India regained its status as the world’s fastest-growing major economy at the end of 2017, posting a growth in GDP of 7.2%. Its population of 1.3 billion is also growing fast, as the country added 15 million people last year. Although welcome in their own right, these growth rates raise significant problems for the natural Read more […]
As highlighted in a prior post, “Getting to Know the S&P BSE 500,” the S&P BSE 500 is considered a proxy for India’s listed equity market, as it covers more than 88% of India’s listed equity universe in terms of total market capitalization. The index also offers diversified exposure to all key sectors of India’s Read more […]
Over the past three to four decades, the Indian equity market has witnessed significant growth, on account of increasing foreign capital flows and participation by domestic institutional investors. The expanding depth and breadth has brought a stronger demand from market participants for suitable benchmarks. The S&P BSE SENSEX launched in 1986 and was the first Read more […]
The Indian debt market has grown to USD 1.5 trillion over the past decade, largely due to the issuances from the central and state government. The ratio of government securities to corporate issuances is about 75 to 25, reflecting the subdued state of corporate bond markets in India. With a lack of participation, the Indian Read more […]
The end of May 2018 marked another milestone in the history of ETF growth in global markets, with the total assets in ETFs crossing USD 5 trillion. Indian ETF markets are also growing significantly. The support from the Indian government via the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation and Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, which Read more […]
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks have taken a strong hold in the developed investing space. Previously, the concept had resided in the domain of “do gooders” and “tree huggers” seeking to make a better world. So what has changed so much that it is now taking root in mainstream investing? By and large, ESG Read more […]
Index derivatives exist for all asset classes, and over time their use has grown exponentially for a variety of purposes. Still, many myths abound that their chief function is for speculative activity. The ability to leverage by investing a small amount to gain exposure to a much larger investment is the key benefit of index Read more […]
“Trying to pick individual stocks is a trap. I can’t do it. Warren Buffett can, but hardly anyone else can beat the indexes over a long period of time.” Ben Stein The above quote is proof that Ben Stein seems to understand the merits and traits of indices and index-linked products. There is a varied Read more […]
The value factor looks to bucket stocks that have inexpensive valuation and trade at a discount to their fundamental value, with the hypothesis that inexpensive stocks should outperform overvalued stocks. Observations in empirical research suggested that the value factor performed best when the economy was in recovery and growth was accelerating from trough.[1] We recently Read more […]
On May 16, 2014, Lok Sabha election results were announced, and Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party got a clear mandate to form the government. Narendra Modi was sworn in as the 14th Prime Minister of India on May 26, 2014, and his government recently passed the four-year mark of being in power. This government has Read more […]
