Welcome to the Savings Economy

So, America starts saving again.

It's about time if you asked me. Just that it is a bit inopportune time. Unfortunately and ironically, we need consumers to spend first so that we can get ourselves out of the ditch we are in. Then, start saving.

Saving right now might be the best thing to do on an individual basis, but collectively, it would bring the world economy to a greater halt. As it is, every day, you now hear factories across the globe (including and most importantly, in China), closing shop and laying off people. We also hear how the shipping rates for containers crossing the oceans have come down. And how containers are piling up at the docks. Finally, the holiday spending/retail figures that came out today aren't looking good either.

We need to spend. We need to save. We need to spend... we need to save. It's confusing.

I think Saturday Night live captures this the best.

India's Enron?

When things like this happen, several thoughts come to mind:

1. How could you do this for so long, not get noticed?
2. What's the role of the auditors? How come they didn't figure this out?
3. What's the role of the Board of Directors?

It's a sad day in general.

It's a sad day for the thousands of employees (and their families) as well as the customers of Satyam.

It's a sad day for India because rebuilding trust (once eroded) takes a lot of time. Since Satyam was traded on NYSE, there are going to be a lot of people all over the world who would be losing money. For India to be a global player, it must strengthen it's corporate governance laws and ensure regulatory and judicial bodies have the spine to ruthlessly enforce them. Today, this is lacking.

Finally, it's a sad day for global finance and the entire corporate-world. In the current global economic climate, what we need is shining examples of leadership and excellence. Not examples of cheating, cutting corners, or fraud.