New Delhi, Jan. 11 -- As the countdown to Union Budget 2020-21 begins, all sectors hope that the government will unleash a plethora of goodies - from tax cuts and other consumption boosters to increasing credit off-take from banks to ease liquidity. Real estate particularly hopes for the quick implementation of alternative investment funds to rescue stressed residential projects. The pressure on the Finance Minister is as high as it could possibly go, considering the state of the economy. Unfortunately, the recent Iran-US stand-off may throw a spanner in the works this year. Rising oil prices limit RBI's scope to decrease interest rates for home loans, and inflation is likely to head north. In short, some of the measures that the government could provide - such as hefty cuts in personal taxes - may not materialize....