Are Record IPOs Behind India's Stagnant Secondary Stock Market?

By Dev Chandrasekhar

What? 

India's stock market has spent the better part of two years going sideways. The market for new shares, meanwhile, has rarely been busier. 

In FY26, 219 companies listed on Indian exchanges, raising a record Rs 1.8 lakh crore. In the first nine months of calendar 2026, 84 companies raised about Rs 1.10 lakh crore through mainboard IPOs, according to Prime Database figures.   

September was the busiest month of the year, with a record 34 issues raising Rs 39,380 crore, more than half of it from the National Stock Exchange's own listing. 

April to September was the strongest half-year on record at Rs 94,205 crore, and listing-day gains in those six months averaged 19%, against 7% a year earlier. Through August, institutions bid for IPO shares an average of 76 times over, according to Prime Database.

The largest issue of all closed was Jio Platforms. The telecom and digital arm of Reliance Industries raised Rs 30,213 crore at Rs 1,119 a share, India's biggest IPO. Institutions bid for 67 times the shares set aside for them, while retail investors applied for less than three times their quota.

At listing on Wednesday, the company reached a valuation of almost Rs 13.05 lakh crore or $137 billion, with shares valued at Rs 1,417.50 on the NSE and at Rs 1417.35 on the BSE at closing on Wednesday.

The Nifty meanwhile has fallen about 14% this year.

So how does a market that cannot lift its benchmark index manage to absorb record quantities of new paper? 

Many investors see a contradiction here. But the two facts might be closely linked through cause-and-effect. 

The flat index and the busy IPO calendar are being fed from the same pool of money, and understanding that pool explains both.

Why? 

Every rupee that goes into an IPO is a rupee that did not go into shares already listed. Most of the money raised in these issues comes from offers for sale, 61% of FY26 mainboard IPO proceeds by Grant Thornton Bharat's count, which means existing shareholders such as private equity funds, venture capitalists and promoters are cashing out, rather than the company raising fresh capital. 

Jio Platforms sold only new shares, but Rs 27,500 crore of its proceeds will repay borrowings at its telecom subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm. Whether the shares are new or old, the buyers' money comes from the same pool. 

The IPOs are also only part of the supply. 

Listed companies raised another Rs 2.4 lakh crore in FY26 through preferential allotments, qualified institutional placements and rights issues. The pace has picked up since. In July and August 2026 alone, IPOs, QIPs and promoter offers for sale through the exchanges raised more than Rs 1.11 lakh crore. Add block deals, and the market has had to digest an enormous amount of new stock.

ITC Wants Aashirvaad To Be More Than Atta In Your Kitchen

By Pritha Pahari

What?

ITC Ltd. is expanding Aashirvaad beyond wheat flour into ready-to-cook meals, dairy, spices, fresh foods and frozen products, aiming to double consumer spending on the brand to Rs 20,000 crore in five years.

Launched in May 2002 as a whole-wheat flour brand, Aashirvaad now has more than 200 stock-keeping units (SKUs) across staples, spices, fresh foods and frozen foods, including products such as salt, pulses, spices, ready-to-cook mixes, paneer and frozen snacks.

According to ITC foods division head Hemant Malik, the target will be driven by premium atta and expansion into new kitchen categories. Consumer spending includes taxes and trade margins and is not the company's revenue.

Competition is intensifying, with Tata Sampann reporting 69% growth in Q4 FY26 and AWL Agri Business posting a 22% rise in food and FMCG revenue to Rs 1,726 crore in Q1 FY27. As rivals expand their presence, Aashirvaad is under pressure to grow beyond the core products.

Why?

ITC is seeking growth in higher-value products as it looks to reduce its reliance on cigarettes, which face a sharp rise in tax.

Devangshu Dutta, founder of consultancy Third Eyesight, said ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat products offer better gross margins than staples and can help companies use manufacturing facilities more fully.

Multigrain atta, vermicelli and besan have grown threefold over five years and account for about 16% of Aashirvaad's staples portfolio.

Products such as rava, besan and soya chunks remain closely linked to the brand's established promise of purity.

Ready-to-eat meals are more challenging. Suumit Kapoor, a brand growth consultant, said purity is a raw-material promise, whereas prepared meals must deliver taste, consistency and repeat purchases.

What Next?

The central test is whether Aashirvaad can translate its established reputation in staples into finished meals.

Its Rs 20,000 crore target will depend not only on brand recognition, but also on whether consumers repeatedly buy their newer products for their taste, quality and convenience.

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$137 billion

That’s how much Jio’s market capitalisation rose to after its IPO, equivalent to around Rs 13.05 lakh crore.

It became India’s second-most valuable listed company, behind parent Reliance Industries. The debut also helped the Reliance Group overtake the Tata Group as India’s most valuable conglomerate.

Fast Facts: Jio Platforms shares debuted at Rs 1,358 apiece and closed at Rs 1,417, a 21.36% premium over the IPO price of Rs 1,119.

The IPO was subscribed 22.19 times, attracting bids worth more than Rs seven lakh crore.

Backdrop: The Ambani family attended the bell-ringing ceremony at the National Stock Exchange in Mumbai. Managing director Akash Ambani outlined Jio’s ambitions for the next decade, highlighting artificial intelligence, cloud computing, connected devices and space-based connectivity.

The celebrations extended beyond the stock exchange. An internal invitation seen by Reuters said Reliance was hosting a post-listing event featuring DJ performances, a drone show and a jam session with popular Indian singers, near a helipad at its corporate park outside Mumbai.

Adani Pushes Airlines To Shift Flights

Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) has asked airlines to submit plans by November 3 to temporarily shift more international traffic from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai to Navi Mumbai International Airport, as it pushes ahead with Terminal 1’s redevelopment.

Pivot: At a meeting with the Airline Operators Committee on Wednesday, MIAL said IndiGo, Air India and Akasa Air had already finalised plans covering around 3 million passengers annually. It wants to shift another 2 million passengers to meet its proposed 5-million-passenger target for the summer 2027 season.

Background: The move remains contentious, with airlines having opposed MIAL’s proposed traffic restrictions at Mumbai Airport. MIAL said the temporarily shifted traffic would return once T1’s expansion is completed, arguing that the ageing terminal’s replacement is urgent, citing structural audits by Structwel in 2017 and IIT Bombay in 2024.

The Shift: A Mumbai Airport spokesperson said the airport also shared artistic impressions of the proposed T1 redevelopment, describing them as a passenger-centric vision for a modern, culturally inspired gateway rather than a definitive preview of the final design.

Industrial Growth Slows To 6.7%

India’s industrial output growth slowed to a four-month low of 6.7% in September, down from a revised 7.8% in August, as manufacturing, electricity and mining activity weakened.

By The Numbers: Manufacturing, which accounts for around 76% of the Index of Industrial Production, grew 7.6%, its slowest pace since May. Mining contracted 6.2%, marking its third consecutive monthly decline. Capital goods growth eased to 10.4%, its slowest this financial year, while consumer durables growth nearly halved to 6%, despite the festive season.

Highlight: Electrical equipment, motor vehicles and rubber and plastic products were the top manufacturing contributors. Consumer non-durables returned to growth at 1.4%. Industrial output rose 6.8% during April-September, against 4.4% a year earlier.

Hyundai Eyes 75% SUV Share

Hyundai Motor India on Wednesday reported a 24% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,196.2 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, as rising raw material prices pressured profitability despite record quarterly sales. The company had posted a net profit of Rs 1,572.3 crore in the year-ago period.

Overview: Indian automakers have struggled this year with higher steel and copper prices triggered by the West Asia crisis. Revenue from operations rose to Rs 20,696 crore from Rs 17,461 crore. Expenses climbed 24% to Rs 19,302 crore, led by the cost of materials consumed.

Future: Looking ahead, Hyundai expects SUVs to make up as much as 75% of its domestic passenger vehicle sales over the next 12-18 months, up from 67% in the September quarter. Managing director and CEO Tarun Garg said the share could rise further as more models arrive across price points and powertrains.

Cards Pause Before Festive Surge

Indians swiped less on their credit cards in September, marking the first annual decline in over five years. Spending fell 5.9% year-on-year to Rs 2.04 lakh crore, according to a CareEdge Ratings report.

The fall was largely due to a high base, as September 2025 saw a surge after GST rate cuts and the start of festive online sales, which this year began in October.

Fast Facts: Banks are still issuing cards at a brisk pace, with the card base up 10.5% to 12.53 crore, the fastest pace since November 2024. But spending per card fell 14.8% to Rs 16,305.

Spending per card dropped 14.8% to Rs 16,305, and the average transaction size shrank 23.6% to Rs 3,343, as everyday payments increasingly move to UPI.

The Lead: All eyes are on the festive season. CareEdge expects spending to climb to Rs 2.28-2.38 lakh crore in October, with Diwali keeping November strong.

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All Signs Continue To Point To A Long War In West Asia

On Episode 1019 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Piyush Pandey, Senior Vice President, Institutional Equity Research (Lead Analyst) - IT, Telecom, Internet and Power at Centrum India as well as Masaharu Morita, Founder and Program Director at NURA - AI Health Screening Centre.

• All Signs Continue To Point To A Long War In West Asia

• JIO Platforms Delivers A Solid Listing, A Status Check On India’s Telecom Sector

• More Indians Are Investing Overseas, And New Funds Are Keeping Up

• Why More Indians Went Back To Cinema Halls Last Quarter

• How A 92-Year-Old Japanese Camera And Film Company Is Innovating Diagnostic Healthcare In India