Josh Felman
Josh Felman
Why is consumption soft, employment growth weak, and core inflation low, when the economy is apparently growing strongly?
There's no reason for the cess to be retained in its current form. That's because the cess rates themselves are monstrously complicated, varying not only in magnitude but also according to end-use
Over the past few years, most commentators have rightly emphasised the tensions in Centre-state fiscal relations, pointing especially to the Centre's repeated recourse to non-sharable cesses
What can we learn from the latest survey? Before we answer this question, we need to recognise the limitations of comparing NSS figures with the ones from the NIA
Contrary to belief, GST underperformed the old tax regime in its initial years but has now begun to exceed expectations, six years after implementation
The nominal figures track the real numbers until the first half of FY23, but then decline by a whopping 14 percentage points over the past three quarters
Arvind Subramanian is a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Josh Felman is a principal at JH Consulting
While many analysts have estimated India's potential annual GDP growth at 7-8 per cent, the most recent figures indicate a subdued rate of 4.4 per cent
All the heady optimism has overlooked the vulnerable state of the macro-economy. Caution, not complacency, is the more appropriate sentiment for now
The long-term consequences of the shocks could be very serious for China
To be sure, the cooperative spirit has gone missing since about 2018, reflecting the heavy-handedness of the Centre, not just on the GST but across a range of issues
The ramifications of this decision may not be visible today, but the damage will become apparent over time
India has struggled to generate adequate military resources
China has been the world's largest trader since 2013, its economy is now larger than that of the US in purchasing power parity terms, and soon it will pull ahead in terms of market exchange rates, too
Automatic, counter-cyclical transfers from the Centre to states can build trust and prevent trust from being corroded
Its objectives are clear. But the reality in recent years has not cooperated with the government's plans
The leaked NSS consumption numbers have provoked a debate. While arguments by various sides are not really convincing there are some broad lessons
Its internal debts are mounting to unsustainable heights, and domestic investment levels have passed the point of diminishing returns
The authors propose an alternative to build a new rural India where a basic income, regardless of agricultural vagaries, will be guaranteed