Gold is an excellent asset class for diversification and should be included in all long-term portfolios.
TMFs invest in a public index, so investors know beforehand which instruments the fund will invest in.
The public sector banks are not in a position to cut rates because of their weak balance sheets and massive portfolios of non-performing assets, says Devangshu Datta.
The steep one percentage points increase has taken the interest on PF deposits of 4.71 crore organised sector workers to a five-year high.
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Kotak Mahindra Bank was the biggest loser in the Sensex pack, sliding 2.68 per cent, followed by Tech Mahindra, Mahindra & Mahindra, Axis Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, Tata Consultancy Services, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Nestle and Titan. In contrast, NTPC, Power Grid, Larsen & Toubro, HDFC, Reliance and HDFC Bank were the gainers.
Domestic fund houses are of the view that the US Fed's status quo stance on rates is a positive indication for RBI to lower its lending rates.
Following are comments from economists at leading financial institutions, banks and rating agencies on the interim Budget:
India Inc on Wednesday said the Reserve Bank's move to cut interest rate by 0.50 per cent is "pro-growth" and exhorted banks to transmit the lower interest rate to borrowers to revive demand and kick-start the investment cycle.
'While Indian markets are indeed not inexpensive, the valuations of largecap stocks are still a considerable distance from being overstretched.'
The Reserve Bank's of India's (RBI's) decision to increase the key short-term interest rates by 25 basis points has been termed as in-line with the street expectations by marketmen.
India Inc expects the RBI to cut interest rates by early next year.
Some bankers are of the view the move will also help lenders meet their priority sector commitments as a large part of their housing loan portfolios comprise of loans under Rs 25 lakhs.
Bowing to pressure from Left- backed trade unions, the Employees Provident Fund Board agreed on Monday to continue paying 8.5 per cent interest rate to its nearly 4 crore subscribers for fiscal 2006-07 as well.
The Reserve Bank is likely to maintain status quo on interest rates in its forthcoming monetary policy review but may change the stance in view of retail inflation piercing its upper tolerance limit, global uncertainties created by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, and the urgency to protect and boost growth, feel experts. The RBI governor-headed rate setting panel -- Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) -- will be holding its first meeting of the 2022-23 fiscal from April 6 to 8. The outcome will be announced on April 8.
The specter of how the Munambam issue was exploited during the November by-elections is proof of the price Kerala is paying for its emergent politics. Controversies become the stuff of slow-burn and brinkmanship. The former promises mileage; the latter searches for an advantage, notes Shyam G Menon.
Among the Sensex firms, Bajaj Finance emerged as the biggest gainer by climbing 2.95 per cent. Tata Motors, Bajaj Finserv, IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, Mahindra & Mahindra, State Bank of India, Larsen & Toubro, HDFC, HDFC Bank, Maruti, Reliance Industries and Bharti Airtel were the other major winners. HCL Technologies, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra and Titan were among the laggards.
Amaran is effective as a intimate, well researched piece of storytelling but does not try to break any new ground, observes Arjun Menon.
Soft crude prices will cut fuel subsidy bill and help contain fiscal slippage this year.
What's different this time is that global financial stress -- which has its genesis in four policy choices made in recent years -- is juxtaposed with a more resilient real economy, observes Sajjid Z Chinoy, chief India economist at J P Morgan.
Govt likely to get full control on policy rate.
Among major Sensex movers, ITC rose the most by 1.70 per cent, Wipro by 1.43 per cent, Tech Mahindra by 1.36 per cent and Nestle India by 1.27 per cent. Other gainers included HCL Tech, Asian Paints and Reliance. On the other hand, ICICI Bank, NTPC, UltraTech Cement and Tata Steel traded with a loss of up to 0.82 per cent.
Official GDP data for the second quarter of the current fiscal year ending March are due to for release this Friday.
It is surprising that central bankers around the world have cautioned the US Federal Reserve against raising rates.
India's residential market is expected to sustain demand momentum despite rise in mortgage and property rates as sales this year across the top 7 cities are likely to breach pre-pandemic level of 2.62 lakh units, industry players said. After braving four back-to-back disruptions in form of demonetisation, RERA, GST and COVID-19 in the last 6 years, industry experts feel the housing market is going through a lot of structural changes and is now at the start of a long-term upcycle. Homebuyers body FPCE gives credit to the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) under the Real Estate (Regulation & Development) Act, 2016 for this improved buying sentiment.
Shares of real estate firms have been outperforming over the past year. The rally, analysts say, may hit roadblocks in the near term amid stretched valuations, even as the long-term prospects for the sector remain ebullient. "Most of the positive news flow is already in the price. Hence, investors sitting on hefty profits may partially cash out at current levels," suggests V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
'Investors with higher risk appetite and longer horizon (more than one year) can invest in longer-duration funds like corporate bond funds, long-duration funds and gilt funds for maximum gain.'
'Indian equity valuations, although not very expensive, are not cheap either.'
Analysts are expecting inflation to fall further in October and November on base effect. Inflation measured by consumer prices has been trending down for over four months, and came in at 6.7 per cent in September.
'If their allocation to certain segments have become high due to strong returns over the past three-four years, they should rebalance their portfolios and bring them in line with their long-term asset allocation.'
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The Reserve Bank's decision to cut interest rates will stimulate investment and help in anchoring inflationary expectations, Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) Chairman C Rangarajan said.
'It would be reasonable to assume that Modi 3.0 would be more focused on projects and schemes which do not require any legislative change or which have the support of its coalition partners,' asserts A K Bhattacharya.
'...which is possible through flexicap and multicap funds.' 'The latter has a better balance between large, mid and smallcap stocks.'
Analysts remain bullish on the road ahead for the equity markets, but warn against volatility on account of domestic and global cues. The upcoming Lok Sabha elections back home and the interest rate trajectory of the US Federal Reserve, they said, will be the two most important factors that the markets will keep a tab on. That apart, the valuation of the Indian markets, they feel, will also be eyed in context of how global peers are performing.
Monetary transmission has been an issue for the Indian banking sector.
From the Sensex pack, Tata Motors, HCL Technologies, Power Grid, Tech Mahindra, NTPC, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Larsen & Toubro, Wipro, Nestle, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys were among the major gainers. Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Mahindra & Mahindra, UltraTech Cement, IndusInd Bank and State Bank of India were the major laggards.
'If rate cuts happen, bond yields will come down and investors will make mark-to-market capital gains on them.'
'The biggest near-term risk to Indian equities is the outflow of investments to China as tactical trades by foreign investors.'
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