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BNP Paribas Bets On India’s Private Banks In 2019

The Indian equity market is rallying on a ‘too fast, too soon’ basis, says Manishi Raychaudhuri.

A BNP Paribas SA logo sits on a sign outside a BNP Paribas bank branch in Paris, France. (Photographer: Christophe Morin/Bloomberg)  
A BNP Paribas SA logo sits on a sign outside a BNP Paribas bank branch in Paris, France. (Photographer: Christophe Morin/Bloomberg)  

Private sector banks, including retail and corporate lenders, will top BNP Paribas SA’s preferences in India this year, according to its Asia Pacific Equity Strategist Manishi Raychaudhuri.

The other sectors of interest will include consumer discretionaries, oil and gas, industrials, information technology services and a few names in the auto sector, Raychaudhuri told BloombergQuint, adding that the biggest portion of the weight will come from finance companies.

Raychaudhuri said the stake sale of Reliance Industries Ltd.’s refinery business to Saudi Aramco is beneficial for the sector. “Whenever we see investor interest, not just from the secondary market but also from primary investors, that indicates a positive outlook for the sector as far as long term is concerned.”

The Indian equity market, he said, is rallying on a “too fast, too soon” basis. “BNP Paribas is unequivocally bullish on the Indian market in a medium term,” he said, adding that he expects the market to take a breather in the near term.

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