On 23 July, India announced its first budget under a new coalition government led by Narendra Modi, who became prime minister for the third time albeit with a reduced majority of 293 MPs for his BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party).In the Indian general election held between 19 April to 1 June, 642 million people voted out of a total population of 1.4 billion.WHAT WERE THE KEY POINTS?India's finance minis

With banks still very much the focus of the market's attention, should investors rethink not just their direct exposure to the sector through individual stocks but also their indirect exposure through funds and investment trusts with large weightings in the sector?Shares has examined some of the funds and trusts with the largest reported exposure to financial firms as a proportion of total assets

China's abrupt Covid U-turn has created the best opportunity in years for Asia and emerging market equities to outperform developed markets on a sustainable basis. It is likely to be one of the select few major economies where growth could accelerate in 2023 as China, where equity market valuations remain undemanding, enjoys a reopening recovery like much of the rest of the world witnessed in 2022

In the first of a two-part series Shares talks to a range of fund managers about the stocks they like for 2022. Covering both UK and overseas markets, the experts offer a range of ideas spanning technology and banking to leisure and automotive sectors.The second part of the series (to be published on 23 December) will reveal a selection of fund managers' biggest disappointments for 2021 and why th

Yesterday saw the latest FTSE Russell quarterly index review, resulting in significant changes to the composition of both the FTSE 100 large-cap index and the FTSE 250 mid-cap index.Four stocks left the FTSE 100 - cruise ship operator Carnival (CCL), utility group Centrica (CNA), low-cost airline EasyJet (EZJ) and aerospace firm Meggitt (MGGT).Travel related stocks bore the brunt of the sell-off i

Within the global investment universe, the Indian growth story is among the most exciting. An Asian powerhouse home to over 1.3bn people, a population size second only to China, India boasts highly favourable demographics with an average age of 29, implying an enormous potential market for growth for years to come.Recent tax changes could help renew investors' faith in India and in this article we

Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi has slashed corporate tax rates in a bid to boost the faltering economy in a move triggering euphoria in the Indian equity markets.Shares in the UK stock market's quartet of India-focused investment trusts all joined in the rally, being Aberdeen New India (ANII), Ashoka India Equity (AIE), India Capital Growth Fund (IGC) and JPMorgan Indian (JII).Modi's $20bn tax

We are big believers that investment trusts can be useful vehicles for investors as many have a solid long-term track record and pay a steady stream of growing dividends.In this article we take a look at some of the investment trusts highlighted as Great Ideas in Shares over the past year and how they've performed.12% IN 11 MONTHSIt may be the world's oldest investment fund but F&C Investment Trus

It wasn't just the weather that was hot in July 2018 - according to data from Winterflood it was also the strongest month for investment trust fundraising so far in 2018 with nearly £1bn raised across the sector.More than half of this amount related to new investment trusts joining the stock market with the remainder coming from existing investment trusts raising more money.The latter includes Gr

A wide 15.5% discount to net asset value (NAV) on the JPMorgan Indian Investment Trust (JII) should interest portfolio builders looking for exposure to one of the globe's biggest, most exciting long-term growth markets.While performance in the six months to 31 March disappointed, JPMorgan Indian's NAV has in fact outperformed the MSCI India Index benchmark in six of the past eight financial years

Asian powerhouse India's macroeconomic health is the strongest it has been in a decade. The nation could be both a fantastic top down and bottom up investment story. Growth is accelerating driven by demographics and urbanisation, while corporate quality is high with many world class management teams treating minority shareholders properly. Furthermore, inflation is falling and the government remai

Several fund managers and analysts are pointing out opportunities in emerging markets being missed by many investorsDonald Trump's presidential victory sparked worries for emerging markets investors because he had pledged to protect American interests and renegotiate the terms of international trade.A stronger dollar is generally regarded as bad for emerging market countries with large debts denom

Global stock markets finished 2016 in a buoyant mood with the FTSE and the Dow starting the new year at or close to all-time highs. In bull markets it is easy to ignore the potential pitfalls of investing, but the list of macro events that could bring it all crashing down seems to be longer than ever.In Europe there is a real risk that Brexit could help to inspire a far-right win for Marine Le Pen