The market scenario can change completely in just a few months. Till September 2024, the Indian stock market was making new records every day. But since then, the situation has changed. Nifty 50 is down by about 14% from its peak. Similarly, the Nifty Midcap 100 has fallen by more than 18% in the last 6 months, while the Nifty Smallcap 250 index has dived over 22% from its peak touched on December 11 last year.
This stock market mayhem has left a severe impact on mutual fund investor portfolios. Many SIP investors say that their portfolio has shrunk by 20–30%. Especially investors whose money was invested in mutual funds of small and medium-sized companies (smallcap and midcap) have been impacted more. At the same time, investors who had invested in funds of large companies (largecap) and tax-saving ELSS funds suffered slightly less loss.
If we look at the average return generated by various mutual fund categories this year, all of them have given negative returns. Smallcap funds have given (-)22% average returns, followed by midcap funds at (-)15.37% and largecap funds at (-)6.92%.
Also read: Stock Market Crash: Small-cap funds take the biggest hit! Is your investment at risk?
We spoke to some mutual fund investors to understand their portfolio allocations and how their SIPs have performed in recent times.
Amit Sharma, 32, a resident of Delhi, has invested 70% in mutual fund schemes of small and medium companies (smallcap and midcap). The remaining 20% is invested in largecap and ELSS funds, while 10% is invested in debt funds. Due to the recent decline, the value of his portfolio has fallen by about 28%.
Similarly, Neha Arora, 31, an IT professional in Noida, has also invested most of her SIP portfolio in smallcap and midcap funds. She says that her investment has come down by 25% in the last few months.
At the same time, Ajay Verma, 47, a Delhi-based event management professional, saw his portfolio drop by about 15% in the last 6 months. Ajay has invested 70% of his investments in largecap and ELSS funds, while the remaining 30% is in midcap and smallcap.
It is clear from all these cases that the fall in the market has affected every category of investors.
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