Trump Proof Stocks — Time To Take Cover In Banks, Cement, Real Estate And Power?

Trump Proof Stocks: US President Donald Trump's tariff threat of 25% on India, along with undefined penalties for buying Russian oil, has roiled domestic markets. The tariffs are set to kick in from Thursday, Aug. 7.

As per analysts, tariffs will impact the earnings of Indian companies part of the MSCI index by 5%. Moreover, many experts have projected up to 50-basis-point hit to India's GDP growth. The tariff rate on India is higher than its Asian peers like Vietnam (20%), Indonesia (19%), and Japan (15%).

Multiple sectors such as auto, chemicals, textiles and footwear, oil and gas (owing to ban on Russian crude), new energy, seafood will get impacted. Companies in these sectors have a sizable stake in the US market.

On the other hand, financials like banks, NBFCs and insurance, cement, consumption, hospital, real estate, telecom and power will be the least impacted by US tariffs. These sectors are more domestically-focused and therefore less exposed to tariff shocks.

The benchmark Nifty 50 has fallen over 3% in the last one month in the backdrop of Trump's tariff announcements.

• Banks – HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank.

• NBFCs – Bajaj Finance, Shriram Finance, Chola Finance.

• Insurance – LIC, HDFC Life, SBI Life, ICICI Prudential Life, ICICI Lombard GIC.

• Cement – Ambuja Cement, UltraTech Cement, Shree Cement, Dalmia Bharat.

• Consumption – Eternal, Trent, Titan, United Spirits, Page Industries.

• Hospital – Apollo Hospital, Fortis Healthcare, Max Healthcare.

• Real Estate – DLF, Lodha, Phoenix Mills, Godrej Properties.

• Telecom – Bharti Airtel, Bharti Hexacom, Indus Towers.

• Power – Adani Power, Adani Energy Solutions, Power Grid Corp, NTPC.

• Auto – Ashok Leyland, Hero MotoCorp, Eicher Motors, Escorts Kubota.

• Travel & Tourism – Indian Hotels, Lemon Tree Hotels, IRCTC.

In an interview to NDTV Profit, Axis Bank Chief Economist Neelkanth Mishra said India needs to raise domestic demand. "We have to unlock supply-side restrains on real estate, good quality housing adds to productivity, constructions create jobs and demand for materials. That then creates a multiplier," he said.

Indian exporters have urged the government to extend fiscal and policy support to help mitigate the adverse impact of the steep 25% US tariffs, even as Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal assured them that India will not yield to pressure in the ongoing trade negotiations with Washington.

At interactions with industry leaders last weekend, Goyal said the government was actively engaging with the US, but added that all negotiations would be conducted firmly, without compromising on "core national interests."

A US trade team is set to visit New Delhi later this month for further negotiations.