Rising interest rates could weigh on valuations of Indian stock markets

Exporters, and low debt, non-capital-intensive businesses should do better

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is playing catch-up after ignoring inflationary trends for long. The out-of-turn rate hike of 40 basis points in May has been followed by a 50 basis point (bps) hike in repo in June. The market was expecting this and even more aggressive measures such as hikes in CRR (Cash Reserve Ratio) and SLR (Statutory Liquidity Ratio).

Hence, G-Sec yields actually fell slightly after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting. The USD-INR rate remains around 77.70/USD. Among other measures announced along with the Monetary Policy, rural cooperative banks are being allowed to double previous exposure