Author: Biz India

Authors: Richard M. Steers, Luciara Nardon, and Carlos J. Sanchez-Runde Publisher: Cambridge University Press – 405 pages Book Review by: Sonu Chandiram For a manager to succeed in today’s world, a certain mindset is required, that includes a competitive and winning spirit, drive, a desire to excel and stand out from others, a creative- thinking and problem-solving mind, and very importantly, the ability to observe and identify problems and generate ideas to solve them, with innovative products and services. A manager who wants succeed – typically by increasing revenues and profits for the company he works at – also...

Author: Hussein A. Amery, PhD Publisher: Cambridge University Press – 162 pages Book Review by: Sonu Chandiram The Arab world, from Iraq to Egypt and all the way to Morocco, is one of the most arid regions on the planet. Within this large area are the Gulf States that include Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Yemen. They are part of the geopolitical sub-region known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Why is water scarce in the Middle East? It is because agriculture uses 85 percent of water in the region. In...

Editors: Marc Buggein, Martin Daunton, and Alexander Nutzenadel Publisher: Cambridge University Press – 313 pages Book Review by: Sonu Chandiram In October 1973, the Arab members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC, founded in 1960 by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela) proclaimed an embargo on nations perceived as supporting Israel during the Yom Kippur War, also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War. This war lasted from October 6, 1973 – when Egyptian and Syrian forces, hoping to win back territory lost during the third Arab-Israeli war in 1967, launched a coordinated attack on Israel on...

Authors: Riccardo Rebonato and Alexander Denev Publisher: Cambridge University Press – 491 pages Book Review by: Sonu Chandiram How does an investor or trader do asset allocation in his or her portfolio to protect it from market distress and volatility that could bring the values of his holdings downward? How does he or she apportion holdings in different asset classes so that when prices drop in one or more asset class, the entire portfolio still remains on a relatively stable footing and the overall value of the portfolio is not severely affected? In this book of nearly 500 pages,...

Author: Christopher Mitchell Publisher: Cambridge University Press – 244 pages Book Review by: Sonu Chandiram This book essentially provides a comparative analysis of the responses, and the results obtained from them, by Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States, to the 2007-2009 financial crisis. This crisis was on a scale not seen since the 1930s Great Depression. The response by the governments of all three countries was swift and bold, with sufficient cash to bail out the major banks. Since cash is the lifeblood of finance, it prevented a widely-feared devastation of the economic systems of these countries....