In today's Finshots we talk about trees, vehicle scrappage policy, great semiconductor shortage, warehouses and Kuwait's Oil curse. But before that, a note on this week's Finshots Markets.
Page Industries saw a surge in its stock price after the company announced its results for the previous quarter. And considering they posted their highest ever quarterly profit, there’s good reason for us to revisit the stock. So in this week's edition, we talk about Page, Jockey and the not so glamorous business of selling underwear. Link here.
The Value of a Tree
Trees are irreplaceable. And yet, governments are often forced to uproot these national treasures in the name of development. Sometimes it’s understandable. But most times, it’s simply egregious. So there is an obvious need to relook at our strategy. And when the West Bengal government decided to cut 356 trees to construct five railway overbridges (RoBs), the matter was brought in front of the Supreme Court. They put together a team of 5 experts to figure out the economic value of the tree. And if you know what they think about tree valuation, read our story here.
Understanding the Vehicle Scrappage Policy.
Beyond 15-20 years, vehicles start becoming inefficient. They start taking in more fuel. They’ll start polluting more. At this point, it’s safe to say that the vehicle is no longer an asset. It’s a liability. Not just for the owners, but for the society at large. And if left unchecked, India could have some 2 crore out-of-shape old dingy vehicles plying the roads by 2025. Which is why the government wants to introduce a dedicated policy on scrapping old vehicles aka a vehicle scrappage policy. And if you want a simplified take on the matter, read our story here.
The Great Semiconductor Shortage
Car companies are halting production because their vendors can't supply electronic components. Laptops are struggling to meet demand because they don’t have computer chips. Mobile phone companies are having to pay through the roof to source critical parts. And it’s all happening because the world is witnessing an unprecedented semiconductor shortage. So if you want to know how we got to this point, you should definitely check out our article here.
Geo-tagging Warehouses
Indian farmers have a big problem. They grow their crops. They harvest their produce, only to then find out that storage is going to be a problem. They don’t have the money to build their own infrastructure. And they can’t get access to third party warehouses. And no, it's not always because there is no infrastructure. Sometimes it’s because most farmers simply don’t know where to go. And when they can’t find storage, they are often forced to part with their produce for pennies on the block. And in a bid to alleviate some of their troubles, the government has a new ambitious plan. Wan to know more? Click the link here.
Kuwait's Oil Curse
Kuwait is running out of cash. With Covid and oil prices at an all time low, they don't have enough money to cover their expenses. Worse still, they don't have enough assets to swap them with cash from a $600 billion fund they vowed never to touch. So if you want to know how an oil rich country got here in the first place, you can check out our article here.
Also, Finshots is now available on your favourite podcasting apps. So if you want to listen to our stories instead of reading them each day, you can do so here.
And, if you have found Finshots useful and would like to show us some love please tell a friend about how cool we are 😅. All you have to do is WhatsApp or Tweet this :)
Anyway, that's it from us this week. We will see you on Monday :)
