The combined profit before tax of 748 companies, which have declared their results for Q1FY21, is down 46 per cent YoY. Their net sales went down by a quarter as the Covid-19 lockdown led to a sharp fall in economic activity.
The current valuation is 38 per cent higher than the 10-year average of 22x and over 50 per cent higher than the 20-year average of around 20x.
Many weekly indicators turn positive as economy prepares for Unlock 3.0.
The V-shaped rebound has been aided by a gush of liquidity flooding the global financial system, thanks to balance sheet expansion.
Mumbai traffic, mobile internet speeds, and grocery and pharmacy visits are all showing lower numbers for the latest week.
In three of the past four years, 10-year returns have been 10 per cent or lower, making equity unattractive, compared to other asset classes.
The combined weight of IT companies in the benchmark Nifty 50 index is now at a five-year high of 15 per cent as these companies continue to outperform the broader market.
Equity investors should thank cash-rich biggies such as TCS, ITC, HUL, Nestl, and Bajaj Auto for this.
Together, the top 10 business groups reported a pre-tax loss of Rs 19,342 crore during the January-March 2020 quarter, as against a profit before tax of around Rs 48,500 crore in the year-ago period and Rs 39,600 crore during the December quarter. While Vedanta was the worst hit. others included Aditya Birla, Bharti, Adani, Mahindra, and Tata.
Though India was under lockdown for only seven days of the quarter, global demand and commodity prices began falling from February as COVID-19 was spreading in other countries. 1,002 listed companies - excluding banks, non-bank lenders, insurers, brokerages, and IT firms - reported a combined pre-tax loss of around Rs 2,700 crore during Q4.
In the last five years, imports from HK have more than tripled -- from $5.6 billion in FY15 to $17.1 billion in FY20. In the same period, exports declined by 20 per cent -- from $13.6 billion in FY15 to $10.8 billion (annualised) in FY20.
Other measures being considered include relatively stringent KYC norms and a separate standard operating procedure for approval, renewal, and fresh investment from India's neighbouring countries.
The first spending item on the chopping block is capital expenditure, followed by operating costs and overheads, including sales and marketing expenses.
The mid-cap universe - comprising firms that rank 101-250 in terms of m-cap - could see as many as 17 new stocks move out. Similarly, over half a dozen stocks could exit the large-cap universe, which is defined as the top 100 entities in terms of m-cap.
Market experts said disruptions caused by the pandemic - to businesses as well as the filing process - and the sharp decline in valuations were the reasons behind fewer new companies wanting to tap the capital markets.
While freight traffic has gone up, the Google location data shows more people are stepping out of their homes.
Many believe that the surge in the markets defy economic reality and is being fuelled by aggressive monetary easing by central banks across the world.
This is the fastest the markets have taken to get out of bottom, compared to previous crises.
The trend in corporate earnings suggests that index earnings could fall to the levels last seen in early 2014.
Combined profit before tax of 81 firms down 37.5% y-o-y, worst show in at least 3 years.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances