Greetings from the Retail Sales Team!

What a chaotic world - full of turmoil and unpredictable twists and turns. A perfect example is the American Presidency Election. While it was a close race, the thumping majority for the elected candidate was completely unexpected. All eyes are now on the policies and decisions taken by the new US President, which could have a bearing on economies globally.

Closer to home, Indian Indices have decided to give a rest to their one-way Bull run for the past 4 years. Investors who have been experiencing 30% plus returns on their investments would find it hard to accept lower than their mental benchmarks. Apart from ongoing geopolitical issues, anticipation over American trade policies going ahead, religious and political unrest increasing in various parts of the world, and a muted earnings growth in India, contributed to markets correcting by nearly 10%.

Elections in 2 states - Maharashtra and Jharkhand will also be something to watch out for. Out of these, Maharashtra contributes nearly 13% to the country's GDP and houses the financial capital of the country - Mumbai which in turn contributes nearly 24% to the overall Mutual Fund AUM. The battle for Maharashtra is a close one - as nail biting as the US Presidential Election.

China has decided that they have had enough of a struggling economy and their stimulus package has caused a good chunk of FII money to shift from India to China. Whether the stimulus package will impact the way its planned to will be clearer with time. Consumption and Real estate showing early signs of revival also indicates economic revival. Will trade tariffs play spoilsport? Remains to be seen once POTUS takes office in January.

Notwithstanding all that is going on in this VUCA environment, fundamentals in India display a great long term growth trajectory. India's gems and jewellery exports rose to ~Rs 25,000 /- cr in October. New Business premiums of Life Insurance companies had a ~ 13% increase YOY. Our Trade deficits fell 13.97% on the back of strong export growth. Monthly passenger vehicle sales have shown marginal increase. 2-wheeler sales - an indicator of a pick-up in Rural consumption rose 14.2 % in October. Industrial Production, Manufacturing and Services have all shown steady growth.

Overall, while some of the signals clearly indicate a tempering of the extraordinary growth post COVID, but there's also a clearly laid out path for long term gains and appreciations. Interim volatility aside, one needs to keep the long-term picture in mind and the strong potential of the Indian economy. The need of the hour is patience and Systematic Investments.

Coming back to our beloved organisation, as we celebrate 30 years of being a leading asset manager, a lot of changes and dynamism is at play to lead us to the next level of growth. The success we have achieved so far is a testament to the dedication, innovation, and commitment that our partnerships and our teams bring to the table. As we step into this new phase, we look forward to harnessing the energy, enthusiasm, and fresh perspectives and channel it into taking our business to unprecedented heights.



"Alone we can do so little; Together we can achieve so much - Helen Keller"

Source - ABSLAMC Research

Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme related documents carefully.