Time To Tighten The Seatbelt

The year 2022 was easy on our emotions when it came to the philosophical questions of life and death, as the threat of Covid somewhat got muted. But it unleashed another kind of fury. Volatility gripped the equity markets, as global recession seemed imminent. Inflation surged to unprecedented levels, forcing the central bank to pile up steep interest rate hikes one after another, post two years of policy easing. That dampened the slightly renewed interest in the real estate market, as borrowers felt squeezed. Optimism in new assets, such as crypto, subsided as it entered a prolonged winter. Several states clamouring to get back on the old pension bandwagon threatened to put a spoke in the new pension policy wheel. And there weren’t even new income tax incentives to lessen the sting. As we stand on the precipice to enter 2023, things don’t seem much brighter either. The...