2010 as a way to control runaway inflation. Today what was close to double-digit inflation is down to 6.5 percent, its lowest rate in 26 months.

"We might be able to reach a growth rate of eight percent" in the next fiscal year to March 31, 2013, said C. Rangarajan, head of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, putting the range at between 7.5 and eight percent.

The coming year should see inflation staying in the vicinity of 5 to 6 percent.

"But to get back to nine percent growth we need a more hospitable global environment," Rangarajan said. "Until the global environment clears, we should be able to achieve eight percent (annual) growth."

The government is desperate to see an Indian growth rate close to 9 percent, the minimum they see as a way to meaningfully reduce the devastating poverty which is the scourge of hundreds of millions of Indian citizens.
 

The department store chain discovered the nation-wide habit by guaranteeing the lowest prices in the market throughout this year’s holiday season. Last year’s fourth quarter was mobbed by shoppers, drawn by Wal-Mart’s bargains, helping the business achieve its first traffic increase since 2009. Still, Wal-Marts limitations were hit.

“Core customers remain cautious about their finances,” said Mike Duke, president and chief executive of the chain. Despite the downsides to the strategy, he added “You can expect us to invest even more in lower prices.”

The new consumer trait will likely have widespread effects, as a diverse range of companies struggle to adjust their prices without cutting too much into their profits. Wal-Mart is a prime example, as it attracts around 10% of the U.S.’s nonautomotive spending.

During last year’s fourth quarter, net sales increased to $122.28 billion, though analysts had predicted revenue of $123.9 billion. The sales included membership fees from Wal-Mart’s Sam’s Club as well.

Brian Sozzi, analyst at NBG, said: “They’re (Wal-Mart) working extremely hard just to see improving sales. But it’s coming at the expense of profits on each sale. Just imagine if they weren’t doing this.”

Still, Charles Holley, Wal-Mart’s chief financial officer, said January’s performance was significantly improved. Sales are expected to gain momentum throughout the quarter.

“I do think there’s a new normal with customers,” he said. “The markets are more volatile. Gas prices are more volatile. Customers are looking for new ways to save money because they don’t know around the corner.”

Zappos.com is now a part of the giant family which dwells under the all-embracing cyber-roof of Amazon.com. Nevertheless, the adoption has not tarnished the happy corporate culture at Zappos.

Employees still enjoy free lunches, vending machines that don’t need to be fed money, a full-time life coach around for some instant feel-good tips, and of course the company’s guiding principle to “create fun and a little weirdness.”

Other company thoughts to live by are:

•     Deliver WOW Through Service
•     Embrace and Drive Change
•     Be Adventurous, Creative, and Open-Minded
•     Pursue Growth and Learning
•     Build Open and Honest Relationships With Communication
•     Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
•     Do More With Less
•     Be Passionate and Determined
•     Be Humble

Zappos.com, Inc. is headquartered in Henderson Nevada where it relocated to in 2004 from California.

Nick Swinmurn began Zappos after spending a frustrating day shopping for shoes in 1999. One store had the style he wanted but not his size. Another store had his size, but not his preferred color. At the end of the day Swinmurn decided to quit his day job and start an online shoe store that would be able to give people what they want, when they want it.

On June 1, 2009 Zappos celebrated its tenth anniversary with over $1 billion in annual sales. Fortune Magazine listed Zappos as one of the country’s best companies to work for.

What accounts for Zappos’ stellar success? CEO Tony Hsieh (pronounced Shay) says its because Zappos puts customer service before all else.

“Our whole goal is we want to build the best brand of customer service,” Hsieh said. “Hopefully, 10 years from now, people won’t even realize that we started selling shoes.”

•    Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy. – Norman Schwarzkopf

•    I had to make my own living and my own opportunity! But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them! – C.J. Walker

•    Life is too complicated not to be orderly. – Martha Stewart

•    The only limits are, as always, those of vision. – James Broughton

•    Nobody talks about entrepreneurship as survival, but that’s exactly what it is and what nurtures creative thinking. Running that first shop taught me business is not financial science; it’s about trading: buying and selling. – Anita Roddick

He explains that fourth quarter earnings reports show that only 46% of S&P 500 companies have surpassed market predictions; the lowest level since 2008.

“Many companies were citing increased input costs and a new general economic slowdown worldwide because of the Eurozone credit crisis as factors that affected their earnings reports,” Lombardi said.

Analysts will likely lower their S&P 500 expectations for the remainder of the year. Lombardi referred to the Association of American Railroads, who released a report showing that railcar growth slowed considerably in the second half of 2011 with only 1.1% growth last month.

“For 2012, the AAR sees a higher rail pricing environment along with higher fuel surcharges on the back of lower volume, which means that the U.S. economy is to remain relatively flat,” Lombardi explained.

“As I have been writing since 2009, we have simply been experiencing a sucker’s rally within the confines of a long-term bear market,” Lombardi said. “The divergence between earnings reports and stock prices cannot continue.”

• “Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all time thing. You don’t win once in a while, you don’t do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.” -Vince Lombardi

• “Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games.” -Babe Ruth

• “Being able to touch so many people through my businesses and make money while doing it, is a huge blessing.” -Magic Johnson

• “The NBA is never just a business. It’s always business. It’s always personal. All good businesses are personal. The best businesses are very personal.” -Mark Cuban

A survey by US News looked at 437 MBA programs in the United States and ranked them according to several criteria including average GMAT score; average undergraduate GPA; Acceptance rate; average starting salary and bonus; and number of full-time graduates who are employed at the time of graduation. The top ten ranked schools are:

1.    Stanford University
2.    Harvard University
3.    Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan)
4.    University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)
5.    Northwestern University (Kellogg)
6.    University of Chicago (Booth)
7.    Dartmouth (Tuck)

The Democratic party worries that oil and gasoline prices, bringing angst as they climb to $4 per gallon, will help Obama’s rivals ridicule his economic policies and energy programs, as well as undermine the upcoming elections.

Last week, John A. Boehner spoke at a closed door meetings. He explained that the potential anger aimed at the party should be embraced.

“This debate is a debate we want to have,” he said. “It was reported this week that we’ll soon see $4 a-gallon gas prices. Maybe higher. Certainly, this summer will see the highest gas prices in years. Your constituents saw those reports, and they’ll be talking about it.”

The Obama administration is already facing some serious adversaries.

Rick Santorum, Republican politician and former United States senator, spoke at a campaign event last week, claiming that Democrats are pushing oil alternatives. “They want higher energy prices. They want to push their radical agenda on the public,” he said. “We need a president who is on the side of affordable energy.”

Newt Gingrich tweeted his opinion last week as well, writing that “gasoline prices are unacceptable. We can do better!”

Gingrich’s website encourages supports with a gas-price petition, saying “Drill here. Drill now. Pay less.”

First, Deborah Fowles of About.com says “Get paid what you’re worth, and spend less than you earn.” Of course, the first tip seems obvious and simple, but it is actually one that is most struggled with. It is important to know the worth of your skill or position in the marketplace, and regularly evaluate your capabilities, efficiency, productivity and contribution to your workplace. Even small salary increases can make an impact in the long run.

Spending as much as, or more than, you earn is also a major issue when it comes to your savings and financial security. Spending less is almost always easier than earning more, so spending responsibly can lead to significant savings.

Second, is a budget. Stick to it. Budgeting will help you keep track of where your money goes, as well as manage spending and savings.

Third, get rid of credit card debt. Pay it off. Now.

Fourth, reconstruct or evaluate your retirement plan. Generally speaking, the majority of your investments should be in stocks. If you’re in your 20s or 30s, try to keep even 80% in stocks and the rest in bonds. As you age, slowly shift from stocks to bonds, since stocks yield higher returns only over longer periods of time.

Be careful not to move from retirement accounts or stocks to “safe” money market funds, even if your accounts are down. Your investments buy additional shares of your retirement funds, and the more shares you own, the more you will have when the market picks back up.

Fifth, if you don’t have a retirement plan, get one. One of the best deals available today is a 401 (k) plan, so find out if your employer has it, or something similar today.

Sixth, commit to a savings plan. In order to may it effective, be sure to ‘pay yourself first’ by setting aside 5% or 10% of your salary before you even glance at the bills. The best way to do this is to have the bank deduct the money automatically, and place it in a different account.

Seventh, don’t go overboard with your insurance coverages. Keep an eye on them, and update your plan as your life changes.

Eighth- Invest, invest, invest. If you’re already contributing to a retirement plan and a savings account and can afford to put a little more away, investment is the way to go.

And ninth, keep a detailed record of all of your finances. This will help you cut back on costs, find more effective plans or strategies, and also define goals and efforts for future savings.

The minutes from the policy-setting meeting of the Federal Reserve on January 24-25 shows a board divided on whether a new bond-buying program should be launched to help give a boost to the economy.

Feds Split on Bond-Buying Option

Although there appear to be some Fed officials in favor of such a bond-buying program now, the prevalent feeling among officials is that as long as the economy seems to be making headway on its own, another program of bond-buying is not called for.

The discussion on the bond-buying option took place at the same meeting during which the Fed decided to keep its benchmark interest rate down to record lows at least until the end of 2014. One of the officials stated that the central bank might need to consider dropping that plan if it wants to keep inflation under control.

"The minutes did not show an urgency to pursue further measures, with the general tone seeming to be one of 'wait-and-see'," said Joshua Shapiro, chief U.S. economist at MFR, Inc. "So, if the economy loses steam, markets will begin to expect further action."

Economy on the Mend

Since recent statistics have demonstrated an economy in improvement mode, it is even less likely that the Fed will pursue further measures to stimulate the economy.

January’s employment statistics are one example. Last month employers added 243,000 net jobs to the economy, the most since almost one year ago. That helped reduce the unemployment rate for the fifth month in a row, down to 8.3%. Consumer borrowing increased along with car sales. US factories reported their best growth-month in at least five years.

"Given that the incoming economic data since that meeting has only been more positive … there is now little chance of the Fed launching another round of large-scale asset purchases at the meetings in either March or April," said Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics.