India Buys 200 tons of Gold to diversify its assets!
It was the summer of 1991, times were tough – well, for India. The country was struggling to make the payments on its international loans. With the fear of default on upcoming payments, India pawned its hard asset, the gold – 67 tons of it. To raise badly needed cash, India sold 47 tons gold to the Bank of England and 20 tons to the Union Bank of Switzerland. The total price -$600 millions.
For a person, or a family or a nation, the tough times always bring some tough tests, some tough choices. It is during the down times when resilience, endurance and willpower are tested. The real character – the real character of a person, a real character of a nation – emerges from the behavior and actions during challenging time.
So, what are the results of such tough tests? It is either a downward spiral that could lead to complete devastation, or a rise to glory from the ashes of down days.
The test of 1991 economic crisis fell on the shoulder of the newly appointed finance minister. Luckily, this time, it was not just another politician. It was someone who knew a thing or two about finances and economics. For a change, a man with financial vision took over the economy of a beaten down country. This man with a vision – the new Finance Minister – was none other than Dr. Manmohan Singh. Read the rest of this entry »
