Tale of the Tape 

Good evening everyone. Markets were boring AF!

Nifty (flat) and Sensex (+0.2%) ended mixed ahead of the mid-week break. PS - markets will be closed tomorrow on account of Mahashivratri celebrations. Midcaps (-0.6%) and Smallcaps (-0.4%) extended their losses. The advance-decline ratio was in favour of the bears (3:2).

Most sectors ended in the red. Metals (-1.5%), Real Estate (-1.3%) and PSU Banks (-1.2%) saw the deepest cuts. Auto (+0.5%) and FMCG (+0.3%) saw some buying.

Is China the new star for both FIIs and big Indian bulls? Read our top story to understand the shift and what’s the best way to invest.

The GOI is killing the sovereign gold bond scheme. More details below on why and how you should play the gold story.

Tata Investment, Nestle India and 360 ONE saw big moves today. Check out their charts below to find out why.

Akzo Nobel will sell its powder coating business for Rs 2073 cr to its Dutch parent Akzo Nobel NV.

Zomato rose +3% intraday after Bernstein reiterated its bullish call; citing a +35% upside from current levels. PS - the stock will be added to Nifty next month.

IREDA will raise its Rs 5,000-cr via the QIP route.

PSU banks were in focus after reports said the GOI would reduce stakes in UCO Bank, IOB, Central Bank and Punjab & Sindh bank.

Axis Bank is in talks to sell a majority stake in its NBFC unit, according to CNBCTV18.

Here are the closing prints:

Stocks
China +1 ❌ 
India +1 ✅

As India’s markets falter, China is stepping up BIG time! The Hang Seng Index is up a remarkable +17% YTD vs the Nifty’s -5%. FIIs have noticed and are already pivoting btw. ICYMI - 65% of the top Asian equity funds reduced their India allocation by over 1% over the last five months, while 85% upped their China exposure by a similar amount.

Why is this happening? Well, macro stuff is starting to look good after a slump. China’s Q4 GDP beat estimates and came in higher than Q3. There’s also a lotta ‘feel-good’ stuff. Examples: DeepSeek has put China’s tech stock scene on steroids, while INSANE ticket sales for animated film ‘Ne Zha 2’ triggered hopes of a consumption boost.

This sentiment is even swaying some of India’s biggest bulls. Ace investor Vijay Kedia says he’s invested 5% of his total portfolio into China. Kedia’s biggest reason for doing so is that China's valuations are juicy right now, which is 100% correct. PS - despite its recent rally, the Hang Seng Index is still down -24% from its 2021 highs. The country’s stock market has gone nowhere in the last 5 years which makes it attractive AF given its apparent rebound right now.

Fun fact: Kedia says he mostly buys a basket of Chinese shares through exchange traded funds. For those wondering, you can do the same. Both Nippon India and Mirae Asset have ETFs, with the latter having a tech focus as well. Meanwhile, there are ‘fund of funds’ that look at Great China equities including Edelweiss and Axis. FYI - the Edelweiss is up +33% over the last year!

Big Picture: Yes, China and India’s relative fortunes have swapped. But in the long-term, it may be different! After all, Trump’s tariffs are set to hit China harder. Also we’ll have to keep an eye out for how quickly India’s GDP and corporate earnings rebound!