Survey lauds the importance of capital markets in India's growth story

Capital markets are becoming more prominent in India's growth story, with an expanding share in capital formation and investment landscape on the back of technology, innovation and digitisation, according to the Economic Survey 2023-24 tabled in Parliament on Monday.

Further, Indian markets are resilient to global geo-political and economic shocks, it added.

"Despite heightened geo-political risks, rising interest rates and volatile commodity prices, Indian capital markets have been one of the best performing among emerging markets in FY24," the Economic Survey said.

The BSE benchmark Sensex and National Stock Exchange's Nifty 50 have given stellar returns to investors in the financial year 2023-24.

The Nifty 50 index surged by 26.8 per cent during FY24 against a decline of 8.2 per cent during FY23.

Additionally, 30-share Sensex has soared around 25 per cent in FY24.

Moreover, the uptrend continued in FY25, with the 30-share index on July 3 touching the 80,000 mark in intra-day trading for the first time.

"The exemplary performance of the Indian stock market compared to the world and emerging markets over the years can be primarily attributed to India's resilience to global geo-political and economic shocks, its solid and stable domestic macroeconomic outlook, and the strength of the domestic investor base," said the document tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament.

Apart from India, all the major markets, barring China and Hong Kong, delivered better returns in FY24 than the previous year.

The financial year 2023-24 saw stellar performances from the US, Brazilian and Japanese markets among the global markets.

There was evidence of an AI-led tech stock surge, with the tech-heavy US Nasdaq index rising by 34 per cent in FY24 after delivering heavy losses in FY23.

Further, significant interest from domestic and global investors in the Indian stock market as an attractive investment destination and sustained IPO (initial public offering) activity placed the Indian market fifth in the world by market capitalisation in FY24.

India's market capitalisation to GDP ratio has improved significantly over the last five years to 124 per cent in FY24 compared to 77 per cent in FY19, far higher than that of other emerging market economies like China and Brazil.

The survey said it is imperative to strike a note of caution as market capitalisation to GDP ratio is not necessarily a sign of economic advancement or sophistication.

"Financial assets are claims on real goods and services.

"If equity market claims on the real economy are excessively high, it is a harbinger of market instability rather than market resilience," it added.

Indian capital markets have witnessed a broad-based expansion across various sub-markets, with the country's equity market capitalisation reaching Rs 415 lakh crore or $5 trillion in May 2024, placing it fifth in the global rankings.

Technological advancements and regulatory measures have fuelled a remarkable surge in retail investor participation in the capital market.

At present, there are over 9.5 crore retail investors and have nearly 10 per cent direct ownership of the market through its almost 2,500 listed companies.

Amid healthy domestic economic performance and a favourable investment climate, primary markets remained robust during FY24, facilitating capital formation of Rs 10.9 lakh crore compared to Rs 9.3 lakh crore in FY23.

Of the total fund mobilisation in FY24, 78.8 per cent was raised through debt issuances.

Fund mobilisation through all three modes -- equity, debt, and hybrid -- soared by 24.9 per cent, 12.1 per cent and 513.6 per cent, respectively, in FY24 compared to the previous year.

Within the equity segment, funds were raised through the IPO, qualified institutional placements (QIPs) and rights issues.

The number of IPOs rose 66 per cent in FY24 to 272 from 164 in the previous financial year, while the amount grew by 24 per cent to Rs 67,995 crore in FY24 from Rs 54,773 crore in FY23.

Apart from the main-bourse, SME platforms at the exchanges witnessed heightened activities during FY24 as the number of IPO or FPOs (follow-on public offers) rose to 196 in FY24 from 125 in the preceding fiscal.

The fundraising by SMEs increased to Rs 6,095 crore in FY24 from Rs 2,333 crore in FY23.

Resource mobilisation through rights issues more than doubled to Rs 15,110 crore during FY24 against Rs 6,751 crore in the previous year.

Additionally, the survey said, "The corporate debt market in India is going from strength to strength."

In FY24, the value of corporate bond issuances increased to Rs 8.6 lakh crore from Rs 7.6 lakh crore during the previous financial year.

With the debt category, the number of corporate bonds public issues in FY24 was the highest for any financial year so far, with the amount raised at a four-year high of Rs 19,167 crore.

Moreover, private placements remained the preferred channel for corporates, accounting for 97.8 per cent of total resources mobilised through the bond market.

The survey attributed increasing investor demand and the rise in the cost of borrowing from banks as key factors that made this market more attractive for corporate for funding requirements.