|
August
was the month of the BSE. The sensex outperformed indices across
the globe. The Dow was up 1.97 per cent, the FTSE 0.1 per cent and
the Hang Seng 7.64 per cent. And the Sensex? Up a magnificent 11.92
per cent.
The month's rally, prodded by the Reserve Bank
of India's (RBI) forecast of 6.5 per cent gross domestic product
growth for India, was driven largely by public sector and pharma
stocks. Steel and technology did well too. The return of the initial
public offer (IPO) season was the other market-rousing story, with
UCO Bank and Indian Overseas Bank taking Maruti's cue. All in all,
a month of exhilarating highs.
Schemes And Boards
Among diversified funds, August's performance
chart is topped by HDFC Top 200-growth, which left its portfolio
virtually unchanged with a heavy bet on oil stocks, notably ONGC
and HPCL. Taurus Starshare is a surprise second. DSP ml Opportunities
Fund, ranked fourth, took the right call on technology, oil and
bank scrips.
Among sector-specific funds, the average return
was 11.77 per cent. UTI Growth Sector Fund-Petro was August's top
performer, thanks to its oil sector exposure, followed by Tata Life
Sciences, with its 60 per cent exposure to pharmaceuticals and chemicals.
Another oil-focused fund, JM Basic, ranks third. By August-end,
however, the oil supremacy was being challenged by tech and pharma
stocks.
The tax-saving category's average return was
13.82 per cent. Index funds have done rather well. While equity
funds hogged all the attention in August, the performance of income
funds is also worth noting. The big boost came from the RBI's REPO
rate cut announcement on August 23, 2003. I-Bex, the benchmark for
the gilt market, rose 2.64 per cent over August. The NAVs of income
funds have also risen in sync.
Income fund managers have another reason for
cheer. The RBI announcement spurred some banks to lower deposit
rates by 25 basis points, which has made income funds even more
attractive for risk-averse investors.
Gilt funds with higher average maturity periods
performed the best. Franklin India Gilt Investment plan, with an
average maturity of 12 years, ended August at the top-with returns
of 2.90 per cent, followed by Templeton GSF, Tata GSF, Tata Gilt
HIF and JM G-sec regular plan. Most of these funds saw appreciation
in the range of 1.5-2.5 per cent. For risk-averse funds, that's
darned good.
Wave Check
August may well have been an amazing month
for the BSE, but there's peril in extrapolating the market's performance
month after month, even if there's little evidence to negate the
month's causes for bullishness. September, most likely, will end
as a month of stock-taking. Besides, signs that it will not be happy
surfing all the way are already apparent. The privatisation of oil
PSUs has already suffered something of a hard knock, with the Supreme
Court insisting on parliamentary approval before the sell-offs can
go ahead.
|
