KEEP THE JOSH GOING!!!!

There is uncertainty all around and that is the theme of the market today.

Days after the deadly Pulwama attack, Indian Air Force (IAF) early Tuesday carried out air strikes on JeM training camps inside Pakistan.  Naturally, the rupee is down and the market indices are also down. And there is a sense of palpable tension as well as a sense of patriotism in the air. While everyone is congratulating the Indian Air Force and Army, there is a niggling worry at the back of the mind  - where is this heading?

The Indo-Pak tensions have escalated and people are talking about war clouds looming large over the horizon. That, at this point of time, seems a bit too over dramatic. What we have to keep in mind here is that the IAF strikes were directly aimed at terror camps and not on Pakistan as a state. More than the prospect of war, the tension is over how Pakistan will now react and how far ahead will this go?

Patriotism or no, no one likes war. We and especially Pakistan, cannot afford to slip into a war. There is no winner and loser in such wars, just more dead people, wounded and hurt, with animosities only going up further. Peace after a war is a myth; it does not exist. Yes, we as a nation did need to show our might and show Pakistan and the world that we are not meek and will not take this lying down quiet. The Indian Army very aptly Tweeted a Hindi poem which says, “if you are docile and polite before the enemy, he may consider you as a coward, the way Kauravas treated Pandavas".

At this point of time, all we can do in the market is adopt and wait-and-watch attitude. We need to see how Pakistan reacts, whether this is a one-off strike or goes on for some more time.

This fall today is a knee-jerk reaction and the FIIs have panicked. Once nerves settle, we are sure to see a bounce back. Remember the Uri surgical strikes? The day the news broke, market fell 465 points or when the Indian Army base camp was attacked, with gun battle going on for three days at Pathankot, the Sensex cracked 1300 points.

Every time such attacks have happened, the first reaction is always a fall and fear of war escalates. Later it all settles and all come back to the market in droves.

So in these uncertain times, what does one do? The best advice – short term traders can use this volatility to their benefit while investors can identify stocks and buy at every dip. Our advice – remain buyers only! HDFC Bank, Dabur, RIL, Yes Bank, Godrej Consumer, Ultratech, Bharat Bijlee, Kotak Bank, M&M are a few stocks to consider.