Are taxi fares really as high as the road ministry claims it is? Chart of the Day: The road ministry has advised state governments to put a ceiling on taxi fares in states, saying that the fares charged during surge pricing doesn't follow current fare structures of Rs. 20-24/km. However on average, fare rates charged by taxi aggregators are lower, as can be seen in the chart. If aggregators are indeed gouging customers and surge pricing is frequent, governments should crack down. But we have yet to see data on surge fares crossing the ceiling - governments have mentioned 'customer complaints' but provided no detailed numbers. The government needs to release data on extortionary fares charged to customers, as well as average taxi fares customers paid before Ola and Uber came into the picture. This is an important step before cracking down on aggregators and favoring traditional taxi services.
High returns, and the power of patience Chart of the Day: It takes nerves of steel to hold on to a good stock that seems to be rapidly losing value in a short span of time, but as the chart shows, it pays off. Data source: ET
The collapse of revenue from SMS, as users shift to Whatsapp and data-based messaging Data for India, UK, France, Germany, Italy, US, Japan, Australia, Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Brazil, Russia, China, Nigeria. Source: Atlas
International flights will get cheaper, more airlines coming Changes are afoot, with cheaper fares on the way and a lot more options for Indian airline passengers. The new Indian aviation policy says that domestic airlines will no longer have to wait five years before flying internationally. New carriers will be able to fly alongside airlines like Air India and Jet Airways in the global skies. With international passenger traffic set to grow in the next ten years from 70 million to over 200 million, this is a boost. This means more competition for older airlines, who opposed the policy change, and cheaper fares for passengers. New domestic players like Air Costa, Vistara and Air Asia will be able to launch international flights once they expand their fleet to at least 20 planes.
