Subject: Economics Context: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will soon issue fresh guidelines on credit default swaps (CDS), a financial derivative instrument to hedge risks in bond investments. Concept: A credit default swap (CDS) is a financial derivative or contract that allows an investor to “swap” or offset his or her credit risk with […]

Subject: Economics Context: India’s eight core industry sectors shrank just 0.8% in September on a year-on-year basis, recording their lowest contraction since March 2020. Concept: Index of Industrial Production The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) is an index that shows the growth rates in different industry groups of the economy in a fixed period of […]

Subject: Economics Context: The fiscal deficit continued to soar in September to reach ₹9.1 lakh crore, or almost 115% of the budget target of ₹7.96 lakh crore for 2020-21, as per data from Controller General of Accounts. Concept: It is the gap between the government’s expenditure requirements and its receipts. This equals the money the […]

Subject: Economics Context: A Research Paper by David Robinson argues that the problems facing the European electricity majors reflect a ‘scissors effect’. Concept: The paper highlights how structural trends and government intervention are damaging the major European electricity companies and affecting consumers. On the one hand, it argues that is a dynamic process whereby certain […]

Subject: Economics Context: COVID-19 will significantly erode the fiscal consolidation achieved by the State governments in the past three years, the RBI said in a report. RBI has also said that Gross Fiscal Deficit (GFD) of the States would spiral during the current fiscal. Concept: Fiscal consolidation implies reduction in debt accumulation and fiscal deficit. […]