February | 2011 | wealthymatters

Silver Investors Beware ! Patra and Gillet

February 28, 2011 1 Comment

As gold continues to hover round 21,000 Rupees per 10 grams and silver round 50,000 Rupees per kilogram there is a great deal of change taking place in the Indian jewellery market. The following article which appeared in the ‘Times of India’ is a must read for anyone looking to invest in silver jewellery and artifacts.

Now, silver is worth its weight in gold and more

24 Feb, 2011, 0854 hrs IST, Meenakshi Sinha, TNN

NEW DELHI: For generations, silver jewellery has been a source of enthrallment for millions of families across India. The exquisite craftwork of an anklet, the sheer weight of a beautiful baazuband (ornate upper arm amulet) — the metal has been a source of pleasure in every way. Its versatility and durability has only added to its allure. While gold has always been the preferred metal for weddings , the cheaper silver has offered more opportunities to indulge.

But now with the sky-rocketing of silver prices, customers are being forced to make adjustments. The traditional heavy silver jewellery is giving way to lightweight varieties. Imitation metals too are making their way in.

Sachin Aggarwal of Mohit Gems and Jewellers, Sector 27, Noida says that the demand for heavy items has gone down.“Silver gift items like statues of gods, bridal jewellery like anklets , maang tika, traditional key rings for household keys or sindoor dani (vermillion container) have gone lightweight. Most show pieces like dolphins or photo frames for gods have now been reduced to being designed in a thin layer called patra,” he says. Read more of this post

Filed under Precious Metals Tagged with fake silver, Gillet, gillette, Gold, gold plated silver, Gold Price, imitation metal, imitation silver, Investing in silver jewellery, light weight silver jewellery, Patra, postaday2011, RandomBlog2011, Silver, silver artifacts, Silver investing, silver jewellery, silver like metal, Silver Price, silver tone metal

Gandhiji on Wealth

February 27, 2011 2 Comments

“It is my conviction that it is possible to acquire riches without consciously doing wrong. For example I may light on a gold mine in my one acre of land. But I accept the proposition that it is better not to desire wealth than to acquire it, and become its trustee. I gave up my own long ago, which should be proof enough of what I would like others to do. But what am I to advise those who are already wealthy or who would not shed the desire for wealth? I can only say to them that they should use their wealth for service.

It is true that generally the rich spend more on themselves than they need. But this can be avoided. Jamnalalji spent far less on himself than men of his own economic status and even than many middle-class men. I have come across innumerable rich persons who are stingy on themselves. For some it is a part of their nature to spend next to nothing on themselves, and they do not think that they acquire merit in so doing.

The same applies to the sons of the wealthy. Personally, I do not believe in inherited riches. The well-to-do should educate and bring up their children so that they may learn how to be independent. The tragedy is that they do not do so. Their children do get some education, they even recite verses in praise of poverty, but they have no compunction about helping themselves to parental wealth. That being so, I exercise my common sense and advise what is practicable.

Gandhiji on Trusteeship

February 26, 2011 9 Comments

Following are some of Gandhiji’s favourite quotes from the Gita:

Na twaham kamep rajyam na swarnam na puparbhavam
Kamaye dukh taptanam praninamarti nashwam

Neither I desire a Kingdom nor do I crave for heaven or salvation, I simply desire the end of miseries of all creatures who are afflicted with grief.

Javata Priyate Dehuh Tavatsatva Hidehinam
Adhikam yo bhibhanayat sa stano Dand marhati

As much as is necessary for one’s own living only that much is one entitled to have. One who has excess of this is a thief and deserves punishment.

Ishtan bhogan hi wo deva dasyante yagna bhavitah
Tairdattan pradaryabhyo yo bhangyakte sten aiv sah

Fostered by sacrifice (hard work) you will get all enjoyments. He who enjoys it without sacrifice and giving in return is undoubtedly a thief.

These words from the Gita shaped Gandhiji’s thoughts on his concept of trusteeship of wealth.Following is an explanation of the concept in his own words:

‘Suppose I have earned a fair amount of wealth either by way of legacy or by means of trade and industry. I must know that all that belongs to me is the right to an honorable livelihood no better than what is enjoyed by million of others, the rest of my wealth belongs to the community and is to be used for the welfare of the community.’ Read more of this post

Filed under Theory, Tidbits Tagged with Bapuji, Bhagavad Gita, capitalist, Communist, economic inequality, equality of opportunity, Gandhi Quotes, Gandhiji, Gita, M.K.Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi, non violent, postaday2011, RandomBlog2011, reducing economic inequality, Trusteeship, Trusteeship Of Wealth, wealth, Wealthy, welfare of community, Words, worker

Per Capita Gold Jewellery Consumption Per Year

February 25, 2011 2 Comments

For all those complaining about the amount of gold jewellery that Indian women consume , take a look at this graph.Less than 5 grams per capita doesn’t seem all that excessive compared to the figures for Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong.

Interestingly,the fastest growth in consumption comes from China.The 2009 figure was 1/4th of a gram per person.

Filed under Precious Metals, Tidbits Tagged with China, Consumption of gold jewellery per capita round the world, Gold, Gold Jewellery, Hong Kong, India, postaday2011, RandomBlog2011, Saudi Arabia

Zhang Yin

February 25, 2011 8 Comments

Below is an inspiring story of a truly extraordinary woman.I found the original post here : http://invincibleprobity.wordpress.com/2011/02/24/the-american-spirit-now-comes-from-china/

The story is a must read for entrepreneurs and would be entrepreneurs, women and anyone interested in a human interest story.

When I have some down time I usually hang out at my home in the Rocky Mountains of northwest Montana, USA. This is a wonderful place of very few people and lots of big mountains and beautiful scenery. It’s a special region of rivers and streams and lakes … and billions of trees. As opposed to the eastern part of this huge state, where agriculture and cattle reign, northwest Montana has long depended on its biggest industry – timber and wood products. But this industry, faced with steadily increasing restrictions on logging in our national forests and steadily rising competition from cheaper products from overseas, has been in slow decline for the past forty years. It seems like another small lumber mill that had been around for a century is closed down every few months.

In 2009 even big corporate mills started closing. One of these was the Smerfit-Stone Container mill in Frenchtown near Missoula. A second Smerfit-Stone container mill also filed for bankruptcy in Canada at the same time, and Smerfit-Stone mills in Arizona and Quebec had closed earlier. The company naturally cited “the unprecedented global economic recession [which] has weakened demand for packaging”, but a major portion of the truth has been left out of the Smerfit-Stone rationalizing, including the fact that it had failed to upgrade its equipment to meet modern advanced capabilities and had retained its dependence on expensive freshly logged timber to manufacture its cardboard containers. This is another American industry that has long been locked in the past while taking profits for today and failing to improve its competitiveness in the arena for tomorrow.

Like so many American industries that were forged by great visionaries of the past, the American wood products industry is a microcosm of the nation as a whole over the past forty years. It all seems like an ingrained resistance by today’s Americans to learn the lessons of generations that went before. If perhaps not for Americans, however, the Greatest Generation definitely did set an indelible example for others. Read more of this post