Infrastructure, rural development and healthcare stocks are analysts’ top picks as the Indian government will boost spending in a budget aimed at jumpstarting investment to boost growth.
Construction spending, including roads and ports, and incentives for electric vehicles and renewable energy are likely to be the focus of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget speech on Tuesday, as policymakers seek ways to help the economy emerge from a left-wing slump affected by the pandemic.
Investors hoped the budget announcement would bring some relief after a recent global sell-off sparked a drop in Indian stock benchmarks amid fears of an imminent Federal Reserve rate hike and foreign money fleeing the market.
That said, in only three of the past eight years since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose one month after Budget Day. The other five fell or traded range-bound.
“The overall focus of the budget is likely to be on job creation and investment-driven growth, implying an encouraging push for infrastructure development,” Neeraj Chadawar, head of quantitative equity research at Axis Securities Ltd., wrote in a note. This will include public infrastructure capital expenditures on roads, water, subways, rail, defence, digital infrastructure and green technologies.”
Complete News Source : Business Standard
