📰India Makes it Easier to Buy Sovereign Bonds

Good afternoon, 

Welcome to the best way to stay up-to-date on India’s financial markets. Here’s what’s in today’s newsletter:

• SEBI relaxes some rules for global funds investing in Indian government bonds,

• DLF's $1.3B Privana North selling out in a week signals deeper structural shifts in India’s real estate market,

• and Adani Group launches 500,000-ton-per-year Kutch Copper smelter in Gujarat.

Then, we close with Gupshup, a round-up of the most important headlines.

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—Shreyas, [email protected]

Market Update.

SEBI Relaxes Rules for Global Funds Investing in Sovereign Bonds.

SEBI has eased rules for foreign funds investing in government securities to boost participation in the domestic bond market. The move comes alongside numerous policy changes that liberalize access for international investors to Indian sovereign debt, which was initiated by its inclusion in the JPMorgan EM debt index a year ago.

SEBI announced that new and existing global funds investing solely in Indian government securities under the Fully Accessible Route will no longer be required to disclose investor group details. Additionally, these funds will now be subject to less frequent know-your-customer reviews, bringing them in line with RBI norms. The measures aim to address long-standing concerns from global investors over delays in registration and documentation, which have hampered foreign fund participation.

SEBI also clarified that non-resident Indians, overseas citizens of India, and resident individuals will now be permitted to invest in global funds holding Indian sovereign bonds without any restrictions.

These reforms follow steady foreign interest in Indian debt markets since the inclusion of Indian bonds in global indexes, with inflows projected to rise.

At its latest board meeting, SEBI approved several regulatory changes, including simplified delisting norms for select state-owned enterprises and permission for certain Alternative Investment Funds to offer co-investment products. It also revised capital requirements for merchant bankers and allowed them to offer fee-based services outside SEBI’s regulatory scope.

The regulatory adjustments are expected to streamline access for global investors and deepen India’s capital markets.

DLF’s Luxury Real Estate Sellout Reflects India’s Shifting Housing Market Dynamics.

The rapid sellout of DLF's $1.3 billion (₹112.4 billion) Privana North project in just one week is less a one-off success than a signal of larger structural shifts reshaping India’s real estate market. As the broader residential sector sees uneven recovery, luxury housing is emerging as a surprising outperformer, driven by a confluence of macroeconomic trends, rising global interest, and shifting investor priorities.

Located in Gurugram, the DLF project attracted both domestic and global buyers, with nearly a third of purchases coming from non-resident Indians in the U.S., the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. These buyers increasingly view Indian luxury real estate as a stable, appreciating asset amid global uncertainty and higher interest rates in Western markets. At the same time, India’s rising affluent class is fueling demand for spacious, high-end homes, even as mid-range and affordable segments lag.

Data from CBRE shows a 28 percent jump in luxury home sales across India’s top seven cities in Q1 2025, while total home sales in key urban markets declined by 8 percent, according to PropEquity. This divergence underscores a growing wealth divide in real estate demand.

Developers are taking note. While DLF’s record-setting sale made headlines, rivals like Godrej Properties and the Trump Organization are racing to launch similar high-rise luxury projects in the Delhi-NCR region. With urban infrastructure improving and capital continuing to flow into top-end residential developments, India’s housing market is entering a new phase where properties are not just defined by volume, but by value and buyer profile.

Adani’s New Copper Smelter Highlights Global Supply Strains and India’s Industrial Push.

India’s copper sector took a significant step forward this week with the long-awaited start of Adani Group’s 500,000-ton-per-year Kutch Copper smelter in Gujarat. While the launch marks progress in India's ambition to reduce dependence on imported refined copper, it also underscores mounting challenges in the global copper supply chain and shifting industrial dynamics.

The smelter, originally scheduled to open in 2024, faced repeated delays due to a lack of feedstock. It now begins operations amid a deepening global concentrate shortage. According to CRU Group, the gap between smelter demand and mine supply will hit a decade-high of 1.2 million tons this year. New integrated mines in Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Congo are hoarding concentrates for in-house processing, leaving independent smelters, like Adani’s, scrambling for raw material on the open market.

This shortage has triggered a collapse in treatment charges and squeezed margins across the copper processing industry, even as long-term demand remains strong, fueled by the global energy transition and expanding infrastructure in developing economies. India, a major copper consumer, has seen its domestic output decline since the 2018 shutdown of Vedanta’s Tuticorin plant, increasing reliance on imports.

The Kutch smelter represents more than just an industrial milestone for Adani; it’s part of a broader push by India to strengthen self-reliance in critical materials. Yet, as global competition intensifies and supply bottlenecks grow, scaling up domestic production will not be easy.

In the longer term, projects like Kutch Copper are central to India’s industrial policy. But their success will depend on navigating volatile commodity markets and securing access to global ore supplies. This is a challenge increasingly defined by geopolitical and commercial competition.

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Gupshup.

Macro

• India’s Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will visit the UK on June 18 to review progress on the recently signed $57 billion (₹4.9 trillion) trade deal. During his two-day trip, he will meet top UK officials and business leaders, aiming to strengthen bilateral ties and set the stage for broader EU and US trade negotiations.

• India’s massive free food program is struggling due to the government’s reliance on outdated 2011 census data, which skews welfare distribution and excludes millions. With the next census delayed until at least 2027, gaps in demographic information are undermining policy decisions, market forecasting, and social safety nets across the country.

Equities

• Air India has cut international widebody flights by 15 percent through mid-July following last week's deadly Boeing 787 crash and rising Middle East tensions. The airline is conducting safety inspections across its fleet while investigators probe the cause of flight AI171’s fatal plunge, the worst aviation disaster in over a decade.

• Standard Chartered is under scrutiny from the RBI over lapses in its derivatives sales and risk controls. The RBI's ongoing review focuses on the sale of complex products to small businesses, reserve management, and accounting practices, though no formal action has been taken yet.

• India’s small-cap stocks are set to outperform larger peers for a second straight month, buoyed by improved earnings and investor optimism. Strong domestic demand, falling borrowing costs, and supportive RBI measures are driving gains in the Nifty Smallcap 250 Index, which has risen about 2 percent in June versus 0.4 percent for the Nifty 50.

• India’s aviation regulator found no major safety issues with Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet after inspections triggered by a deadly crash last week. While the investigation into the cause continues, the DGCA urged the airline to tighten maintenance and operations coordination amid lingering concerns over recent technical lapses.

• Dassault Aviation and Reliance Infrastructure will jointly manufacture Falcon 2000 business jets in India, with deliveries expected by 2028. The move marks Dassault's first production of the jet outside France and supports India’s push to localize defense manufacturing and boost exports.

• Ather Energy plans to double its retail network in India to 700 centers by fiscal 2026, focusing on expanding in northern, eastern, and western regions. The move follows strong demand for its family-friendly Rizta scooter, now accounting for nearly 60 percent of sales.

Alts

• HSBC is considering requiring all employees to work from the office at least three days a week, moving to tighten post-pandemic flexibility. The plan comes as the bank faces a potential 7,700-desk shortage at its upcoming London headquarters and follows a wider industry trend toward in-office mandates.

• Indian refiners have canceled 65,000 tons of crude palm oil imports for July–September after a sharp rise in Malaysian prices. The cancellations reflect market volatility and improved profit margins from backing out of contracts rather than processing and selling at home.

Policy

• India is a perpetrator of foreign interference in Canada, according to a new intelligence report released just a day after both nations pledged to reset diplomatic ties at the G7 summit. While China remains the top counter-intelligence threat, the report highlights India’s involvement in transnational repression, reviving tensions tied to the 2023 killing of a Sikh separatist leader.

• India’s Aeronautical Development Agency has invited interest in developing the country’s fifth-generation stealth fighter jet, the AMCA, according to a newly posted document. The project is critical to rebuilding the Indian Air Force’s depleted fleet amid rising pressure from China’s rapidly growing air capabilities.

See you Thursday.

Written by Eshaan Chanda & Yash Tibrewal. Edited by Shreyas Sinha.

Disclaimer: This is not financial advice or recommendation for any investment. The Content is for informational purposes only, you should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.