Swedish retailer IKEA is the world’s largest furniture chain. Similar to successful global retail chains such as Walmart, Tesco, Carrefour, etc. IKEA has a loyal following in the countries it operates. Here is a neat chart that shows some key facts about IKEA: Click to enlarge Source: IKEA’s India Bet Runs Into Thicket of Rules, …
Continue reading ‘Chart: IKEA – Number of Stores and Top Countries for Sales’ »
The Indian equity market is under-performing so far this year. The benchmark S&P Sensex index is down 2% year-to-date compared to S&P 500’s gain of 1.05%. Among emerging markets China is down much higher than India but Brazil is up by about 24% as Brazilian equities are recovering due to clarity on the political crisis …
Continue reading ‘On The Current Valuation of India Stock Market’ »
A country’s economic growth as measured by GDP and stock market returns are not positively related to each other. Economic growth figures show what happened with the economy during a period and is a lagging indicator. On the other hand, stock returns are driven by a variety of factors including expectations of future earnings of …
Continue reading ‘On The Relationship Between Chinese Economic Growth And Stock Market Returns’ »
Countries in the Middle East have deep sectarian religious divisions. Many people in the western world are not aware that Saudi Arabia for example is mostly Sunni Islam while most in Iran follow the Shia faith of Islam.These two groups do not get along very well. Hence Saudi Arabia opposes the spread of Iranian influence and …
Continue reading ‘Infographic: Religion and Oil in Middle Eastern Countries’ »
Many developed European banks have been in a state of suspended animation for many years now. Though years have passed since the global financial crisis banks in Europe are still unable to recover and return to pre-crisis levels. British banks are no exception as well. Once known for their worldwide reach, excellent service and stable growth, …