TMS Ep225: 5G auction, Indermit Gill, telecom stocks, middle-income trap

India’s first auction of 5G spectrum, which kicked off on Tuesday, has fetched the government much more than what official were expecting. Telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw described the participation from telcos as ‘strong’. About one-third of the total spectrum by value put up for auction was bought by top telcos on Day 1. We bring you an analysis on what this response to the auction means.

The World Bank has appointed Indermit Gill as the Chief Economist of the World Bank Group and Senior Vice-President for Development Economics. We delve into Gill’s rich contributions to development economics, his vast experience at the World Bank and what he could bring to the table in his new role.

A ‘complete economist’, Indermit Gill’s new position at the World Bank will give him the opportunity to nurture young Indian economists and public policy makers at the world stage. Back home, the telecom stocks are back in the limelight amid the spectrum auction by the government. But are they worth your hard-earned money? 

While analysts point at higher than expected spectrum spends by Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, the telecom industry will be expected to grow faster to justify its large investments. But it can be a tricky situation if a country falls into a middle-income trap.  

A middle-income trap is an economic development situation in which a country attains a certain average income and gets stuck at that level, failing to graduate to a high income group. While some experts don’t believe this theory, others swear by it. Let know more about this trap in this episode of the podcast.