The festive season which is entering the final week, has been throwing up new surprises on the domestic and the international fronts. On the international front, the investors are recollecting a horrible year for investments as fortune fluctuated like a pendulum unable to find a stable swing. But while the threat of credit rating downgrades looms over the European countries, the emerging economies are on the upswing and gaining momentum as we speak.

The Asian nation, Indonesia provides arguably the perfect example for our explanation. Fitch had upgraded Indonesia’s sovereign rating on December 15^th, thereby restoring the investment grade status for the first time in 14 years. Back in 1997, when the Asian financial crisis blew out of proportion, the IMF had to step in with a three-year loan worth $10.1 billion at that particular point of time. The IMF had opined then that the Indonesia’s banking sector was not prepared to withstand the financial devastation that swept across South-east Asia like a Tsunami destroying everything on its way.

At this moment, it is the European banks that are the focus of concern as the euro zone struggles to come up with a politically palatable way to solve its own impending financial crisis. All three rating agencies have warned that European countries could face a possible downgrade if they are unable to find a concrete solution to stem the crisis. Sentiments towards Europe has turned so dark that the most positive thing is that economists have proclaimed-Euro zone will not completely collapse within the next two years!

Since August 5^th, when S&P stripped the US of its AAA rating, countries including Indonesia, Brazil, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Paraguay, Peru, Kazakhstan and Israel have received upgrades from at least one of the world’s big three ratings agencies. Next in line: Philippines.  While the focus remains on Europe, the other so-called emerging nations have been driving their own engines towards development with reclusive secrecy.

In our own country, we have seen a tremendous rise in the police inspections at night. Police have set up check-posts at most of the places in the capital to prevent any untoward incidents due to the past instances of accidents caused by drunk driving. While the denizens remain divided on whether the step should be carried on after the New Year or not, the police need to be applauded for initiating this cause for the betterment of the city. The age-old cliché-Precaution is better than cure-holds true in every aspect of life, let alone matters of life and death.