Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the first full-time budget under Modi 3.0 as the Union Budget 2024 draws near. Nonetheless, this would represent the first instance since 2015 when the Indian financial markets are doing strongly while the BJP is not in complete control of the government.

The incoming administration is probably going to encourage rural consumption in order to counteract growing inflation, as it has promised to maintain current policy levels. Participating in the Business Today budget poll, several brokerages and experts recommended a wide range of companies and industries that may gain from the impending union budget and announcements.

lowering inflation without seriously harming the labor market or the economy as a whole. Tata Mutual Fund stated in a recent study that even though inflation has decreased since its peak, it is still much higher than the objective. It recommended a well-rounded portfolio approach to profit from the several areas of robust earnings recovery and outlook. The fund company believes that factors influencing growth span power, real estate, capital goods, and investment cycles.

Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers' Head of Fundamental Research, Narendra Solanki, is bullish on the consuming theme and believes that the FMCG, consumer, cars (including 2-wheelers), auto ancillaries, agribusiness, and rural sectors would all prosper. He also favors manufacturing and infrastructure, citing ITC, Varun Beverages, and Minda Corp as his top selections in this area.

Manish Chowdhury Head of Research at StoxBox, has a strong outlook on equities such as Housing & Urban Development Corporation (Hudco), IRCON International, and HAL. Aiming for enhanced financial metrics and significant government backing in the NBFC industry, Hudco predicts 15% annual loan growth from FY24 to FY30, supported by state agency contracts and a concentration on high-yield infrastructure assets, he added. "IRCON showcases a robust Rs 27,208 crore order book and strong financial performance with a 17 percent ROE," Chowdhury stated.

According to Apurva Sheth, Head of Market Perspectives & Research at SAMCO Securities, auto ancillaries reported outstanding financial results for the fourth quarter of FY24. "We anticipate that the earnings momentum will hold going ahead. Endurance Technology, Uno Minda, and Lumax Auto Tech are our top options in this sector," he stated.

The top budget choices made by Tradejini's COO, Trivesh D., are Bharat Electronics, IRCTC, Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), and Larsen & Toubro (L&T). Nonetheless, it has advised investors to avoid hot spots like the SME sector. The budget would prioritize the infrastructure, capital goods, defense, and agriculture equipment sectors, according to Nishit Master, Portfolio Manager at Axis Securities PMS. "On the other hand, the IT sector is not expected to receive any major benefits in the budget," he stated. According to Ravi Singh, Senior Vice-President of Retail Research at Religare Broking, the government's emphasis on capital investment, increasing local production, lowering reliance on imports, and updating current infrastructure is good news for PSUs, the military, and railroads.

While he hasn't made any particular stock recommendations, Shrey Jain, the founder and CEO of SAS Online, India's Deep Discount Broker, believes that a few equities in the textile, chemical, and agro-processing industries would likely do well in the short to medium term. Infra and ancillaries, housing and building materials, agri-oriented sectors including tractors, agrochemicals, auto and auto ancillaries, PSU space, and the power sector focusing on green and clean energy are among the major budget themes that Nitasha Shankar, Head Equity Strategy at YES Securities, is enthusiastic about.