The question given below consists of a statement, followed by three arguments I, II and III. You have to decide which of the arguments is/are ‘strong’ arguments, is/are ‘weak’ arguments and accordingly choose your answer from the alternatives given below each question. Statement: Over the past five decades, term deposits in banks have emerged as the primary instrument of financial savings for the average Indian after former premier Indira Gandhi embarked on a mission to nationalise the lenders - 14 in the first tranche - on a rainy afternoon in July 1969. Coming with an unsaid sovereign guarantee of sorts, fixed deposits (FDs) seemingly offered investors liquidity - and safety - as nationalisation sought, in part, to arrest the 40-odd bank failures a year. Now, however, deposits must burnish their allure to retain leadership status in an increasingly crowded financial marketplace that offers choice. Why? Arguments: I. If FDs are giving 7.5% and the effective tax rate is 10%, one gets close to 5-5.2% return. Similarly, in the case of FMP, if the rate is 7.5%, effective taxation comes to 10%, one gets 6.75%. It is higher than the effective returns on bank deposits. II. People are becoming aware of more asset classes that offer better returns, and the quest for such assets became more pronounced after interest rates fell substantially over the past four years. III. Savers are looking at mutual funds and provident funds for the higher return.
The question given below consists of a statement, followed by three arguments I, II and III. You have to decide which of the arguments is/are ‘strong’ arguments, is/are ‘weak’ arguments and accordingly choose your answer from the alternatives given below each question. Statement: Over the past five decades, term deposits in banks have emerged as the primary instrument of financial savings for the average Indian after former premier Indira Gandhi embarked on a mission to nationalise the lenders - 14 in the first tranche - on a rainy afternoon in July 1969. Coming with an unsaid sovereign guarantee of sorts, fixed deposits (FDs) seemingly offered investors liquidity - and safety - as nationalisation sought, in part, to arrest the 40-odd bank failures a year. Now, however, deposits must burnish their allure to retain leadership status in an increasingly crowded financial marketplace that offers choice. Why? Arguments: I. If FDs are giving 7.5% and the effective tax rate is 10%, one gets close to 5-5.2% return. Similarly, in the case of FMP, if the rate is 7.5%, effective taxation comes to 10%, one gets 6.75%. It is higher than the effective returns on bank deposits. II. People are becoming aware of more asset classes that offer better returns, and the quest for such assets became more pronounced after interest rates fell substantially over the past four years. III. Savers are looking at mutual funds and provident funds for the higher return. Correct Answer Only I and II are strong.
We first make sure to read the statement carefully and then see what immediate inferences can be drawn based on our first reading. The next step is to look at the arguments given in the options, analyse them and see if they seem relevant with respect to the information/data provided to us. Finally, it is very important to study the question closely.
Following the aforementioned steps we must analyse the given statement and the corresponding question closely.
The given statement is about the decreasing interest of people investing their money in the FDs and opting for new options which offer better returns. Thus we must look for those arguments which are strong in support of the question that banks must do something n order to arouse the interest of the investors back in FDs.
Argument (I) captures the aspect that FDs offer less interest as compared to other investment options like FMPs. Thus, this point is strong in showing banks the mirror the root cause of the decreasing interest of the investors in FDs.
Argument (II) also states the correct reasons as to why the investments in FDs is declining.
Moreover, as far as the argument (III) is concerned, it can be rejected because the context stated in argument (III) is the same as in argument (II). Moreover, the argument (II) expresses it in a better way. As we always must look for the most appropriate answer choice, we can comprehend that amongst II and III, II is more appropriate.
Thus, option 2 captures the correct arguments that support the statement in the best possible manner and is our answer choice.