Play India by buying stocks linked directly to consumers: Axis Mutual Fund

From branded underwear to passenger cars, consumer goods are India’s best stock market bets. And they’re ones you can make money in even when the shares aren’t cheap.

That’s the view of Axis Mutual Fund in Mumbai, whose long-term equity portfolio holds 26 percent in consumer discretionary and staples companies, together the second largest holding after financials. The fund posted average annual returns of 24 percent over five years, beating 96 percent of peers.

“If you want to play India, you need to invest in stories that are directly linked to consumer spending in some form,” Jinesh Gopani, who as head of