Monthly commentary

July 2020

Opinions and commentary provided by Aditya Birla Sun Life Asset Management.

(Note: In India, the Financial Year runs April 1 to March 31, so the current period is FY 2020-21)

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Equity Market Recap

Domestic equity markets extended their rally in July, 2020, despite persisting concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic as market participants remained optimistic that a coronavirus vaccine would be developed. Better-than-expected corporate earnings for the quarter ended June, 2020, also added to the gains.

The fact that domestic equity markets continued to gain momentum reflects confidence among investors that the short-term tremors caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will be overcome and optimism that a long-term boom in the domestic economy could begin in the near future. Investors' behaviour also reflects the stock market’s tendency to look forward and past current events, which has helped to drive its recent recovery. A rebound in the domestic economy might not come about as easily because some existing structural issues have somewhat worsened due to the pandemic. These issues need to be addressed after the pandemic to foster a sustainable recovery. A report from IHS Markit indicates that the Indian economy is likely to rebound in the second half of 2020, as the impact of the pandemic recedes, and is projected to grow by 6.7% in the next fiscal year. Accordingly, investors will continue to monitor India’s economic health and improvement by closely tracking its indicators.

The global economy is going through a grave health crisis and a vaccine is the only solution. Until an effective vaccine becomes available, the road ahead will be bumpy, and countries may continue to shift their response back and forth between business as usual and lockdown as usual. Thus, looking forward, market performance will be dictated by how quickly the pandemic can be contained. Until then, the recovery is expected to be slow, steady and gradual.

Newsflow and Market Performance

Indian equities continued their upward momentum in July, with markets rebounding by 46% from their March lows to only 10% below their year-to-date all-time peak in mid January. Markets continue to move higher despite the relentless increase in daily new COVID cases and sharp earnings downgrades.

We are still seeing a rising trend in the number of COVID cases, although the fatality rate remains low. There are signs of reflation in the economy – pent up demand is evident—although it remains to be seen if this will be sustainable.

India’s Rural economy is a bright spot, with a normal monsoon and Kharif sowing higher year-over-year. Global macro-economic factors, such as low oil prices and stable currencies also continue to be in India’s favour.

Equity valuations are reasonable, with India’s Nifty 50 stock index trailing its price/book ratio about 13% below its long-term average.

Mid- and small-cap stocks are trading at relatively attractive valuations. Low interest rates and high liquidity can justify higher equity valuations going forward.

Equity markets are expected to remain volatile due to a resurgence of the coronavirus. However, accommodative fiscal and monetary policy and high liquidity should provide some support to stocks.

In the current environment, instead of a short term 1-year view, we feel it best to take a 3-year view as the economy and corporate earnings will likely have normalize within that timeframe.

Key events

Source: Refinitiv

FY2020 = Fiscal Year ending March 31st ,2020

Q4FY20: Quarterly ending March 31st, 2020
Q2FY20: Quarterly ending December 31st, 2019
Q1FY20: Quarterly ending September 30th, 2019
Q3FY20: Quarterly ending June 30th, 2019

Return Monitor

Source: Morgan Stanley, Refinitiv. Values and Returns as on July 31, 2020

Valuation Ratios

Source: Morgan Stanley. Values and Returns as on July 31, 2020

Market Outlook

Views expressed are those of Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd., sub-advisor to select Sun Life Excel emerging markets mutual funds for which Sun Life Global Investment (Canada) Inc. acts as portfolio manager. Views expressed regarding a particular company, security, industry or market sector should not be considered an indication of trading intent of any mutual funds managed by Sun Life Global Investments (Canada) Inc. These views are not to be considered as investment advice nor should they be considered a recommendation to buy or sell.

This commentary is provided for information purposes only and is not intended to provide specific individual financial, investment, tax or legal advice. Information contained in this commentary has been compiled from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made with respect to its timeliness or accuracy. This commentary may contain forward-looking statements about the economy and markets, their future performance, strategies or prospects or events and are subject to uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements.  Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are speculative in nature and cannot be relied upon.

Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees and expenses all may be associated with mutual fund investments. Investors should read the prospectus before investing. Mutual funds are not guaranteed, their values change frequently and past performance may not be repeated.

© Sun Life Global Investments (Canada) Inc., 2020. Sun Life Global Investments (Canada) Inc. is a member of the Sun Life group of companies. Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Ltd. is a joint venture between the Aditya Birla Group and Sun Life Financial Inc.