When I used to be in school, I was never too fond of the month of March – I had to study for the annual exams and to add to the agony, my parents never allowed me to play, that time of the year!

Now , even as grown ups and a professional, the month of March scares most of us!

Chartered accountants involved in the world of Income Tax are extremely busy this time, due to March time barring cases. The businessmen out there are busy with their final effort at making the numbers meet their plans, the bankers are trying to meet their targets in getting deposits, ringing up every customer to keep some deposits in their accounts, Government officials are trying to clear all the proposals and place orders to ensure the utilization of their budgets, the fund houses are trying to see how the NAV on 31st March 2016 is at higher levels so the performance is positive and the ones in sales would be offering discounts to smoothen the cash flows – the list just goes on!

Yes, yet another financial year has ended. The calendar year 2016 had started off on a very bad note with issues ranging from the possible collapse of the Chinese economy, the crash of oil prices, FII’s pulling out from the Indian market and a bunch of other negative issues. But after the budget was presented on the 29th February 2016, the sentiments have improved indeed; calmness has prevailed ever since and the investments are picking up. Is this the proverbial calm before the storm? That, only time can tell. I had read reports in December which predicted 2016 to be a year of growth, but in January, the tables turned and the new predictions pointed towards recession and slowdown and yet in March, it turned around again and they predicted we would hit another peak very soon – such extremes we see in life!

So what is in store for us in the new financial year 2016-2017?

The RBI policy to set the trend of lowering interest rates, the Parliament passing several bills including the critical and much awaited GST bill, the elections in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Pondy and other states in April/May 2016, the Corporate results for the financial year 2015-2016, the USA elections, the US Fed’s approach to the interest rates, the continuing terror strikes, the sustainability of the public sector banks and many such factors would be influential.

One might wonder how the global markets and the Indian market are going to behave.

• Will the business sentiments improve?
• How many Indian start-ups will qualify as Unicorns?
• Will Bangalore become the real silicon valley?
• Will Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal – survive or they will also start focusing on profitability?
• Will Ola and Uber continue to be a success story in India?
• What are the disruptive stories we would be seeing?
• Will smartphones replace laptops and iPads ?
• How many new generation companies will get listed?
• Will the investors see a positive return?

The list of questions of course, are endless.

As we move forward, we will certainly find the answers to them and we will certainly see a lot of action. The new financial year is bound to be yet another interesting one and will be a game changer for many who are aspiring to be the market leaders. Technology and Innovation will be the mantra and those who embrace new ideas will sail with the tide and those who choose to ignore, might just hit the rocks.

I always believe that hope and positive thinking helps you sail through the exciting journey of life. Let us continue our hard work and live happy lives!

Wishing You a Prosperous New Financial Year!

Regards,

Murali