Cover Story

Your financial diet
Find out how the perfect portfolio has benefits similar to that of a balanced diet and also what your asset allocation strategy should be like.

2007-12-13

Energy, power sector soar, IT hit

Strong second quarter results have kept the momentum across all sectors except IT, which has been badly hit by the rise of the rupee.

Market watch, as on November 21, 2007

MONEY TODAY scans dozens of research reports from investment houses every fortnight to present you the six most relevant stock recommendations.

New frontiers of investments

What's positive for the emerging economies? Plenty. Productivity and improving demographics. A new world economy is being created by the massive investments and growth in the emerging markets.

Cashing in on churn

Reacting to the recent volatility in the mid-cap sector, and wary of more in the global financial markets, we book profits in a number of shares.

Collateral advantage

Apart from helping you create wealth through capital appreciation, stocks can also be a means of borrowing quick and cheap money.

An oil story that isn't scary

Buy into a sector that will remain relevant in market boom or bust; zero in on a stock that will grow aggressively over the medium term; buy it at a point where it represents attractive value.

Your Wallet

Digital camera: which one's your pick?

MONEY TODAY starts a new section highlighting the least expensive model in a product category. It's digital cameras this fortnight.

Mutual Fund

Principal Child Benefit a top balanced equity fund

Principal Child Benefit continues to outperform in the balanced equity funds category, better than some of the best equity diversified funds.

'Invest with a plan and time'

Alroy Lobo, Chief Strategist & Global Head-Equities, Kotak AMC, tells us his investment mantra and advises on which stocks to go for.

Hit the bull's eye all the time

Arbitrage funds offer modest returns and attract lower taxes. Replace the debt funds and fixed deposits in your portfolio with these low-risk funds.

Energising profits

Here we evaluate mutual funds and bring you the report card. This fortnight it's the Paribas Select Thematic Funds Energy Opportunities.

Expert View

The earlier you invest, the better

Since upgrading to a larger home later will involve significant transaction costs, it is best to buy the largest possible house initially.

Budget savings, not spending

People think financial planning is expensive. Actually, it is the failure to plan that can turn out to be expensive.

Prioritise your financial goals

If you’re someone who’s on the wrong side of 40, and have not yet started putting something aside for it, then you may have to push back your retirement plans.

Preparing for retirement

In the last stage of one’s economic life, where retirement, far from being a blip on the horizon is looming ever larger, the single biggest goal is to protect one’s lifestyle in the years to come.

Life after employment

If crises are inevitable, how can retired people protect their wealth against unexpected risks? Here's what to do.

Query Corner

Questions of cover

There has been a spate of queries on life insurance, one of the most crucial financial products. We answer three instructive ones.

Sector Scenario

Capital charge

Credit Suisse is very bullish on the capital goods sector and is expecting several years of power-packed growth.

Upfront

One price fits all

When shopping for fruit, you can get foxed by vendors selling apples of the same size and colour, at different prices. Investors face similar confusion when buying stocks.

Travel

Thinking out of the box...

...while planning your next holiday need not cost you the moon. Some of the most memorable accommodation options are cheaper than staying in a hotel. Take a look.

Technology

Do you need an iClone?

There are many contenders to the iPhone. They might lose out when it comes to awesome design, but in terms of utility, many of them are streets ahead.

Talk Back

'Reinvesting is limited to bungalows'

The reinvestment ideas covered in the story are applicable equally to flats and independent houses. And in most cases, reinvesting make bigger difference to the price of a flat than that of a bungalow.

Real Estate

House in God's country

The boom in domestic pilgrimage has fuelled a rush to buy property in religious hotspots across the country. Here's what the choices are.

Vadodara, a big draw for pharma, biotech

Predominantly a manufacturing and educational hub till a few years ago, Vadodara is now attracting knowledge-based industries like pharmaceuticals, biotech and IT/ITeS in a big way.

Portfolio Doctor