People were expecting too much from this Interim Budget. The system does not allow the government to do too much on this Budget. One must remember that the government has already doled out stimulus of over $2 billion last year and these things should not be repeated just to help one company or one sector.
Today’s disappointment cannot last for long as it will depend on other world markets too. In general the Indian, Russian, Brazilian and Chinese are doing better than the western world. I do not feel overly negative on the markets just because this Budget had noting much to offer. The focus of financial markets would be more on global cues.
Before the Budget speech began, the bank stocks were really trembling as last year this sector was under extreme pressure when the farm loan waiver package was announced. It is a major relief for banks as no additional burden was put on them. The core issue is of restoring the confidence of investors back into the markets and bringing stability. Some of our clients are now asking us to show them what stocks we like. They have come to terms with what they are worth and what they have to do next because the world will not stop. The only thing is that we ourselves have become cautious about what happens after elections in the first few months because the uncertainty will not end even after the elections as the government will face instability initially.
Samir Arora, Fund Manager, Helios Capital Management
