Axis Triple Advantage Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

SEBI has recently questioned the Mutual Fund houses for their similar & repeated products offering but the introduction of new funds is not stopping. Another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The Axis Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the Axis Triple Advantage Fund NFO
In this article, we will analyse how good is this Axis Triple Advantage Fund NFO, whether this Axis Triple Advantage Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Axis Triple Advantage Fund .

Axis Triple Advantage Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Axis Triple Advantage Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Axis Triple Advantage Fund ?
The NFO period for Axis Triple Advantage Fund will open on 30th June and will close on 27th July 2010. Though nothing is specified about the regular buying and redemption start date of this Mutual fund, it is expected that it will be around after a month from the close of NFO, as is the standard.

What is so unique about this Axis Triple Advantage Fund?
Investors should note that the investment principles of this fund is to seek long terms capital appreciation and hence, as per the fund information, the investors are expected to stay invested for long. But please note that this does not guarantee any returns.

Now the unique thing about this fund is that it is offering you a diversified investment opportunity, where your invested capital money will be split across into 3 and invested into the following in the mentioned proportion:

- Shares/Equity and related instruments - 30-40%
- Debt Instruments (Fixed Income Securities) - 30-40%
- Gold ETF's or Gold Exchange Traded Funds - 20-30%

So overall, this Axis Triple Advantage Fund seems to be offering a good mix of 3 variety of products. The proportion of allocation also seems to be good enough. However, I think the proportion of allocation might change at the sole discretion of the mutual fund managers.

During NFO, the units of this Fund will cost Rs 10 per unit.
Ideally speaking, this fund should be looked upon by the investors who want a mix of equity, debt and gold in their investment portfolio, but want to keep the headache off by doing it themselves and are ready to trust a fund manager to do that. This Axis Triple Advantage Fund will be good option for such investors. However, one thing to note is that just because there is a lot of diversification, it does not mean that food returns are guaranteed.
The risk part still remains. What if you invest 10,000 in this fund. The fund managers buy equity worth 3500, debt worth 3500 and gold worth 3000. After 5 years, the returns from equity are down by 30%, returns from debt is up by 10%, and returns from gold are up by 15%. Equity portion will then stand at 2500, Debt at 3850 and Gold at 3450. So your net value will be 9,800 - i.e. less than your invested 10K.
Now the above is only an example to illustrate that just by investing in a diversified fund does not guarantee returns. Also, the more different instruments one invests in, the more brokerage charges and commission is to be paid. That adds to the cost and reduces the profit and returns. Investors should keep these things in mind while making investments in any funds or any financial products.

Are there any alternatives to Axis Triple Advantage Fund?
Yes, Taurus Fund House has also come out with a similar product: Taurus MIP Advantage Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details. However, there may exist other products.
Another option to consider is buying these different financial assets on your own. But then you will have to take the buy sell decisions and timing them will be your responsibility.
Mr. Chandresh Nigam and Mr. Ninad Deshpande will be the fund managers.

The Axis Triple Advantage Fund will be benchmarked to a composite S&P CNX Nifty, CRISIL Composite Bond Fund Index and INR Price of Gold

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 5000/- and in multiple of Re. 1 thereafter.
SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is available? - No Info

No Tax Benefit is available in the Axis Triple Advantage Fund

Investment Options for Axis Triple Advantage Fund :
- Growth
- Dividend (Payout and Reinvestment)

The entry load for Axis Triple Advantage Fund is as follows:
Entry Load for Axis Triple Advantage Fund :
Zero Entry Load

Exit Load for Axis Triple Advantage Fund:
1% if the amount sought to be redeemed or switched out is invested up to 1 year from date of allocation.

Final Thoughts about the Axis Triple Advantage Fund?
This fund can be a good investment for investors willing to bet on the skills of the Axis Fund Managers and who believe that diversification can offer good returns as well as risk control

ICICI Prudential Gold ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details (ICICI Gold Exchange Traded Fund)

It's raining NFO's in the mutual fund market as another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The ICICI Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the ICICI Prudential Gold ETF NFO or ICICI Gold Exchange Traded Fund
In this article, we will analyse how good is this ICICI Prudential Gold ETF NFO, whether this ICICI Prudential Gold ETF offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in ICICI Prudential Gold ETF .

ICICI Prudential Gold ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about ICICI Prudential Gold ETF.

What are the NFO dates for ICICI Prudential Gold ETF ?
The NFO period for ICICI Prudential Gold ETF will open on 28th June and will close on 27th July 2010. Since this is an ETF or Exchange Traded Fund, its units can be traded like shares using intra-day price movements. Although there are no confirmed reports about regular buying and selling, but it is expected to commence after a month of closure of NFO.

What is so unique about this ICICI Prudential Gold ETF?
As investors may have observed for last couple of months, the Gold prices have been shooting up the roof. So it seems that most of the investment management companies or AMC's or mutual fund houses are "making the hay when sun shines" and right now, the sun seems to be shining for the GOLD prices and hence these AMC's are running to introduce new mutual funds, new ETF's or Exchange Traded Funds in Gold. This one from ICICI Prudential is launched now, and HDFC mutual fund house has also launched the HDFC Gold ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details (Gold Exchange Traded Fund HGETF).
Now coming to this specific Gold ETF from ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund house, again it is the same standard ETF product about which we have already written a lot ETF's or Exchange Traded Funds. For those investors who are new to ETF or Exchange Traded Funds, they are advised to go through this one page tutorial about ETF's: An Example & benefits of ETF investing. If you are looking for what are the other Gold Based ETF's available, then here is a list of Gold based ETF's available in India and here is the article about Gold ETF: Historical Performace of Gold ETF in India
The ICICI Prudential Gold ETF is an ETF or Exchange Traded Fund (ETF's are our most recommended instruments). It will collect money from investors and generate returns which will be following the gold prices. It is reported that 90% to 100% of the capital will be invested in Gold and the ETF units will be created out of this, the remaining 10% or less will be kept in debt and money market securities to offer liquidity. This proportinate allocation will introduce the tracking error but then once the regular trading commences on Exchanges, the price of Gold ETF will keep moving as trading proceeds on tick by tick basis, it will be possible to capitalize on trading activities of this Gold ETF from ICICI. One of the main benefits for GOLD ETF as an investment is that compared to physical gold, it does not require and safe storage (it sits in your demat account as shares), it cannot get rusted or eroded in weight as time passes by and you can still capitalize on the daily intra-day price movements by trading in it as a gold stock. You can also go short on ETF's if you feel that the prices will come down. Moreover, as the world is moving more and more away from the so called USD or Dollar, and the currencies are getting rebalanced to remove dependencies on dollars, Central banks are more interested in buying Golds from international markets than dollars, Gold will surely be a commodity to watch and its prices will fluctuate. Which way the pricews will go is not known by anyone, but a lot of movements and volatility is expected.
This is a clear indication for the traders and punters to place their bets on Gold. Gold ETF's allow you to do that.

During NFO, the units of this Fund will cost Rs 100 per unit.
Are there any alternatives to ICICI Prudential Gold ETF?
One can look for investments in similar Gold ETF funds from other AMC companies (Gold based ETF's available in India) . HDFC also recently launched it HDFC Gold ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details (Gold Exchange Traded Fund HGETF)

The ICICI Prudential Gold ETF will be benchmarked to Normal Gold Prices

Investment Options for ICICI Prudential Gold ETF : Nothing is clear as of now. Most probably, there will not be any Option, rather than simple Buy and Sell of Gold ETF units in general.
No Tax Benefit is available in the ICICI Prudential Gold ETF

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 5000/- and in multiple of Re. 1 thereafter.
No entry load during NFO and zero exit load if traded through Exchanges like NSE or BSE. However, brokerage charges may apply.
Final Thoughts about the ICICI Prudential Gold ETF?
This fund can be a good investment for investors willing to bet on gold prices. It can also be a good trading medium for traders who might wish to go long or short.

HDFC Gold ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details (Gold Exchange Traded Fund HGETF)

It's raining NFO's in the mutual fund market as another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The HDFC Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the HDFC Gold ETF NFO or HDFC Exchange Traded Fund
In this article, we will analyse how good is this HDFC Gold ETF NFO, whether this HDFC Gold ETF offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in HDFC Gold ETF .

HDFC Gold ETF NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about HDFC Gold ETF.

What are the NFO dates for HDFC Gold ETF ?
The NFO period for HDFC Gold ETF will open on 25th June and will close on 23rd July 2010. Since this is an ETF or Exchange Traded Fund, its units can be traded like shares using intra-day price movements. Although there are no confirmed reports about regular buying and selling, but it is expected to commence after a month of closure of NFO. Although there is no section on HDFC Mutual Fund site about this fund at the time of writing this article, it is expected to come up by 25th June i.e. the launch of the NFO.

What is so unique about this HDFC Gold ETF?
We've written a lot about ETF's or Exchange Traded Funds. It is advisable to go through the An Example & benefits of ETF investing. If you are looking for what are the other Gold Based ETF's available, then here is a list of Gold based ETF's available in India and here is the article about Gold ETF: Historical Performace of Gold ETF in India
The HDFC Gold ETF is an ETF or Exchange Traded Fund (ETF's are our most recommended instruments). It will collect money from investors and generate returns which will be following the gold prices. It is reported that 90% to 100% of the capital will be invested in Gold and the ETF units will be created out of this, the remaining 10% or less will be kept in debt and money market securities to offer liquidity. This is where the tracking error will get introduced. However, since the price of Gold ETF will keep moving as trading proceeds on tick by tick basis, it will be possible to capitalize on trading activities of this Gold ETF from HDFC. One of the main benefits for GOLD ETF as an investment is that compared to physical gold, it does not require and safe storage (it sits in your demat account as shares), it cannot get rusted or eroded in weight as time passes by and you can still capitalize on the daily intra-day price movements by trading in it as a gold stock

During NFO, the units of this ETF Fund will cost Rs 100 per unit. Are there any alternatives to HDFC Gold ETF?
One can look for investments in similar Gold ETF funds from other AMC companies (Gold based ETF's available in India)

The HDFC Gold ETF will be benchmarked to Normal Gold Prices

Investment Options for HDFC Gold ETF : Nothing is clear as of now. Most probably, there will not be any Option, rather than simple Buy and Sell of Gold ETF units in general.
No Tax Benefit is available in the HDFC Gold ETF

Final Thoughts about the HDFC Gold ETF?
This fund can be a good investment for investors willing to bet on gold prices. It can also be a good trading medium for traders who might wish to go long or short.

Mutual Funds v/s ULIPs: What should investors invest in?

The recent happenings in the investment industry, expecially the recent ULIP related issues between SEBI and IRDA have raised quite a bells. Recently, the SEBI chariman, Mr. Bhave, was reported to have launched a scathing attack on Mutual Fund Houses (as quoted by ET), and was critical of the way the funds do business. Another development that happened was ULIP's were given a clear dictate - ULIP's are to be controlled by IRDA, not by SEBI. That has led to lot of worries for Mutual Funds, especially because sometimes back the Mutual Funds Entry load was scrapped by the regulators. That resulted in a big loss of income for these mutual fund houses. (See our thoughts on Should you trust your mutual fund manager?)

Mutual Funds v/s ULIPs: Which is better & What should investors select to invest?

In all these developments, one thing has come out clearly. There are lots of confusing financial products in the market and the investors interest are least thought about. Various AMC, Fund houses, Insurance Companies and other investment firms, come out with their own specially customised financial products, which may or may not ever meet the customer needs. They are sold through agents, who are guaranteed a hefty commission on each sale, and hence a lot of mis-selling happens. Simple because the agents are more interested in "Earning More Commission" rather than selling something which will actually benefit the customers or investors. More importantly, do such products exists which really are serving the purpose of investment like education policy, health plan, insurance plan and so on??? Please see this example Insurance v/s Investment v/s Tax savings – agent based business, where a good example is cited about how investors might fall prey to mis-selling and end up buying something which is not in investors benefit, but agents benefit.

Take a simple example - there is a good financial product which suits the purpose of your investment and it gives a 5% commission to the agent. Then there is another financial product which does not suit your investment purpose but gives 40% commission to the agent.
Now put yourself in agent's place - which policy will you sell - one that gives you 5% or one which gives you 40%?
You trust your agent thinking that he/she knows finance better and you go by his advice. But there is a good enough chance that the agent will sell you something which is not in your favour, but in his favour as a hefty commission.

The recent decision that ULIP's will be controlled by IRDA and not SEBI has sent cold waves across mutual fund houses. The reason - SEBI controls Mutual Funds, and it has (Rightly) barred them from charging any entry load or commission. So investors money is actually invested in full. The agent's commission and entry load are things of past.
However, for ULIP or Unit Linked Insurance Plans, they are controlled by IRDA, where there is no such restriction. It still remains a pure commission & agent based business. Some ULIP offer as high as 60% of first year annual commissions to agents. The industry avaerage is around 40%.

Now think about it. What will an agent sell? Something which will not give him any commission (Mutual Funds) or something which will give him hefty commisions (ULIPs)? Obsiously the answer is ULIP's. They come with loads and loads of conditions and strings attached. Investors need to remain invested for a long period like 15-20 years. Early exits (even like 5 years or so), might see even the invested money not being repaid in full.

So this is where we stand. The Mutual Fund Industry is worried that since agents are not allowed any commissions on selling Mutual Funds, the Mutual Funds will take a hit. On the other hand, the ULIP's will be (mis)sold with high recommendations by the agents, as they are going to give them high commissions. Another point is the word "Insurance". ULIPs stand for Unit Linked Insurance Plan - it has some component of money that goes towards insurance premium. However, the insurance cover provided is usually not sufficient and it ends up being a mix of insurance plus investments, with none of the two purposes achieved.

At this point, Investors should think twice before selecting an investment product. In my opinion, what SEBI is doing is correct - they are looking for investor benefits. ULIP's still require a lot of changes to really become a transparent and beneficial product to customers.

Defence Skilled Workers Sixth Pay Commission: Pension, Pay Arrears & Salary Hike Details

The much awaited salary hike for the Defence skilled workers in defence entities and defence establishements has come through. Recently, the government is reported to have made some changes to the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission which will directly benefit the Defence skilled workers not only in terms of salary, pay and pension, but there will also be a change in the grade cader.

Defence skilled workers gets Sixth Pay Commission Benefits

What are the changes made by the government for Defence skilled workers as per the Sixth Pay Commission implementations?
Although detailed reports are not available, but summarized reports are indicating that the Grade Pay for Defence skilled workers has been increased and this is done by making the required changes to the sixth pay commission recommendations.
There is also news about restructuring of the cadres, which will again ensure benefits to Defence skilled workers.
General Sixth Pay Commission Salary Hike & Arrears Calculator

Salary Calculator for Pension calculations for Sixth Pay Commission Salary Hike

By which date is the Pay Hike/Grade Changes for Defence skilled workers effective?
As per the reports, the changes for Defence skilled workers will be effective from 1 January 2006 onwards, so employees can expect a big amount in the form of payment of arrears. However, the payment of arrears may not be in lumpsump, it may be in installments over a period of time.

In which streams of Defence skilled workers are the new amendments implemented?
The new pay amendments are implemented in both industrial and non-industrial trades.

What are the new salary structures and pay bands for Defence skilled workers ?
Skilled Artisans will now be in the Pay Band-I and their Grade Pay will be Rs 1900.

Highly Skilled Grade-II Artisans will also be come in Pay Band-I, but their Grade Pay will be Rs 2400.

Highly Skilled Grade I Artisans, will again be in Pay Band-I, will receive a better Grade Pay of Rs 2800.

Master Craftsman who will be under Pay Band-II will be given a Grade Pay of Rs 4,200

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Peerless Income Plus Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details (Debt Fund)

Another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The Peerless Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the Peerless Income Plus Fund NFO
In this article, we will analyse how good is this Peerless Income Plus Fund NFO, whether this Peerless Income Plus Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Peerless Income Plus Fund .

Peerless Income Plus Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Peerless Income Plus Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Peerless Income Plus Fund ?
The NFO period for Peerless Income Plus Fund will open on 9th June and will close on 8th July 2010. Regular buying and selling will commence after a month of closure of NFO i.e. around 8th August onwards.

What is so unique about this Peerless Income Plus Fund?
The Peerless Income Plus Fund is a debt fund which will primarily invest in debt based securities and also a small portion in equity securities. The purpose of this fund will be to generate regular income and that will be done by pre-dominantly by the coupon payments received at regular intervals from the invested debt securities.
During NFO, the units of this Debt Fund will cost Rs 10 per unit.
Debt and money market instruments investments will be from 80-98%, while Equity based investments will be 2% to 20% only.

This fund will have the same risk parameters attached to it, which will be interest rate risk, credit risk, Liquidity Risk, Macro and micro economic risk, etc.

Are there any alternatives to Peerless Income Plus Fund?
One can look for investments in similar debt funds from other AMC companies

The Peerless Income Plus Fund will be benchmarked to CRISIL MIP Blended Fund Index Ganti N Murthy and Kaushik Dani will be the Fund manager for Peerless Income Plus Fund.

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 1000/- and in multiple of Re. 1 thereafter.
SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is available? - Yes.

Switching Options
(a) Inter - Scheme Switching option :Unit holders under the Scheme have the option to Switch part or all of their unit holdings in the Scheme to any
other Scheme offered by the Mutual Fund from time to time. The Mutual Fund also provides the Investors the flexibility to Switch their investments
from any other Scheme(s) / Plan(s) offered by the Mutual Fund to this Scheme. This option will be useful to unit holders who wish to alter the
allocation of their investment among the Scheme(s) / Plan(s) of the Mutual Fund in order to meet their changed investment needs. The Switch will be
effected by way of a Redemption of units from the Scheme at Applicable NAV, subject to Exit Load, if any and reinvestment of the Redemption
proceeds into another Scheme offered by the Mutual Fund at Applicable NAV and accordingly the Switch must comply with the Redemption rules of
the Switch out Scheme and the Subscription rules of the Switch in Scheme.
(b) Intra-Scheme Switching option : Unit holders under the Scheme have the option to Switch their unit holding from one plan to another plan (e.g.
Regular to Institutional and vice versa) and from one option to another option (i.e. Growth to Dividend and vice-a-versa). The Switches would be
done at the Applicable NAV based prices and the difference between the NAVs of the two plans/options will be reflected in the number of unit
allotted. Switching shall be subject to the applicable "Cut off time and Applicable NAV" stated elsewhere in the Scheme Information Document. In
case of "Switch" transactions from one scheme to another, the allocation shall be in line with Redemption payouts

No Tax Benefit is available in the Peerless Income Plus Fund

The entry load for Peerless Income Plus Fund is as follows:
Entry Load for Peerless Income Plus Fund :
Zero Entry Load

Exit Load for Peerless Income Plus Fund:
1% if the amount sought to be redeemed or switched out is invested up to 1 year from date of allocation

ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund NFO
In this article, we will analyse how good is this ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund NFO, whether this ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund .

ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund.

What are the NFO dates for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund ?
The NFO period for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund will open on 10th June and will close on 21st June 2010.

What is so unique about this ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund?
The ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund is going to invest in securities or stocks which will be part of the Junior Nifty Index - this is the index which is comprised of top 51 to 100 companies in order of market capitalization. This is a mutual fund from ICICI which will be following a passive investment strategy and is an index fund (Index Funds Explained with Example). That's where the name "Nifty Junior Index Fund" is derived from.

So this ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund will primarily invest the capital collected from investors in the available stocks of Junior Nifty Index and try to match the performance of the Junior index. Offcourse, the tracking error will come into play and that's where the skills of the mutual fund manager will become important on how well he can minimize the tracking error. For those of your dont know, tracking error is the amount difference in the returns generated by a mutual fund, as compared to the returns generated by its underlying index. Now since the index does not have any brokerage commission or trading charges, but a mutual fund does have them, so the tracking error gets introduced into the index funds.
This ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund will try to replicate the returns of the Junior index of Nifty. The fund can be a good option for investors who believe in the so called mid-cap story, that the returns from mid-cap stocks will be better. Here is an article about the Relative performace of mid-cap stocks v/s large-cap stocks over a period of time. Anyways, performance do vay with time and one should check for own risk appetite before taking the plunge. But in my personal opinion, investors who belive in the mid-cap story and believe in index funds of the same, must also consider midcap index based ETF's rather then index funds. They offer you intraday price changes where one can capitalize on the intraday price movements, instead of the end of the day NAV by the mutual funds. Moreover, the index funds rebalancing frequency also matters a lot in terms of performance and returns. If the index fund manager rebalances the portfolio frequently, he ends up loosing a lot of profit to broekrage and commission. If he does it at large intervals of time, he ends up buying at high prices and selling at lows.

However, if you wish to keep the trading headaches off and rely on the investment and trading skills of the ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund Managers, then you can invest in this fund.
Hence, it again boils down to the trading activites of the fund manager.

Are there any alternatives to ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund?
Yes. As stated above, one can look for investing on his own in Midacp based ETF's. For any mutual funds, we usually always recommend going for equivalent ETF or Exchange Traded Funds on the same underlying index. They come with the benefit of exact tick by tick price movements, rather than end of the day NAV. That allows traders to benefit from intra-day price movements and make good money. Although they incur brokerage charges which vary from broker to broker. (See trading example of an ETF)

The ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund will be benchmarked to CNX Nifty Junior Index Mr. Kayzad Eghlim will be the Fund manager for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund.

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 5000/- and in multiple of Re. 1 thereafter.
SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is available? - Not Known

Investment Options for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund :
- Growth
- Dividend (Payout and Reinvestment)

No Tax Benefit is available in the ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund

The entry load for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund is as follows:
Entry Load for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund :
Zero Entry Load

Exit Load for ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund:
0.25% if the amount sought to be redeemed or switched out is invested up to 7 days from the date of allotment, nil thereafte

Final Thoughts about the ICICI Prudential Nifty Junior Index Fund?
By investing in this fund, one is betting on the skills of the fund manager on how well he can keep tracking error to minimum efficiently and makes his trades on behalf of the investors for the same

Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The Canara Robeco Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund NFO
In this article, we will analyse how good is this Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund NFO, whether this Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund .

Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund ?
The NFO period for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund is currently open and will close on 15th June 2010.

What is so unique about this Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund?
The Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund is going to invest in two class of securities - Gold ETF's and Debt related money market instruments. The word Gold ETF may make the investors think that it is an aggressive style equity fund, but the Canara Fund house is calling it a debt oriented fund. The word InDiGo is actually derived from a combination of many terms - INcome from Debt instruments and GOld, so the name INDIGO.
Anyways, going beyind the names, the fund will primarily invest in Gold based ETF's. Here is a list of Gold based ETF's available in India and here is the article about Gold ETF: Historical Performace of Gold ETF in India.
So this Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund will primarily invest the capital collected from investors in the available Gold ETF's and try to generate the returns from the gold based investments. The way this investment returns will be capitalized is to trade or invest in gold etf's based on the seasonal effects like festivals and marriages, when the demand of gold is on the higher side, and so on. However, as an analyst, I seriously doubt that point. Off late, we have seen a lot of fluctuations in gold prices which are not based upon indian festivals and occassions, but by international demand, dollar rupee exchange rate, oil prices and so on. So ultimately, its the fund manager's take on how and when will he be able to capitalize on Gold prices by trading/investing in the gold based ETF's in India.
Some portion of money will also be invested in the debt securities, like the money market instruments. This is for prividing some income in accrued form and for redemption needs. Although I could locate details about what proportion will be invested in Gold ETF's (just 10% to 35%) and how much will go in Debt securities (65% to 90%), going by the advertising which shows and old lady in traditional indian wear weraing loads of gold ornaments, it gives an impression that it will be primarily in Gold, which is not true.
So the Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund will be a good fit for investors who believe in the Gold based story. This fund automatically offers a good diversified mix of gold with some debt securities. So in its way, for the people who just want to go the Mutual Fund way, this fund is something unique. However, as an analyst who knows about the available options in the market, I would like to go for investing in two seperate things - Some more in Gold Based ETF's (list available at the link above) and rest in debt instruments. Just an option which the potential investors might like to consider.
However, if you wish to keep the headaches off and rely on the investment and trading skills of the Canara Robeco Mutual Fund Managers, then you can invest in this fund.
Hence, it again boils down to the trading activites of the fund manager.

Are there any alternatives to Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund?
Yes. As stated above, one can look for investing on his own in Gold based ETF's available in India and some portion in bonds or other dent securities. For any mutual funds, we recommend going for equivalent ETF or Exchange Traded Funds on the same underlying index. They come with the benefit of exact tick by tick price movements, rather than end of the day NAV. That allows traders to benefit from intra-day price movements and make good money. Although they incur brokerage charges which vary from broker to broker. (See trading example of an ETF)

The Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund will be benchmarked to CRISIL Short Term Bond Fund Index + Price of Gold (neutral allocation: 65:35) Mr. Ritesh Jain will be the Fund manager for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund.

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 5000/- and in multiple of Re. 1 thereafter.
SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is also available - Minimum instalment amount 2,000 and 1,000 respectively for quarterly and monthly frequency respectively and in multiples of Re 1 thereafter .

Investment Options for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund :
- Growth
- Dividend (Payout and Reinvestment)

No Tax Benefit is available in the Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund

The entry load for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund is as follows:
Entry Load for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund :
Zero Entry Load

Exit Load for Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund:
Exit within 1 year from the date of allotment - 1 %;
Exit after 1 year from the date of allotment - Nil

Final Thoughts about the Canara Robeco InDiGo Fund?
By investing in this fund, one is betting on the skills of the fund manager on how well he can keep tracking the gold prices efficiently and makes his trades on behalf of the investors for the same

MP Madhya Pradesh employees/ Pensioners demand Sixth Pay Commission implementation: Pension, Pay Arrears & Salary Hike Details

The employees and pensioners of MP Madhya Pradesh are still awaiting the implementation of Sixth Pay Commission in their salaries and pensions. There was a protest demonstration in capital Bhopal on Wednesday demanding that the MP state government should implement the Sixth Pay Commission as soon as possible. However, there is still no clarity on how and when will this be done.

MP Madhya Pradesh employees/pensioners demand Sixth Pay Commission implementation

What are the demands put forth by the protestors and pensioners
The demands are many:

1) First and foremost, the Sixth Pay Commission Recommendations should be Implemented in the MP state by the state government and the pay scales should be revised as soon as possible

2) The Pay arrears should be paid as soon as possible, as the effective implementation date is 2006 onwards

3) The retirement age of government employees should be increased to 62 years

4) In case of daily wagers, their services should be made permanent

5) Pensioners should be given Dearness Allowances as per the Sixth pay Commission in MP as the inflation is making it difficult for them to survive

General Sixth Pay Commission Salary Hike & Arrears Calculator

Salary Calculator for Pension calculations for Sixth Pay Commission Salary Hike

What are the other reasons for this protest by MP state government employees regarding Sixth Pay Commission Implementation?
Another point highlighted by the protestors is that the Chief Minister of MP, Mr. Shivraj Singh Chauhan, has recently raised the salary of his party members to Rs. 75,000, while there is absolutely no signs of getting the sixth pay commission salaries implemented for the common government employees. This has led to the dissatisfaction among the state government employees.

How many MP State government employees will benefit from implementation of Sixth Pay Commission Recommendations?
Around five lakh state government employees and more than 2.75 lakh pensioners are expected to benefit

Taurus Nifty Index Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The Taurus Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the Taurus Nifty Index Fund NFO
In this article, we will analyse how good is this Taurus Nifty Index Fund NFO, whether this Taurus Nifty Index Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Taurus Nifty Index Fund .

Taurus Nifty Index Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Taurus Nifty Index Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Taurus Nifty Index Fund ?
The NFO period for Taurus Nifty Index Fund is relatively short - from June 4th 2010 and will close on 10th June 2010. After that, regular buying and purchasing will commence through the end of the day NAV system from July 9th Onwards.

What is so unique about this Taurus Nifty Index Fund?
The good thing about the Taurus Nifty Index Fund is that it is a tracking index fund i.e. it will attempt to replicate the performance of the S&P CNX Nifty Index, which constitues the top 50 stocks of the NSE as per the market capitalization. Index fund investments is something which we always recommend, as the investors dont have to worry about stock selection.
So the Taurus Nifty Index Fund will be a good fit for investors who believe in the Index story and are looking for long term gains from the overall market performance rather than the stock specific exposure. The index funds automatically offers a good diversified mix of selected stocks.

The investment strategy as reported by the official website is that this Taurus Nifty Index Fund will follow the "passive investment" strategy and instead of getting into stock selection by the fund manager, it will simply go by attempting to replicate the S&P CNX Nifty Index performance. It will be achieved by buying the stocks on the Nifty 50 index in the same proportion or weightage as in the Nifty 50 index. However, it is not mentioned how frequently will the Taurus Nifty Index Fund stock be rebalanced. This does affect the returns of index funds. Say a Index fund manager decides to rebalance his portfolio every week, he might end up paying big charges on this frequent buying and selling. The advantage is that the index in tracked better. On the other hand, if some index fund manager decides to rebalance his portfolio once a month, then he may save big on brokerage and commission, but might loose track on the underlying index. Say if XYZ stock is replaced by ABC stock in the index on 2nd of the month and the fund manager waits to rebalance it on the 30th, then he might end up selling XYZ at low price and buying ABC at high price, as XYZ will loose on the news of being kicked out of index and ABC will gain on news of inclusion in the index.
Hence, it again boils down to the trading activites of the fund manager.

Same problem relates to Tracking Error - the percentage by which the Taurus Nifty Index Fund (Index Fund) lags (or rides ahead) the underlying index.

Also note that Taurus Nifty Index Fund will invest 95% to 100% in the securities, they will keep 0% to 5% in debt and money market instruments so to have cash ready for redemtion. This automatically shows that there will be tracking error and the underlying index might not be replicated properly.

Are there any alternatives to Taurus Nifty Index Fund?
Yes. For any index funds, we recommend going for equivalent ETF or Exchange Traded Funds on the same underlying index. They come with the benefit of exact tick by tick price movements, rather than end of the day NAV. That allows traders to benefit from intra-day price movements and make good money. Although they incur brokerage charges which vary from broker to broker. (See trading example of an ETF)

The Taurus Nifty Index Fund will be benchmarked to S&P CNX 50 Index Mr. Sadanand Shetty will be the Fund manager for Taurus Nifty Index Fund.

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 5000/- and in multiple of Rs. 1000 thereafter.
Its not clear whether SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is also available.

Investment Options for Taurus Nifty Index Fund :
- Growth
- Dividend (Payout and Reinvestment)

No Tax Benefit is available in the Taurus Nifty Index Fund

The entry load for Taurus Nifty Index Fund is as follows:
Entry Load for Taurus Nifty Index Fund :
Zero Entry Load

Exit Load for Taurus Nifty Index Fund:
Exit within 15 days from the date of allotment - 1 %;
Exit after 15 days from the date of allotment - Nil

Final Thoughts about the Taurus Nifty Index Fund?
By investing in this fund, one is betting on the skills of the fund manager on how well he can keep the tracking error to the minimum. Since the fund manager is managing an index fund following a passive investment strategy, the frequency at which he rebalances his portfolio becomes important.
Overall, this Taurus Nifty Index Fund is just another new fund offer for a index fund, without anything unique that sets it apart

Best Top 5 Real Estate Mutual Funds for Real Estate Sector Investments

In this article, we discuss the top 5 Real Estate Mutual Funds in the real estate investment sector.

Real Estate Mutual Funds

Although there are multiple real estate mutual funds available in domestic as well as international markets for investments in the real estate sector, some of the mutual funds are recommended by a few analysts and market experts. Please note that investments in mutual funds is full of risk and past performance is not a guarantee for future. Investors should seeks professional advice on their own based upon their risk appetite.

American Century Real Estate Inv Fund (REACX):
This is a specialized mutual fund with clear exposure to equity stocks focussing on real estate companies as well as investment trusts in the real estate sector.
This fund is unique in the sense that it seeks both regular income as well as long term capital growth.
Talking about the fund performance in the recent past, in the last one year the returns on this fund has been good. It has given investors a return on around 67% in 1 years timeframe.

CGM Realty Fund (CGMRX):
Willing to invest in real estate sector but dont want to bet all your money in real estate stocks, then the CGM Realty Fund is worth considering. This fund offers some small proportion of the capital (say 20% to 25%) in stocks and debt instruments of sectors other than real estate sector. Some capital may also be invested in other securities like the so called "Junk Bonds".
So this fund might suit those investors who are looking for a major (but not all) exposure to real estate sector and a minor investment in other sectors as well.

RiverSource Real Estate Fund (ARLAX):
This is another real state specific fund which has something unique. As any other real estate investment fund, it also invests in real estate company stocks and real estate investment trust stocks. Along with that, the unique thing about this fund is that it also invests in companies which in turn invest in real estate sector or companies.

Goldman Sachs Real Estate A Fund (GREAX):
This fund from Goldman Sachs offers both regular income as well as long term capital appreciation. It has eighty percent of its capital allocated for investments in real estate sector specific stocks. The annualized return for this fund is around 11%.

Neuberger Berman Real Estate Fund (NBRFX):
This real estate fund has a very low expense ratio as compared to the other similar real estate funds and that's what sets it apart. With only 0.99% expense ratio, this is low on charges. However, this fund requires a minimum investment of $1000. This fund has had a good performance in the past, it has generated more than 70% return in last 1 year

Axis Income Saver Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Another mutual fund house has decided to come out with its NFO or New Fund Offer. The Axis Mutual Fund House has launched its NFO or New Fund Offer called the Axis Income Saver Fund NFO

In this article, we will analyse how good is this Axis Income Saver Fund NFO, whether this Axis Income Saver Fund offers anything new or unique for the investors and whether the investors should invest in Axis Income Saver Fund .

Axis Income Saver Fund NFO: Review Analysis & Details

Let's begin with some basic details about Axis Income Saver Fund.

What are the NFO dates for Axis Income Saver Fund ?
The NFO for Axis Income Saver Fund is from May 24th 2010 and will close on 16th June 2010. After that, regular buying and purchasing will commence through the end of the day NAV system.

What is so unique about this Axis Income Saver Fund ?
This fund claims to be an income fund providing regular income for short duration of time in future, say 2 to 4 years period. This fund is said to have the following investment objectives : Majority of the money collected from investors of this fund will be invested in debt and money market securities and hence it will try to generate some form of regular income in form of dividend payments, coupon payments, etc. And that is where the word "INCOME" is derived. A small portion of money will also be invested in the equity as well as derivative products. The purpose for this leg of investment in equity & derivative products is to generate some form of capital appreciation. So this fund will try to achieve regular income for regular payouts through majority of investment in Bonds, Debt and money market instruments, while some investment in equity & derivative products will try to get some capital appreciation.

However, from a analyst point of view, I look at it as the sole discretion of the fund managers, where they want to put the money on. As like any other funds, this fund is not promising or giving any guarantee that it will provide regular monthly or yearly income or this much percentage of returns in guaranteed if you invest so much for so long time. Overall, it looks like another mutual fund with majority of exposure to the debt instruments, hence investors willing to go for a dent oriented scheme can put their money in. However, no guarantee of any returns.

The fund also claims "Risk Management", but in the PDF on their site, there is no explaination on how the risk will be managed or what guarantee do their risk management practices will provide. They mention about some simulation model, even have a graph showing how the simulation is beating the underlying benchmark index, but again, no guarantee of anything in future.

Some 5 different reasons are cited for investing in Axis Income Saver Fund : Exposure to Fixed Income security, quantitative asset allocation, professional money management, open ended scheme, Exposure to equities for capital appreciation. Now which mutual fund does not provide these (except for quant asset allocation)? Even for quant asset allocation and so called risk management, there is no guarantee for anything.

The Axis Income Saver Fund will be benchmarked to CRISIL MIP Blended Fund Index Ninad Deshpande will be the Fund manager for Fixed Income investments, while Pankaj Murarka will take care of equity investments.
After teh NFO period, the regular buying and selling will commence from 16th July 2010.

Minimum Investment:
Purchases : Rs. 5000/- and in multiple of Re. 1 thereafter.
SIP or Systematic Investment Plan is also available.

Investment Options for Axis Income Saver Fund :
- Growth
- Dividend (Payout and Reinvestment)

No Tax Benefit is available in the Axis Income Saver Fund

The entry load for Axis Income Saver Fund is as follows:
Entry Load for Axis Income Saver Fund :
Zero Entry Load

Exit Load for Axis Income Saver Fund:
Exit within 1 years from the date of allotment - 1 %;
Exit after 1 years from the date of allotment - Nil

Final Thoughts about the Axis Income Saver Fund?
By investing in this fund, one is betting on the skills of the two fund managers. Since the fund is both a mix of debt and equity investments, the asset allocation becomes impoprtant. And focus is more on the debt side.
Overall, this Axis Income Saver Fund is just another new fund offer for a hybrid kind, without anything unique that sets it apart