…… zzzz …..

Some days, markets are kind 😆

Not going to share any personal details. Just want to highlight how perception is different from reality. This is not to support any political party or leader. Want to let you know things are not as they look. In 2013, my client who was professionally working for Rahul Gandhi suggested my name to him to handle his mutual fund investments. From 2013, when UPA 2 was in power to till date when Vijay was sworn in with Congress support, Rahul continues to be my client for mutual fund investments. We have exchanged many mails and has spoken over phone lot of times. And as you are aware, I've been a strong Modi supporter from 2014 to 2024. Never once Rahul or his office staff brought that subject to me. I believe my tweets are regularly seen by his staff. They clearly differentiate between my professional service and political beliefs. And in every single conversation I've with Rahul, he addresses me with respect and never behaved in any haughty manner. Despite knowing my BJP support, he took my input few years ago for choosing a key professional . This post may lead to Rahul terminating our professional relationship. That's ok. Everything should end one day. Wanted to post this to show how main stream media and IT cells of parties can make someone look completely inhuman. I do not know Rahul Gandhi as a politician. Based on last 14 years interaction, all I can say is he respect professionals a lot and a nice human being to interact with. Don't go by media or IT cells - for any party that matter.

If the 40 crore retirement number I shared shocked you, this post is for you. Here is what I said. If you are 40 today, spending 2 lakh rupees a month, with no EMIs to service, and you want to retire at 60, you will need 40 crore rupees. The comments had a lot of pushback. The number feels impossible. It is not. Let me show you why. Two assumptions drive this number. Inflation and life expectancy. Both are higher than what regular retirement calculators assume. Both are right. Start with inflation. Retail CPI in India is 5 to 6%. That is the inflation of atta, dal, and bus fare. It is not the inflation of an affluent household. Private healthcare in India runs at 12 to 14% every year. Domestic staff wages in metros are growing at 10 to 12%. Premium school fees, international travel, club memberships. All of these inflate between 8 and 10%. Blend them and you get 9%. That is the real inflation rate of an HNI lifestyle. Now life expectancy. Most Indians plan their retirement assuming they will live to 75 or 80. That is what national averages suggest. But national averages are pulled down by infant mortality and rural data. They have nothing to do with how long a healthy, affluent Indian actually lives. For a couple aged 65 today, there is a 71% probability that one partner reaches 85. A 44% probability that one reaches 90. Now the math. 2 lakh rupees a month at 9% inflation becomes 11 lakh 20 thousand rupees a month at age 60. That is an annual spend of 1.34 crore. Plan for 30 years of retirement. Your retirement portfolio which is focused on capital preservation (60% fixed income: 40% equity) earns 9%. Your Inflation is also 9%. Your real return is zero. So corpus needed equals 30 multiplied by 1.34 crore. That is 40 crore. Here is the good news. This number is not as far away as it looks. At 12% returns before retirement, 40 crore at age 60 translates to roughly 4 crore today for a 40 year old. The point of this message is not to scare you. It is to make sure you understand the silent erosion of purchasing power that inflation causes.

Andhbhakts will give the excuse that this is “strategic” blah blah and then cry about heatwaves at the same time. Good job by Rahul Gandhi for raising this issue. This forest must be saved at any cost.