Thursday, August 06
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have yanked a staggering $23 billion from Indian equities, $19 billion in 2025 and another $4 billion already in January 2026, leaving markets desperate for Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to pull a rabbit out of her Budget hat today. The exodus has deepened as rupee depreciation and lackluster returns post-tax adjustments make India's richly valued stocks look increasingly unappetizing compared to risk-free returns in developed markets."This Budget comes at a very crucial juncture as far as markets are concerned," says Nimesh Chandan, Chief Investment Officer at Bajaj Finserv Asset Management Limited. "The most important area to watch will be the steps the Finance Minister takes to attract durable FDI and FPI flows into the economy."According to
Indian stock markets head into Union Budget 2026 on a fragile footing. The Nifty is down over 2% in January and has fallen 1.5% in the fortnight leading up to the Budget. Sentiment is weak, the rupee has slid close to 92, and foreign investors have been steady sellers. Against this backdrop, expectations from the Budget are deliberately low. Analysts broadly agree that the Budget is unlikely to deliver big-bang announcements. Yet, in a market starved of confidence, even small, well-placed signals could matter.Here are ten things analysts say Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman could do to steady nerves and keep equity markets engaged after a sustained sell-off.1) Sticking to fiscal discipline without springing surprises.Most brokerages expect the government to stay on the fiscal consolidat
New Delhi: Sebi chief Tuhin Kanta Pandey on Saturday urged financial sector stakeholders to look beyond mere technical compliance and act with professional conscience, saying regulations alone can't create an ethical culture or prevent collapse in corporate governance. Corporate failures in India and across the globe, Pandey stressed, have taken place even where formal compliances existed but ethical substance was missing, "where governance failed, not because rules were absent, but because courage was." The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairman made these observations while speaking at the World Forum of Accountants 2.0, organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in Greater Noida. National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) chief Nitin Gupta and
Mumbai: India’s hospitality industry is witnessing an inflow of investment that comes with a long-term view, but without much hype. A mix of institutional investors, hotel companies, family offices and wealthy individuals quietly invested in recent months or is in the process of investing about $2 billion (more than `18,300 crore) in hotel properties across the country, according to industry executives and bankers.The focus of investment is firmly on assets that are operational or where the property is ready to start operations, as investors prioritise early cash flows and lower execution risk in an environment marked by high construction costs, elevated interest rates and long development timelines. Development of new, or greenfield, projects, while not off the table, is being pursued s
