Chris Wood: India The Best Long-Term Equity Market

Chris Wood, the Global Head of Equity Strategy at Jefferies, has declared that India is the best long-term equity market globally.

Speaking with CNBC TV18, Wood emphasized that the ongoing bull run in India’s stock market is “nowhere near ending.”

He attributes this to India’s robust domestic demand and evolving equity culture, which position the country favorably among major markets in Asia.

A Long-Term Perspective says Chris Wood:

“I’ve taken this view since the start of the century that India is the best long-term equity market in the world,” Wood stated. “Clearly, the US has done fantastically well; but in the emerging markets — Asian context — India remains the great domestic demand story.”

Growing Equity Culture:

Wood praised the growing retail interest in stocks and the robust domestic flows in India. “You (India) have this emerging equity culture, and the dynamism of the local asset management industry and growing retail participation.

Fundamentally it is extremely healthy that the Indian market is driven by domestic flows and not what the foreigners are doing,” he noted.

Market Resilience Post-Election:

Pointing to the resilience of the Indian market following the Lok Sabha election results, Wood said, “Everybody in the market is staggered by the resilience of the market following the surprise election results.

I’m staggered that the market only corrected one day. I think the domestic fund managers and stockbrokers – a lot of them sold stocks – on that day and the retail bought it off them. So it’s a very unusual set of circumstances.”

Despite his optimism, Chris Wood cautioned about potential risks, particularly an earnings growth disappointment. “One of the risks for the market is earnings growth disappointment,” he warned.