India’s economy is set to grow at a faster pace in the coming year, supported by strong macroeconomic fundamentals and a renewed interest from foreign investors in domestic markets, Ashishkumar Chauhan, managing director and chief executive of the National Stock Exchange, said on 8 November. Speaking to news agency ANI at the NSE on the occasion of Muhurat trading and Deepawali, Chauhan said India continues to be the fastest-growing large economy in the world, backed by 7.5 per cent year-on-year growth in gross domestic product. Indian economy growth, he said, should accelerate further in the coming year.
Chauhan pointed to domestic savings as the base under the market. Domestic financial savings have expanded to nearly 1.4 trillion dollars a year, making India one of the largest pools of savings in the world, he said. That pool of domestic capital has played a large part in supporting the market and sustaining investment through months when foreign funds were selling. Indian economy growth draws strength from that savings pool, in his account, and strong tax collections support infrastructure spending and job creation, which feed back into demand.
Foreign investors are also coming back. Chauhan said foreign institutional investors have started favouring Indian markets again, which he called a very good omen for the coming Samvat year. The shift in foreign sentiment lines up with the week’s market data: overseas investors bought a net Rs 45,970 crore of Indian shares in November so far, reversing the Rs 45,162 crore they withdrew in October. Indian economy growth and the return of foreign capital are moving in step, Chauhan said.
Indian economy growth and the new Samvat year
The remarks came as markets opened for Samvat 2083, the new year in the Hindu calendar, with a special Muhurat trading session on Sunday, 8 November. Chauhan used the occasion to announce AI-powered analytics and app upgrades for retail investors, aimed at improving the experience of the exchange’s growing base of individual investors. The NSE has kept nanosecond-level response times over the past year, securing its position as the fastest exchange in the world, according to the exchange. Indian economy growth above 7 per cent, Chauhan said, should support equity markets as the new Samvat year begins.
Crude oil remains the main risk he named. India imports about 85 per cent of its crude oil, and price spikes have in the past created pressure on the balance of payments. Chauhan said India is managing its fiscal deficit remarkably well despite that exposure, and he expects foreign interest to revive as crude prices cool and the rupee steadies. “As crude prices cool and the Rupee stabilizes, we expect foreign institutional interest to revive alongside our massive domestic savings base,” he said. Brent crude fell nearly 16 per cent during the week to around 98 dollars a barrel, easing one of the pressures he described.
Indian economy growth above 7 per cent
Chauhan’s view of growth rests on more than the headline number. He said strong tax collections are funding infrastructure spending, which supports jobs, and that domestic savings give the market a cushion when foreign flows turn volatile. The combination, in his account, is what lets Indian economy growth hold up while other large economies slow. The exchange chief also noted that the country’s growth of over 7 per cent, combined with fiscal discipline, would support equity markets despite crude volatility and earlier foreign outflows.
The market backdrop supports his reading. The Nifty 50 gained 8.6 per cent in the week to 6 November, its best week in about six years, and closed at 25,030.35, while the Sensex rose 8.82 per cent to 81,028. Foreign funds were net buyers in all five sessions. Domestic institutions sold a net Rs 24,197 crore in the same week, booking profits after the rally, but the scale of foreign buying more than offset that selling. Indian economy growth, on Chauhan’s reading, now has both domestic savings and returning foreign money behind it.
What Indian economy growth depends on next
The test for the coming year is whether the pace holds. Growth depends on crude prices staying in check, on foreign buying continuing past the first week of November, and on earnings keeping pace with the market’s rise. Chauhan did not set out a forecast number beyond the 7.5 per cent already recorded, and he tied his confidence to the savings base and to tax collections rather than to any single policy step. If Indian economy growth does pick up as he expects, the new Samvat year will open with the market’s two supports, domestic money and foreign money, pulling in the same direction.