Veteran investor Nilesh Shah says its ‘namumkin’ to grasp President ‘Don’ and his tariff tango

“The rules and compliance burdens are stifling entrepreneurs. If we don’t address this, we won’t be able to seize the growth opportunity created by the global shift away from China," he said.

Veteran investor and Kotak AMC’s Nilesh Shah leaned on Bollywood to capture US President Trump's social media salvos and shifting tariff positions, making light of the fact that it has been increasingly tough to predict what’s on his mind, and what this tariff war means for India.

“Don ko samjhna mushkil hi nahin, namumkin hai” — meaning, "It's not just difficult to understand Don, it's impossible," said Shah, speaking at the Mirae Asset Capital Markets' Invest India Global Conference in Mumbai on May 22.

“Even President Trump doesn't know what he's going to do. How are we going to predict it, " Shah quipped jokingly.

For India, he didn't know what it would mean but said there was a need to present the right picture of India to America, in light of the ongoing trade negotiations. “We have a reasonable government, led by the Prime Minister and Commerce Minister, working to safeguard India’s interests,” Nilesh Shah said. He added the US is currently fixated on its goods trade deficit, not services.

On the domestic economic front, while India may sustain a GDP growth rate of 5–7%, reaching double-digit growth requires significant reforms. “As of today, I don’t see that double-digit growth happening,” Nilesh Shah said, citing compliance hurdles and challenges in ease of business as hurdles.

“The rules and compliance burdens are stifling entrepreneurs. If we don’t address this, we won’t be able to seize the growth opportunity created by the global shift away from China," said Nilesh Shah.

The veteran investor also said it was time for India to reset, and used a cricketing analogy to underscore the need to adjustment growth targets, “Like Sunil Gavaskar taking a fresh stance after every century, we too must not settle at 5, 6, 7 percent. We must aim for double-digit growth, that’s the real magic mantra.”

Investment Mantra

On his long-term investment strategy, Shah noted, “We'll have our ups and downs, but staying invested will eventually give you returns.” He suggested that investors should avoid short-term panic and embrace the long game. Everyone, he noted wants to be like Saurav Ganguly, going for big shots but that’s not how sustainable wealth is built.

Explaining this further, he noted the legendary batsman is often referred to as the “Maharaja of the offside.” Known for his impeccable ability to hit boundaries even when fielders were stacked on the off side, the batsman struggled early in his career because he ignored the on side. His career, he noted, was “very short until he learned to nudge the ball on the on side, take ones and twos, and stay in the game.”

The takeaway, he explained was that you might be strong on your 'offside' but if you ignore your 'onside' your investment journey might be cut short.

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