The new year began well for the stock market. Both, domestic and foreign investors were buyers of equity. Global sentiment is predicted to be positive in 2018. Clearly, sentiment is a strong driver. Liquidity is seconding sentiment. We see the inflows into Indian equity at an all-time high. The amount of money mobilized in IPO’s in 2017 alone was more than the cumulative sum of the previous decade.
2018 surely promises to be an economically eventful year. Growth has to return. Investments must remain buoyant. The government will present it’s last budget on February 1 before it faces the voters in 2019. The stock market valuations seem to factor in all good news from the budget. There is expectation of both populism and reform. The budget possibly will be a mix of the two, with populism dominating.
January will see the usual budget speculation. In the coming weeks, we are likely to see enhanced activity and excitement in the stock markets.
“Successful investing requires thoughtful attention to many separate aspects, all at the same time. Omit any one and the result is likely to be less than satisfactory.”– Howard Marks