Owing to both internal (skewed production and export basket) and external (rising imports, growing competition) challenges, India’s share in global tea exports is gradually declining. In this context, brand building and stricter compliance with global norms by the Indian players are necessary.
Can inequality be unscrupulous? If yes, what are the conditions within which such a form could become bearable, if not absolutely justifiable? It is imperative to address the first question with reference to scrupulous forms of inequality.
The current approach adopted by the judicial bodies in dealing with the hub-and-spoke conspiracies is evaluated and compared with the development of the jurisprudence in foreign jurisdictions. The inhibitions faced by the judicial bodies due to a lack of maturity of the laws are also looked at.
A set of draft rules released by the Cyberspace Administration of China, to regulate algorithm-empowered recommendation activities on the internet, are congruent with the demands made by civil societies worldwide and more substantive than the actions proposed or taken by the governments in western liberal democracies.
The thought process of major competition authorities across the globe and their response to Google’s conduct in terms of manipulating its search engine is traced in this article.
Competition is supposed to make banks more efficient and stimulate financial innovation by opening up of new markets. Given the dynamic changes within the Indian banking system in the last two decades, the effect of the developments in the market on the competitive behaviour of Indian commercial banks is assessed. The empirical analysis suggests monopolistic competition. This feature of the Indian banking market is consistent with other emerging-market economies and developing countries. We also find a decrease in competition across the two time-periods, before and after 2007. This may be attributed to the consolidation of the sector, with major banks acquiring smaller banks to gain economies of scale, market share and transaction volume.
The Great Leveler: Capitalism and Competition in the Court of Law by Brett Christophers; Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2016; pp 360, $46.50.
Critically evaluating the draft guidelines for “on-tap” bank licences put up by the Reserve Bank of India, it is argued that India’s banking system is already sufficiently competitive, and there appear to be few who would be willing to enter the banking business. Entry of newer players, especially those with corporate backing, cannot be the priority at the moment. The priority over the next two or three years has to be the resolution of the non-performing assets problem and strengthening of the existing players.
The recommendation of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to permit entry of private companies into international long distance (ILD) telecom services is to be welcomed, all the more because no limit is proposed on the number of licensees providing ILD services. However, many of the conditions it is seeking to impose on the licensees do not meet the cardinal test which should be: is the consumer going to be disadvantaged if this condition is not imposed?
The deed is done and the clock cannot be put back. Competition has come into almost all sectors of Indian industry and will increase. It is making the economy more efficient in using resources. A new breed of entrepreneurs and new industries are emerging who are able to operate successfully in this changed environment. This process must accelerate. It is in the interest of the country's growth and competitiveness that the old companies which do not wish to change and reform themselves become extinct.
