Day: April 6, 2024

The film is set in 1971, and is set in Rome. We see a wide eyed innocent young girl, Margaret, land in Rome. She’s a novice from America, and is set to take her vows and become a nun soon. She is to work at a convent that takes care of little girls. She is greeted at the beautiful Leonardo Da Vinci airport by a priest who is now a cardinal and even though the city is historic and stunningly beautiful, there is chaos around her. As the story progresses we are stunned by the secrets hidden in the convent and inside her head. 

Also Read: Crew: 3 important money lessons from this Tabu, Kareena and Kriti starrer

A shiver will go down your spine often as you see her battle evil. If you apply those moments to your money life, you will see huge lessons to learn.

Watch out for the mark of the devil

You have seen enough horror films where Satan marks his presence with a number: 666. The heroine sees many signs that suggest evil and they are enough to keep you awake through the night. She has been seeing signs since her childhood, but at the orphanage where she was raised, the nuns restrained her and told her again and again that she was imagining everything. 

If people know you are new to investing then they will fill your head with all kinds of information that is not right. You cannot be a wide-eyed innocent, trusting fly-by-night operators of chit funds and the like with your money. Trying to get your money back from them will be a nightmare scarier than any horror film. Look out for signs. Evil schemes are often too good to be true. If they promise you great gains for little or no work stay away. 

Also Read: Kung Fu Panda 4: Four valuable money lessons from Po’s journey to becoming the Dragon Warrior

Will Margaret conform to rules?

Margaret befriends a young girl at the convent who seems to be just like her when she was younger. But Mother Superior and the other nuns as well as the children are wary of that wild child. Margaret is even told to stay away from her. 

Reverse the situation in real life, people around you laugh at you if you choose to invest in something safe and reliable as an FD. They will goad you into trading stocks and options which they say are better. But remember, your risk profile is different from others as are your money goals. Stick with what works best for you.   

What is the biggest enemy of the establishment?

The historic city of Rome may be beautiful, but is reeling under protests by students. The city is neighbours with the holy city of Vatican. The Church assumes that the Butterfly Effect will help bring the believers back. But the threat of the ultimate evil is imminent. Will young Margaret help change the destiny of the establishment or will her rebellion work? The battle between good and evil is an ancient one and Margaret is right at the heart of the battle as she tries to protect the young girl.

Also Read: Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen on Netflix: 2 key money lessons to learn from the series

Banks wield more power over your money than you can imagine. There are charges and fees hidden in the fine print which can make or break you. Loans that you sign up for always startle you when you begin to pay your EMIs. It’s like buying a cute sweet baby elephant for your apartment and it soon outgrows your home, eating everything you earn. So become smart. Educate yourself. If you don’t like reading fine print, then find someone who does, and is on your side. Or else the establishment will crush you.

The film builds up a great atmosphere of tension and fear, and does not use cheap tricks like jump scares and creepy scratchy sound just because it’s a horror film. It is a prequel to the ‘Omen’ films that you have seen. Plus, if you have studied in a school run by nuns (or priests), you will be reminded of scary Mother Superior, elderly nuns who could peel the paint off walls with their stares, pretty kids singing evil sounding songs. Borrowing from Star Wars, I ask: Will you, like Margaret, go over to the dark side? Or will you be saved?      

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Published: 06 Apr 2024, 09:55 AM IST

It is vital to note that the tax treatment of digital gold and physical gold is same while sovereign gold bonds (SGBs) being the exception. Another noteworthy distinction is that physical gold entails cost of making and storing unlike digital gold, which does not involve such costs.

Tax treatment of gold instruments:

Sovereign gold bonds (SGBs): These instruments have unique income tax treatment. If you sell them in the secondary market within three years of buying them, they are taxed at the slab rate.

However, if they are sold after three years of holding, they attract long term capital gains tax of 20 percent after indexation. And in case you hold them to maturity, they are not taxed at all.

It is vital to note that these bonds have a maturity period of 8 years with early redemption option available after 5th year. The annual income of 2.5 percent that these bonds offer are taxed as per the slab rate.

Gold exchange traded funds (ETF): Earnings made on ETFs are taxed as per income tax slab regardless of when you sell them.

There are 17 gold ETF schemes with total assets under management amounting to ₹28,529 crore as on Feb 29, 2024, shows the AMFI data.

ALSO READ: Gold consolidates at all-time high on US Fed rate cut hopes, China data; silver near 3-year high mark 

Physical gold (coins/ biscuits): Tax treatment of physical gold is similar to digital gold and taxed at long term capital gains rate of 20 percent plus 8 percent cess when sold three years after buying it. And when it is sold within 3 years, the gains are added to the income and taxed as per the slab.

These are better than jewellery items as they don’t entail making charges. But since these are to be kept in safe custody, they involve cost to save such as locker charges.

Jewellery items: These entail a cost to store in a locker, but turn out to be more expensive than digital gold as well as gold coins because they also include making charges which are around 10-15 percent.

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Published: 06 Apr 2024, 12:50 PM IST

This is believed to be either the last or perhaps second last meeting before the interest rates are eventually slashed after a long hiatus. A Reuters poll predicted that the RBI is expected to cut rates in the Sept quarter. Notably, the banking regulator had raised the repo rates by a cumulative of 250 basis points before keeping them unchanged since Feb 2023. 

So, the current time may be the most opportune time to lock fixed deposits (FDs) for a long time.

We share key reasons for the same here:

Inflation under control: Inflation continues to  be under control. RBI maintains the policy stance at ‘withdrawal of accommodation’. 

The RBI governor said, “When CPI inflation had peaked at 7.8 per cent in April 2022, the elephant in the room was inflation. The elephant has now gone out for a walk and appears to be returning to the forest,” said Das.

In view of this, the chances of raising the interest rates further are very slim, and going forward, the rates will only come down after having stayed the same since Feb 2023.

Right move to lock the deposits at higher rates: When you lock your fixed deposits at higher rates, then even when the interest rates fall during the tenure, you continue to earn a higher rate of interest. 

For instance, when you lock a three-year FD at 7 percent per annum with HDFC Bank, you stand to earn interest at this higher rate even when the rates decline to 6 percent, say, one year later. 

As a result, you will continue to earn an extra 1 percent on your fixed deposit during the last two years of tenure. For instance, if the FD amount is ₹5 lakh, an extra 1 percent for two years amounts to ₹10,000. And when the FD is booked for ₹10 lakh, an extra 1 percent can make you richer by ₹20,000 in two years. 

Debt portion of portfolio: Investors tend to invest the debt portion of their portfolio in fixed deposits. And when overall interest rates fall in the economy, there will be fewer fixed income opportunities in the market. 

As a result, one would either block money in the low-paying instruments or would raise allocation to riskier assets. So, it is better to invest money in the fixed income instruments in order to stay true to the portfolio.

ALSO READ: RBI allows UPI payments at CDMs for cash deposits, says Guv Shaktikanta Das

Flexibility of redemption: Although it is not recommended to redeem your fixed deposit before maturity, but if there is an urgent need of money either for personal emergency or to redeploy the funds elsewhere, there is always an option to redeem your deposit without having to incur any loss. 

So, the flexibility offered by term deposits is a win-win situation for investors. 

All in all, if you are contemplating booking a fixed deposit for a long tenure, this may be the right time to do so. Because you never know when the rates start declining.

Note: This story is for informational purposes only. Please speak to a SEBI-registered investment advisor before making any investment related decision.

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Published: 05 Apr 2024, 04:33 PM IST