New peak awaits Sensex amid unabated FII flows

A gentle push is all that the BSE benchmark Sensex needs to post new highs in the week ahead. With foreign portfolio inflows showing no signs of abating, on hopes the US Federal Reserve might defer the rollback of its monetary stimulus, the Sensex is expected to breach the existing record closing high of 21,004.94 — only 0.6 per cent away from Friday’s closing of 20,883. The index had touched this level on November 5, 2010.

Hope of a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) -led coalition forming the next government after April 2014, following recent exit polls, is also fuelling optimism. But brokers feel gains could be capped as domestic investors might continue to sell at these levels.

If the Sensex manages to make fresh closing highs, traders would look forward to the index breaching its highest level of 21,206.77 (January 10, 2008) — about 1.5 per cent away from Friday’s closing.

“Expectations of a delay in the withdrawal of the Fed’s stimulus package has taken care of any immediate worry about the global liquidity,” said Prateek Agrawal, chief investment officer, ASK Investment Managers.

Earlier, investors were anticipating the US central bank would start the rollback of its gigantic bond-buyback programme — known as the Quantitative Easing (QE)3 — by December. But, now, with the US economy seen slowing because of the 16-day US shutdown and concerns surrounding future talks to increase the US debt ceiling, the Fed is expected to defer the withdrawal to a couple of months into 2014.

PFC Tranche-I Tax Free Bonds Collection Figures at 5.00 p.m. as on 20/10/2013 (With Greenshoe Option)

 

IIFCL Tranche-I Tax Free Bonds Collection Figures at 5.00 p.m. as on 20/10/2013 (With Greenshoe Option)

 

NHPC Tranche-I Tax Free Bonds Collection Figures at 5.00 p.m. as on 20/10/2013 (With Greenshoe Option)

 

Morgan Stanley - European Credit Strategy :: PDF link

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/162668747/Morgan-Stanley---European-Credit-Strategy

Morgan Stanley - US Industrials _ Autos :: PDF link

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/162668794/Morgan-Stanley---US-Industrials-_-Autos

Can you claim policy amount ahead of time?:: Business Line

You can claim the policy amount one year ahead of maturity, on policies such as endowment and money back.

Your life insurance policy will mature for payment in a year but you wonder whether you could get the amount in your hands now as you have some urgent expenses. Well, this option is indeed available. Also called a ‘discounted claim’, insurers such as LIC offer this on specific request.

HOW IT WORKS

Say a policy will mature on August 15, 2014 and the last quarterly premium paid was in August 2013. Subsequent premiums due fall in November 2013, February 2014 and May 2014. An application for discounted claim is submitted in January 2014. The insurer will recover quarterly premium due in November 2013 with interest and that due in February and May 2014 without interest from the claim. If in the above example premiums are annual and that due in August 2013 is paid by the policyholder there is nothing to be recovered from the claim. While calculating the discounted period, a period above 15 days will be treated as a month and less than 14 days will be ignored.

Financial advice on new track:: Business Line

Only those who are remunerated by clients in the form of fees will be able to call themselves investment advisors or financial planners.

Come October 20, SEBI’s new guidelines for investment advisors will come into force. They will continue the business of distribution, but with one very important change: they cannot continue to be wolves in sheep’s clothing. In other words, they have to be true to the label and state what they are. If they are brokers or distributors, they have to clearly say so.

Earlier, people projected themselves as ‘investment advisors’ or ‘financial planners’ even though all their earnings came from distributing financial products. I know of at least 100 firms engaged in the business of brokerage or distribution but having the word ‘advisors’ or ‘planners’ in their legal names.

This change is a revolution in the advisory business. Only those who are remunerated by clients in the form of fees will be able to call themselves investment advisors or financial planners. The entire business model of these firms will be shaped accordingly.

If an entity registered as an investment advisor receives commissions for any product that it sells based on its advice, it has to be transparently disclosed. In fact, the guidelines make it clear that advisors should not receive any part of their compensation in the form of commission.

Once an entity is remunerated by the investor in the form of fees, it can potentially use any product while executing a client’s financial plan. Thus, you could find financial advisors hunting around for the best interest-paying one-year deposit for their clients, or for the cheapest home loan. India is the second country in the world, after UK, to be implementing this regime.

Morgan Stanley -US Housing Tracker :: PDF link

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/162668872/Morgan-Stanley--US-Housing-Tracker

Goldman Sachs - The China credit conundrum :: PDF link

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/162350943/Goldman-Sachs---The-China-credit-conundrum

YES Bank: Buy:: Business Line

Nickel approaching critical long-term support:: Business Line