Gold could be a good hedge

If the economy enters a period of stagflation, its returns will outpace other assets

This Budget will be perhaps the most important since the ‘liberalisation era’ started. The verifiable high speed data indicates that the economy has slowed to the point where it’s contracting, although the official gross domestic product (GDP) estimate is that of a growth slowdown rather than contraction. 

Inflation is up, well above the northern limit of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI's) buffer zone so there's no room for rate cuts. Tax collection estimates will be missed by a big margin, pushing the fiscal deficit well above target this year.  Yet, the government might need to cut taxes in 2020-21 to