Indian economy showing signs of resilience, says Prashant Khemka of White Oak Capital

We are towards the fag end of US Federal Reserve hikes and inflation, with recent data points suggesting that the economy is much stronger than what the market was anticipating, said Prashant Khemka, founder of White Oak Capital, in an exclusive interview to Business Today TV. 

Speaking with Udayan Mukherjee, Global Business Editor, India Today Group, Khemka expressed optimism over foreign inflows, and asserted that FII flows will improve going forward. Sectorally, he remains bullish on financials, IT sector and adds that he sees "alpha opportunities" in private banks.

On being asked about the Adani episode and its implications on the equity markets, the market expert said that the Indian markets have held up quite well by and large and highlighted that the Indian market has not even underperformed over the last three weeks or so. “I think the Indian market might even outperform at least month to date but by small amounts but, it is very different from what was feared about underperforming quite substantially. I think those fears have receded. Now, hardly anyone is asking about the contagion effect of the developments on broader Indian markets,” he asserted. 

Talking about the impact of the Union Budget 2023 on the insurance sector, Khemka said that the company would re-evaluate the thinking on the insurance companies and for now they see this as a risk. “At least in the near to medium term there would be some adjustment, there would be some rebasing and, then we would know what is the real volume of demand that was not driven by these tax benefits, so there would be some reset," the market maven noted.

Commenting on the pharma sector, the market veteran sounded a note of caution. Khemka said: “We look for companies who are by and large more heavily tilted towards the domestic market. There are many companies who are focused more on emerging markets, not as much on the regulated market. So, that is one segment of the pharma sector that is interesting.” 

Elaborating further, Khemka said, “If you were to cast the net a little wider to more health care then there are obviously hospitals and diagnostics and as well as the CDMOS ( A contract development and manufacturing company) that are there as an investment opportunity.”

Also read: Adani Enterprises, Adani Power, Adani Total Gas: Adani group wealth erosion equals 4% of GDP, m-cap below $100 billion

Also read: This multibagger stock stages strong rebound, jumps 48% in 3 sessions