For centuries, gold has remained a precious and treasured commodity. If you plan to shower its splendour and glitter at your daughter&rsquo;s wedding, here&rsquo;s an opportunity.

Reasonable returns, but illiquid

Business Standard

A strong rupee has made international holidays cheaper by around 10 per cent.

Travel gains currency on rising rupee

Vivek Jugran, 30, was working in a fast moving consumer goods company for the past seven years. However, his career was not going anywhere. His prospects were getting stifled because he did not have a Master&rsquo;s degree in Business Administration, the coveted MBA.

Use equity to save and study more

I want to take a home loan to buy land. This land parcel is outside my city limits and categorised as non-agricultural. I intend to construct a holiday home after some years.

BANKING: Prashant Joshi

When Deepak Sharma, 45, passed away, his wife and two children suddenly found themselves in a severe financial crunch. While he owned three flats and a plot of land, the records were missing.

Where there is a will...

In the last decade, telecom has become one of the fastest growing sectors. The so-called 'mobile revolution' has already taken the country by storm. And with growth rates of 54 per cent in 2009 (calendar year) and 48 per cent in 2008, the prospects of the industry is certainly on the upside.

Tring tring tring...

For building long-term wealth, financial planners always advise that the systematic investment plans (SIPs) in equity funds is the best way. But if one takes a 5 or 10-year horizons, there will be many times when there is surplus with the investor because of a rise in income or windfall.

Keep adding to your wealth

Neglecting the administrative work on an investment is a common mistake.

Being particular on paperwork

There are several products in the market which are tailor-made for you.

Get a leeway on home loans

With the Bombay Stock Exchange&rsquo;s benchmark index, or Sensex, remaining flat for the last six months, many stock market investors, even first-time investors, are being advised that mid-cap and small-cap stocks could be a better bet. And with good reason.

A portfolio-booster, but tread with care

There is an excellent offer for vacation in Europe by a leading travel agency. They are offering a good discount. In the absence of enough funds, I am planning to take a loan and pay back through equated monthly installments (EMIs) in the next one year. Also, I am expecting a raise in October, which will ease pressure on my finances.

Financial Planning: Gaurav Mashruwala

The robust credit pick-up in the fourth quarter of 2009-10, which helped the banking system to top central bank&rsquo;s credit growth projections for the financial year, was primarily driven by retail loans, but credit flow to the commercial real estate sector fell drastically following an increase in provisioning norms last year.

Retail loans on the rise, flow to realty plunges

With many funds lagging benchmarks, index funds and ETFs become attractive.

MFs rediscover the virtues of passivity

Steep &lsquo;waterfall clauses&rsquo;, mezzanine, cash-out deals feature in deals seen in the sector.

PEs gain upper hand in realty deals

Credit information watchdogs on the prowl.

Monetary Policy and You

Don&rsquo;t get locked into fixed deposits or income funds with three-four year tenure.

Right time to invest in short, 1-yr debt schemes

Students earning stipend in foreign currency need to pay tax, unless they get it as allowance.

Interns need to file tax returns

The shares of companies that are very sensitive to economic and business cycles are generally called cyclical stocks. These tend to perform very well during an economic upswing as companies they represent face robust demand for their products or services due to higher consumer spending. However, during economic downturns, these companies face shrinking demand and lower profitability.

Investing; Rishi Nathany

It has been more than nine years since private sector life insurance companies commenced operations in India. Together, these companies have invested over $5 billion in the sector till date. Despite this, many companies continue to report significant losses in their statutory accounts. Their break-even targets have also been pushed beyond 10-12 years from the date of commencement of operations.

Challenges in valuing insurers

Medical policies that cover outpatient department are quite expensive. Buy them only if you intend to use the facilities.

Now, cover for dental care

With the corporate results season on, many investors would be keenly looking at companies they had invested in. There will be a range of experts with advise on buying and selling.

Going beyond the numbers

Personal Finance: Read about the smart strategies for Personal Finance Planning, Investing, Insurance, banking, budgeting, loans Tax Planning, retirement and insurance. Browse Business Standard to learn more on Personal Finance.

Personal Finance: Investing, Planning, Retirement, Loans, & Insurance | Business Standard

Read about the smart strategies for Personal Finance Planning, Investing, Insurance, banking, budgeting, loans Tax Planning, retirement and insurance. Browse Business Standard to learn more on Personal Finance.

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