Blog
What the numbers said — fund returns and costs, foreign and domestic flows, index valuations, gold and silver — plus tax, retirement and personal-finance basics, written from the same data the rest of this site shows, with the date on every figure.
September 2026 in numbers: stocks, gold, flows, rupee
01 Oct 2026
The Nifty 50 fell 6.1% in September 2026, Nifty IT 11.2%, gold 4.9% and silver 8.6%. Only 4 of 142 NSE indices rose. The month in one page.
Market Recap
Short duration vs corporate bond funds in 2026
01 Oct 2026
In the year to 30 September 2026, the median short duration fund returned 5.26% and the median corporate bond fund 4.95%, with lower volatility too.
Debt & Hybrid FundsFund ReturnsSmall-cap funds fell 19–31% from their peaks, then recovered
01 Oct 2026
Over three years to 30 September 2026, the median small-cap fund's worst fall was 24.13%, mostly between late 2024 and 3 March 2025. Next to their returns.
Fund Returns
Small-cap funds: how concentrated their portfolios are
01 Oct 2026
The median small-cap fund held 26.11% in its top 10 stocks on 31 August 2026, from 14.47% at Nippon India to 35.89% at Quant. Holdings ranged from 56 to 255.
Portfolio Holdings
How many mutual funds are under ₹100 crore? (2026)
01 Oct 2026
508 of 1,852 schemes averaged under ₹100 crore in April–June 2026, holding 0.27% of the money. Most are index funds, ETFs and debt funds, and most are young.
Fund IndustrySpecialised investment funds so far: 33 strategies
01 Oct 2026
17 SIF brands now run 33 long-short strategies. In September, when the Nifty 50 fell 6.1%, 25 of them fell too, but only one by more than the index.
Fund IndustryFund Returns
1,131 stocks in equity funds, and 136 held by one fund
01 Oct 2026
Equity funds held 1,131 Indian stocks on 31 August 2026. 136 were in just one scheme's portfolio, and 373 in five or fewer, 1% of the money. Who holds them.
Portfolio HoldingsValue and contra funds vs flexi caps: the 5-year edge
01 Oct 2026
Over five years to 30 September 2026 the median value fund returned 12.29% a year and the median flexi-cap 10.11%. Over one year the order flipped.
Fund ReturnsEquity funds at 52-week lows? Almost none, even now
28 Sep 2026
On 25 September 2026 no equity fund closed at a 52-week low, and 3 of 528 were within 2% of one, while the Nifty 50 sat just 3.62% above its March low.
Fund Returns
NSE's government bond indices in 2026: up 2.18%
25 Sep 2026
NSE's composite G-sec index returned 2.18% from 31 December 2025 to 18 September 2026, after a low on 2 April and a high on 14 August. Gilt funds kept pace.
Debt & Hybrid Funds
Factor indices in 2026: momentum leads, value held
23 Sep 2026
To 22 September 2026, Nifty Alpha 50 rose 10.3% and Nifty500 Momentum 50 3.0%, while the Nifty 50 fell 10.7%. Value held up in the fall; low volatility did not.
Market ValuationsMarket RecapThe Nifty 50's best and worst days of 2026 so far
22 Sep 2026
Eight of the Nifty 50's ten worst days of 2026 came in March; its best was +3.78% on 8 April. September's slide, to the 21st, looks nothing like March's.
Market Recap
Equity savings funds returned 3.89% in a year to September
21 Sep 2026
The median equity savings fund returned 3.89% in the year to 18 September 2026, ahead of conservative hybrids' 2.86% but behind arbitrage funds' 6.79%.
Debt & Hybrid FundsFund Returns
International funds in September 2026: what changed
18 Sep 2026
The median overseas equity fund-of-funds returned 26.18% in the year to 17 September 2026, down from 44.27% in May. The rupee barely moved in between.
Fund ReturnsFocused fund returns: 30 stocks, no wider spread
17 Sep 2026
To 16 Sep 2026 the median focused fund returned 11.53% a year over 3 years and flexi caps 10.80%, with a similar spread and volatility.
Fund ReturnsSIF strategies compared: five types, 33 funds
16 Sep 2026
17 SIF brands now run 33 strategies of five types. As the Nifty 50 fell 5.1% in a month, the median equity long-short SIF fell 2.7%; the median hybrid was flat.
Fund IndustryFund ReturnsRetirement and children's funds: three kinds, one label
14 Sep 2026
Of 41 retirement and children's funds, 9 move like debt funds, 14 like hybrids and 18 like equity funds. Their returns to 11 September 2026, grouped by risk.
Fund ReturnsNifty Midcap 150 P/E at 28.6, near a record index
11 Sep 2026
The Nifty Midcap 150 closed at a P/E of 28.64 on 10 September 2026, below its 30.41 median, while its 0.58% dividend yield matched a five-year low.
Market ValuationsThe rupee in 2026: down against every major currency
10 Sep 2026
From 31 December 2025 to 9 September 2026 the rupee fell 5.33% against the dollar, 4.36% against the euro and 12.21% against the Australian dollar.
Market Recap
Nifty India Defence P/E at 60, three times the Nifty 50
09 Sep 2026
Nifty India Defence closed at a record 9,998.70 on 8 September 2026 at a P/E of 60.34, higher than on 93% of days since 2022 and 3.02 times the Nifty 50's.
Market ValuationsSectors