Gold ETFs recorded a net inflow of Rs 291.91 crore in May 2025, marking an improvement from the marginal outflow of Rs 5.82 crore in April, according to the AMFI data.

“Flows into the category had remained muted over the past two months, following modest outflows in March as well. The renewed traction in May signals a gradual return of investor interest, likely driven by resilient gold prices and sustained global uncertainties that reinforce gold’s appeal as a strategic hedge,” said Nehal Meshram, Senior Analyst–Manager Research, Morningstar Investment Research India.

The uptick also shows that investors are regaining confidence in gold, as it continues to offer stability amid mixed signals from equity and bond markets.

Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) inflows reached an all-time high of Rs 26,688 crore in May, from Rs 26,632 crore in April, according to data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) on Tuesday.

The highest-ever inflow of SIP shows that people are investing in mutual funds from a long-term perspective.

According to the AMFI data, the number of contributing SIP accounts increased to 8.56 crore in May, from 8.38 crore in the previous month.

"Investor preferences are evolving. There’s a clear lean toward equity and hybrid funds, driven by long-term growth outlooks and a cautious stance on debt. Retail participation is also surging. The mutual fund revolution is becoming mainstream," said Narender Singh, smallcase Manager and Founder of Growth Investing.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has transformed into an emerging defence exporter, strengthening national security and becoming a trusted partner in global peace.

“India’s defence sector has undergone a major transformation in the last decade. India's defence exports have grown by over 1,100% in the last decade from ₹1,941 crore in 2014 to an all-time high of ₹23,662 crore in 2024. The country now exports military hardware to over 100 countries,” the Finance Minister said in a statement on X.

She underscored that 75 per cent of the defence capital acquisition budget has been earmarked for domestic production in the financial year 2025-26.

The Finance Minister further pointed out that over 5,000 items have been added to the defence indigenisation lists as part of the government’s Aatmanirbharta campaign.

Indian corporates are projected to double their capital spending to $800 billion-$850 billion over the next five years, which will be largely financed by operating cash flows and facilitated by ample domestic funding options, said an S&P Global Ratings report on Tuesday.

Barring execution mistakes or negative macro changes, these investments should boost business scale without driving up leverage, the report noted.

“Corporate India is chasing growth opportunities. In our view, Indian companies are well positioned for a growth run. Balance sheets are the leanest they've been in years. Companies are investing to meet demand underpinned by favourable government policies and a positive economic outlook,” according to the credit rating agency.

Successful execution of plans would enlarge their operational scale, providing lasting cost benefits and business efficiencies.

The RBI monetary policy committee's (MPC) decision to go for a relatively mammoth cut, while changing the stance to neutral, should not be confused with a pause on future rate cuts trajectory in the medium term, but rather a semblance of adopting flexible manoeuvrability on part of a conscious regulator to diligently perform a new troika, a State Bank of India (SBI) Research report said on Tuesday.

The Central Bank aims to manage the yield curve and ensure adequate liquidity in the ecosystem, while renewing the pledge to keep growth sacrosanct, mindful of inflationary concerns and checkmating any bubbles formation, said Dr. Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Advisor, SBI.

“The current focus of RBI is to support the momentum in capital formation for more durable growth,” Dr Ghosh mentioned.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said he held insightful conversations with leading business leaders in Switzerland on exciting opportunities, partnerships, and new avenues for trade and investment between both the nations.

In a post on social media platform X, the minister said he spent an engaging evening with Indian business delegates.

“Held insightful conversations on exciting opportunities, partnerships, and new avenues for trade and investment between India and Switzerland, emerging from the India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement,” he noted.

Goyal on Monday commenced his official visit to Switzerland as part of a five-day tour during which, he will also visit Sweden to further strengthen trade ties.

The domestic benchmark indices extended their winning streak to the fifth consecutive session on Tuesday, opening with some moderate gains. However they trimmed early wins to trade a tad lower.

At 9.17 am, Sensex was up 28.49 points or 0.03 percent at 82,473.70, and the Nifty was up 21.15 points or 0.08 per cent at 25,124.35.

On the sectoral front, technology, metals and media stocks rallied sharply. The banking stocks saw mild pressure amid profit booking in trade.

The smallcap and midcap indices gained up to half a per cent, reflecting broad-based buying across the markets.

According to Akshay Chinchalkar, Head of Research, Axis Securities, Yesterday was an upside follow-through on Friday's advance for the Nifty.

Amid all the tariff uncertainty, India’s macros remain on a strong foothold, an HSBC Mutual Fund report said on Monday, adding that it remains constructive on Indian equities supported by the more robust medium-term growth outlook.

Due to the tariff war and global outlook, demand for safe-haven assets has led to capital outflows and weighed on emerging market (EM) currencies, including India.

"India’s exposure to the US, its trade diplomacy, and the RBI’s steady hand and its policy approach have put India on the leaderboard amid the tariff concerns that have eclipsed business and growth outlook, globally," said the outlook report.

India’s cooling inflation has provided the RBI MPC to focus on supporting growth by way of front-loaded policy easing. The MPC’s shift to a neutral stance implies that the scope for future cuts might be limited and also that it will remain data-dependent.

The Indian stock markets closed in the green on the first trading day of the week, as Bank Nifty hit a new all-time high of 57,000 on Monday, reflecting strong sentiment and momentum in the banking sector.

The Sensex ended 256.22 points or 0.31 per cent up at 82,445.21 and Nifty closed 100.15 points or 0.40 percent up at 25,103.20.

Midcap and smallcap stocks saw a rise compared to largecaps. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was up 664.65 points or 1.13 per cent at 59,674.95 and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index was up 290.95 points or 1.57 per cent at 18,873.40.

On a sectoral basis, auto, IT, PSU banks, financial services, pharma, metal and media indices closed in the green. Only the Nifty Realty index closed in the red.

Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, Power Grid, IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC, TCS and Tata Motors were the top gainers in the Sensex pack. while Eternal (Zomato), ICICI Bank, Titan, M&M and Tata Steel were the top losers.

An SBI Mutual Fund report on Monday changed the Indian equities' outlook to neutral from an underweight stance in 2024, as the domestic benchmark indices continue to perform well despite global uncertainties.

From a contrarian viewpoint, this shift to neutral from underweight equities represents a healthier market outlook and better long-term entry points for investors, "though we are not yet ready to recommend overweight positions", said the SBI ‘Market Outlook’ report.

The Indian equities gained in May despite tariff uncertainties. Nifty and Sensex increased 1.7 per cent and 1.5 per cent (on-month), respectively. FPIs turned net buyers even as overall market breadth weakened.

The Q4 FY25 corporate earnings scorecard was modest (single-digit profit growth), but largely in line with expectations, which has helped to arrest incremental earnings, downgrades in May, according to the report.