India a buy-and-hold market, US tariffs no threat to growth: Mark Matthews

Mark Matthews of Bank Julius Baer & Co views India as a long-term investment bet and recommends buying on dips.“It’s a good time to buy. Once in a while a market goes down. We are all used to that, and to my mind, it’s still a good story, because it’s got above average economic growth relative to the rest of the world, and that should translate into earnings growth,” he added.

Matthews downplayed the long-term impact of US tariffs, noting that India’s economy is primarily driven by domestic factors rather than trade with the US. While market sentiment may be fragile, he does not see US tariffs as a significant threat to India’s growth.

He believes that Prime Minister Modi and the US administration will reach an agreement, making it an issue of limited concern.Read Here | Ed Yardeni on Trump tariffs, and what lies ahead for markets

However, Matthews sees China emerging as a renewed investment opportunity as investors seek diversification.He points to two key developments that have revived interest in the market: DeepSeek’s breakthrough and BYD’s decision to offer self-driving technology across its vehicle lineup, including budget models like the Seagull.

These advancements highlight China’s ability to produce globally competitive innovations while contributing to deflationary trends.

Unlike India, Matthews notes, China remains attractively priced, with companies like Alibaba—despite strong growth and a substantial cash reserve—trading at relatively low valuations.

“The problem for India, as far as foreign appetite goes, is the bandwidth for emerging markets has basically been taken over by China, and I don’t see that changing,” he added.

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