Q4 Earnings Signals Growth

As investors eagerly await the outcome of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, hoping for a decisive political mandate, the equity markets are witnessing heightened volatility, along with optimism driven by quarterly financial results and expectations of a post-election result rally. Mandar Wagh analyses company performances sector-wise to offer deeper insights into the future outlooks of various sectors, considering growth triggers and risk factors.

- Mandar Wagh

The fiscal year 2023-24 marked a remarkable period for India’s economy, as it outperformed major global counterparts and upheld its position as the world’s most stable economy. The Reserve Bank of India has maintained its inflation forecast for the current fiscal year at 4.5 per cent, signalling that the inflation target is within reach. Two years ago, at this juncture, when CPI inflation reached its peak at 7.8 per cent in April 2022, inflation was the major concern looming over the economy. Now, it seems that the once-dominant elephant in the room has taken a stroll and is gradually retreating back to the forest.

The World Bank has revised its economic growth forecast for the Indian economy in FY25 to 6.6 per cent, attributing the upgrade primarily to ‘upward revisions in investment growth.’ Recently, Amitabh Kant, former CEO of Niti Aayog, forecasted that India is poised to surpass Japan and become the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2025. Moreover, Indian equity markets exhibited impressive resilience, with both the BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 indices soaring around 25-28 per cent throughout the fiscal year, reaching unprecedented levels on the bourses.

Throughout the financial year, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) shifted to net selling positions, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) took on the role of net buyers. FIIs experienced a substantial net outflow of ₹14,578 crore, in contrast to DIIs, who bolstered the market with a sizeable net inflow of ₹209,885 crore during the corresponding period.