Moneycontrol Pro Panorama | Kabul has fallen. What next for investors?

People leaving Kabul as Taliban reaches the capital city. (Image: AFP)

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The Panorama newsletter is sent to Moneycontrol Pro subscribers on market days. It offers easy access to stories published on Moneycontrol Pro and gives a little extra by setting out a context or an event or trend that investors should keep track of.

The Taliban has captured Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan. The speed of the militant group’s takeover of the country has surprised many.

Many have criticised the US for withdrawing from the country with nothing to show – Afghanistan doesn’t have a functional state, let alone one that can be called a liberal democracy. Unlike 25 years ago, the Taliban will rule with full recognition from many countries including China, Russia and Iran.

For India, there are wide ranging implications. It is in a disadvantageous position, argues Moneycontrol columnist Gulshan Sachdeva here. On the economic front, there could be a shift towards China’s belt and road initiative away from the US New Silk Road strategy. Then, given the Taliban’s connections with terror groups, there are national security implications which could have a rub-off effect on the economies and markets as well.

“India will have to rework its engagement strategy in Afghanistan. This will not be easy, but New Delhi does not have any option,” writes Sachdeva.

While Afghanistan leads the news cycle over the weekend, there were other events too with implications for investors.

One, the launch of Ola’s electric scooters at a starting price of Rs 99,999. The company is building the largest factory in the world that will make 10 million electric scooters a year, about 15 percent of global capacity. We analyse the implications of the green scooter revolution here.

Two, on Friday, the Prime Minister launched the vehicle scrappage policy. It will be implemented from April 2023 for heavy commercial vehicles, and June 2024 for private vehicles. It is supposed to give a boost to the automotive and metal industries, but the road ahead is bumpy. Read more.

Our research team has also written the following notes full of investment insights:

Why Mas Financial is a great long-term buy now

Aurobindo Pharma: Value proposition intact, but consolidation can take longer

Hero MotoCorp numbers weak; valuation reasonable

Ashok Leyland – A pure play on CV recovery in India

Tata Steel: Well-balancing capex and deleveraging

Mrs Bectors Food Specialities: Will the company outpace industry growth?

Indraprastha Gas: Weak quarter, but key beneficiary of recovery theme
What else are we reading today?
Monsoon Watch 2021 | Rains lose steam, but decent progress in kharif crop sowing

The Eastern Window | Why China’s action against tech firms would be counterproductive

Can world trade duck China port punch?

How the US tech giants could fall (Republished from the FT)

Picks from our Technical Analysts: Ambuja Cements, Tata Steel, Tata Steel and HDFC Bank (These are published every trading day before markets open and can be read on the app)

Ravi Krishnan

Moneycontrol Pro