January equity redemptions spurt over talk of LTCG tax in Budget 2018

Investors seem to have taken their money off the table, amid a sharp surge in equity markets in January.  Equity mutual fund (MF) units worth Rs 318 billion were redeemed in January, twice the monthly average of Rs 159 billon in 2017. This was also the highest monthly gross redemption in almost a decade.  

According to industry expectations, speculations over the government's decision to alter the capital gains tax framework could have prompted some investors to redeem their units.

"There were mainly two factors that led to higher than usual redemptions. First, of course, the markets were at historic