Don't write off India IT! This global fund manager bets on TCS & Infosys
NEW DELHI: The S&P BSE Sensex has come under pressure for the most part of the previous calendar year and so far in 2017 weighed down by protectionist stance of the Trump administration, management rejigs as well as a slowdown in the global growth environment.
The S&P BSE IT index has slipped nearly 5 per cent so far in 2017, led by losses in Infosys, which saw an over 8 per cent cut while TCS has slipped over 5 per cent in the same period.
Most analysts on Dalal Street are advising investors to stay away from India IT or the export theme from a short to medium term perspective.
But Adrian Lim, Senior Investment Manager, Aberdeen Asset Management, thinks otherwise.
“Indian IT companies are very competitive and the issue of protectionism is not new to them. We have large positions in Infosys and Tata Consultancy and these are two very strong operators in the IT market,” he said in an exclusive interview with ETNow.
Aberdeen’s India fund fact sheet indicates 7.8 per cent of holding in TCS and about 7.5 per cent holding in Infosys. These figures are based December 2016 document.
The fund’s investment objective is long-term capital appreciation, which it seeks to achieve by investing primarily in equities of Indian companies.
Last week media reports suggested that US President Donald Trump is preparing to issue executive orders on the H1-B and other visas that are the life blood of the Indian technology companies operating in the US.
Most of the revenue generated by Indian IT companies is from the US.
According to ComputerWorld magazine, nearly 86 per cent of H1-B visas for computer-related jobs and 46.5 per cent for engineering positions were given to Indians.
“Under Trump administration, these issues are published because he stood for the protectionist platform. We expect to see increased heat that way but the issue is not a new one and we need to also note that Indian IT companies employ a lot of engineers onshore in the US markets as well,” Lim said.
During his campaign and afterward, Trump criticised the work visa system for the abuses in the way visas were obtained and their impact on American technology workers.
Lim said Indian IT companies have different levers (to deal with protectionism) that they could use to make sure that their customers need are met.
Commenting on TCS, Lim said Chandra’s leadership has been quite exceptional, but TCS is too large for one man alone. It has been run by a team of professionals for really long time.
“At this point in time, I do not think there will be any huge chunk of change in the strategy. We are not that concerned about TCS-specific issues,” he said.
The S&P BSE IT index has slipped nearly 5 per cent so far in 2017, led by losses in Infosys, which saw an over 8 per cent cut while TCS has slipped over 5 per cent in the same period.
Most analysts on Dalal Street are advising investors to stay away from India IT or the export theme from a short to medium term perspective.
But Adrian Lim, Senior Investment Manager, Aberdeen Asset Management, thinks otherwise.
“Indian IT companies are very competitive and the issue of protectionism is not new to them. We have large positions in Infosys and Tata Consultancy and these are two very strong operators in the IT market,” he said in an exclusive interview with ETNow.
Aberdeen’s India fund fact sheet indicates 7.8 per cent of holding in TCS and about 7.5 per cent holding in Infosys. These figures are based December 2016 document.
The fund’s investment objective is long-term capital appreciation, which it seeks to achieve by investing primarily in equities of Indian companies.
Last week media reports suggested that US President Donald Trump is preparing to issue executive orders on the H1-B and other visas that are the life blood of the Indian technology companies operating in the US.
Most of the revenue generated by Indian IT companies is from the US.
According to ComputerWorld magazine, nearly 86 per cent of H1-B visas for computer-related jobs and 46.5 per cent for engineering positions were given to Indians.
“Under Trump administration, these issues are published because he stood for the protectionist platform. We expect to see increased heat that way but the issue is not a new one and we need to also note that Indian IT companies employ a lot of engineers onshore in the US markets as well,” Lim said.
During his campaign and afterward, Trump criticised the work visa system for the abuses in the way visas were obtained and their impact on American technology workers.
Lim said Indian IT companies have different levers (to deal with protectionism) that they could use to make sure that their customers need are met.
Commenting on TCS, Lim said Chandra’s leadership has been quite exceptional, but TCS is too large for one man alone. It has been run by a team of professionals for really long time.
“At this point in time, I do not think there will be any huge chunk of change in the strategy. We are not that concerned about TCS-specific issues,” he said.
