#32 - WK19
India's Political Map Redrawn
The Indian 2026 Assembly Elections have delivered one of the most sweeping political upheavals in Indian democratic history. Across five states West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry the verdicts brought dramatic regime changes in three states while reinforcing incumbents in two. The BJP emerged as the biggest gainer overall, winning a historic first government in West Bengal and retaining Assam, while the Congress-led UDF broke the Left’s decade-long grip on Kerala, and actor-turned-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) shook the very foundation of Dravidian politics in Tamil Nadu.
West Bengal witnessed its biggest political earthquake in a generation, as the BJP stormed to a landslide victory winning 207 seats far beyond the majority mark of 148, ending Mamata Banerjee’s 15-year reign over the state. In a particularly symbolic blow, Mamata Banerjee herself lost her Bhabanipur stronghold to BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari by a margin of over 15,000 votes. Yesterday, on May 9, chosen deliberately to coincide with the birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, Suvendu Adhikari was sworn in as West Bengal’s first-ever BJP Chief Minister, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah attending the historic ceremony at Kolkata’s legendary Maidan.
Tamil Nadu delivered a stunning political debut for actor Thalapathy Vijay’s TVK, which emerged as the single largest party with 108 seats, a feat no new party has achieved in the state’s modern history. However, Vijay finds himself in a precarious position, as 108 seats still falls 10 seats short of the 118-seat majority mark required to form the government. The situation has since descended into a complex political deadlock: Vijay submitted signatures of only 116 MLAs to the Governor still below the required threshold, while arch-rivals DMK and AIADMK are reportedly in talks to form an unlikely alliance to keep TVK out of power, and the key ally VCK continues to delay its formal support. As of yesterday, the Governor has not confirmed that Vijay commands the necessary majority, leaving Tamil Nadu’s next government still hanging in the balance.
Stock Market
Indian markets closed the week on a quiet but positive note, with the Sensex gaining around 415 points from its previous week’s close of 76,913. The mood on Dalal Street was driven by two key themes, one political, one financial. The decisive BJP victory in West Bengal elections removed a major overhang of political uncertainty, and investors welcomed the clear mandate with cautious optimism. On the earnings front, Auto stocks were the star performers, rising over 5% on the back of strong monthly sales numbers, while consumer durables also held steady.
The German DAX eked out a slim weekly gain of about 0.19%, closing at 24,338 points, a resilient performance given the turbulent macro backdrop Europe faced this week. The week started promisingly, with the DAX rallying strongly on Tuesday and Wednesday as optimism around a potential Iran peace deal briefly lifted sentiment across global markets. German blue-chip heavyweight Henkel provided a bright spot, gaining after a strong Q1 earnings beat, but it wasn’t enough to push the index past the psychologically important 25,000-point level.
Germany News Roundup
Rheinmetall Hits New Low on JP Morgan Downgrade, triggering a strong technical sell signal and potential further declines after the defense stock fell below key support levels at a 52-week low. - wallstreet-online.de
Porsche to Close Battery Cell Subsidiary Cellforce, shifting focus to core business and discontinuing Cellforce, eBike unit, and software subsidiary affecting over 400 employees amid market changes and strategy shift. - electrive.net
Wacker Chemie Cuts 1,300 Burghausen Jobs, as part of a €300 million cost-saving plan, avoiding layoffs through voluntary programs, reducing workforce mainly at its largest global site amid ongoing industry slump. - BR24
VW Subsidiary IAV Selling Berlin Site, plans to largely abandon its main location by 2027, causing union concerns over potential closures including the Stollberg site amid auto industry crisis. - Freie Presse
DeepL Cuts Quarter of Workforce, to restructure amidst growing competition in AI translation technology, impacting job security and operational scale at the Cologne-based company. - Golem
Germany Commits €5 Billion to Industry Decarbonization, supporting cleaner technologies in steel, cement, and chemical sectors to meet EU climate goals and reduce heavy industry emissions by 50% within four years. - Impakter
Berlin Empowers Indian Startups as Gateway to Europe, offering workspace, business support, and innovation collaboration through INDIA DESK Germany to facilitate market entry and growth for Indian firms in Germany and Europe. - The European
Thyssenkrupp Halts Indian Stake Sale Talks, due to improved EU steel policies, restructuring progress, and evolving market conditions, continuing steel division restructuring independently for profitability and autonomy. - Marketscreener
India News Roundup
India's Dual Citizenship Reluctance Persists, over two million have renounced Indian citizenship since 2011, with the government maintaining strict OCI card rules, reflecting enduring concerns over loyalty and control of citizenship definitions. - The Wire
India Advances Semiconductor Industry with Major Projects, boosting investments and employment across Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and other states through government incentives, SEZ reforms, and a robust ecosystem to become a global semiconductor hub. - India Briefing
Claude Launches AI Agents for Financial Services, offering ready-to-run templates that automate pitchbooks, KYC screening, month-end closing, and integrate seamlessly with Microsoft 365 to boost efficiency in financial workflows. - Anthropic
Finance Ministry Links Procurement to Labour Compliance, to enhance protections for contract workers by enforcing timely wage payments and social security contributions in government contracts, with penalties for violations including up to three-year debarment. - Economic Times
WhatsApp Launches Business AI for Indian SMEs, offering AI-driven customer support in multiple Indian languages to automate queries, book appointments, and boost sales within the WhatsApp Business app. - Medianews4u
Pixxel, Sarvam Launch India's Orbital AI Satellite, advancing in-orbit AI processing with data center-class GPUs and India's sovereign AI platform for real-time environmental and infrastructure insights by 2026. - Telecom Review Asia
Air India to Introduce Lite Fares Option, which may exclude meals on domestic and short international flights while offering lounge access for business flyers to enhance travel flexibility and affordability. - MSN
Watchlist
Equity Mutual Funds - India
Every month, Value Research - India’s most trusted independent fund research platform puts every mutual fund scheme through a rigorous performance test. No shortcuts, no grade curves. This month, five equity funds earned a step-up from 3 stars to 4 stars, purely on the back of consistent outperformance against their benchmarks and peers. The ratings are built on a smart formula: each fund gets a Return Score and a Risk Score, the risk is subtracted from the returns, and the result is weighted across three-year and five-year periods, so a fund can’t just get lucky in one quarter and claim a top rating.
Here is a quick look at the three funds out of five that made the cut this month:
ICICI Prudential Midcap Fund — Ranked #1 in 3-year mid-cap returns with a stellar 25% one-year return, though mid-cap risk remains real with higher volatility
Aditya Birla Sun Life Flexi Cap Fund — Delivered 8.3% in the past year vs. its benchmark’s 4.3%, with slightly lower volatility than peers
Mahindra Manulife Multi Cap Fund — A rapid climber, jumping from 2 stars to 3 stars in November 2025, and now earning 4 stars, with 11.4% one-year returns vs. the benchmark’s 5.4%
A star upgrade is a signal worth noting, but it is only the starting point. Whether any of these funds fit your portfolio depends on your goals, risk appetite, and investment horizon. As always, this is not investment advice, just a heads-up on what the market’s sharpest analysts are saying.
👉 Read the full analysis on Value Research:
5 Equity Funds Upgraded to 4 Stars This Month
Until Next Sunday…
Conclusion
As we wrap up this edition, the week ahead promises to be an eventful one on both sides of the world.
In Germany, the week brings the Christi Himmelfahrt (Ascension Day) public holiday on Thursday, May 15, a long weekend for many in Germany, which traditionally sees consumer spending pick up and retail stocks getting a brief seasonal boost.
We will be back next Sunday with fresh insights, opportunities, and updates curated just for you.
See you next Sunday,
Jimit Patel