External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar at the NSE event in Mumbai on Monday. | Photo source: ANI
With markets turning volatile amid fears of an uncertain general election outcome, Union External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday said volatility would reduce with each phase of polls.
“To me it’s very clear where the election is going… people can debate the exact number, and in a democracy they should debate it as well,” he said.
“I am sure that as round by round plays out, the market will become less volatile as markets get a sense of where these numbers are going,” he said while speaking at a function at India’s National Stock Exchange (NSE).
“I am convinced that these numbers will be good for us,” he added.
On Monday, the S&P BSE Sensex witnessed a swing of 997.5 points in both directions in intra-day trade. It recovered dramatically and ended the session up 112 points at 72,776 points at closing.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jaishankar, while speaking at a seminar on Indian capital markets, said: “I have full confidence that we will have not only a sturdy and stable government, but also a government with a stronger majority and therefore with a greater capacity to take decisions that will lead the country to front.”
“Because countries are not moving forward on automatic pilot, we need a leader, a vision and a policy,” he added.
Commenting on the alleged issue of redistribution of wealth among citizens, he asked the question: “What does an investor want? If you tell an investor today that we will investigate their investment and who knows, maybe we will take your investment and give it to someone else [what would happen]”
“The investor wants easier doing business, they want a better skilled and educated talent pool, they want better infrastructure,” he said, adding that none of today’s foreign investors wanted India to return to the pre-1992 era.
Today, he said, the world is looking for more sources of production to reduce risks to the global economy.
“The world does not want one geographical location of production. “The world is looking for more supply chains and more countries to produce something as critical as chips and semiconductors because they control the rest of global production everywhere else,” he said.
The minister said he is observing continued public investment and greater enthusiasm for private investment.
“I think a lot of people are looking forward to June 4… they will see these numbers and it will strengthen their resolve to invest in this economy. I definitely see a lot more foreign investment coming in. Right now everyone is saying: “Let it happen on June 4, then I will call.” This is the situation we find ourselves in,” he added.
Stating that the economies of South Asia, including China, were in turmoil today, he said India was doing well.
“When a stable government comes to power, India will be in a better position to seize this opportunity and there will be a change in the attitude of foreign portfolio investors towards India,” he stressed.
