Indian Stock Market Evolution

Evolution

Indian Stock Markets are one of the oldest in Asia. Its history dates back to nearly 200 years ago. The earliest records of security dealings in India are meagre and obscure. The East India Company was the dominant institution in those days and business in its loan securities used to be transacted towards the close of the eighteenth century.

By 1830s business on corporate stocks and shares in Bank and Cotton presses took place in Bombay. Though the trading list was broader in 1839, there were only half a dozen brokers recognized by banks and merchants during 1840 and 1850.

The 1850s witnessed a rapid development of commercial enterprise and brokerage business attracted many men into the field and by 1860 the number of brokers increased into 60.

In 1860-61 the American Civil War broke out and cotton supply from United States of Europe was stopped; thus, the Share Mania in India begun. The number of brokers increased to about 200 to 250. However, at the end of the American Civil War, in 1865, a disastrous slump began (for example, Bank of Bombay Share which had touched Rs 2850 could only be sold at Rs. 87).

At the end of the American Civil War, the brokers who thrived out of Civil War in 1874, found a place in a street (now appropriately called as Dalal Street) where they would conveniently assemble and transact business. In 1887, they formally established in Bombay, the "Native Share and Stock Brokers Association" (which is alternatively known as " The Stock Exchange "). In 1895, the Stock Exchange acquired a premise in the same street and it was inaugurated in 1899. Thus, the Stock Exchange at Bombay was consolidated.

Other leading cities in stock market operations

Ahmedabad gained importance next to Bombay with respect to cotton textile industry. After 1880, many mills originated from Ahmedabad and rapidly forged ahead. As new mills were floated, the need for a Stock Exchange at Ahmedabad was realised and in 1894 the brokers formed "The Ahmedabad Share and Stock Brokers Association".

What the cotton textile industry was to Bombay and Ahmedabad, the jute industry was to Calcutta. Also tea and coal industries were the other major industrial groups in Calcutta. After the Share Mania in 1861-65, in the 1870s there was a sharp boom in jute shares, which was followed by a boom in tea shares in the 1880s and 1890s; and a coal boom between 1904 and 1908. On June 1908, some leading brokers formed "The Calcutta Stock Exchange Association".

In the beginning of the twentieth century, the industrial revolution was on the way in India with the Swadeshi Movement; and with the inauguration of the Tata Iron and Steel Company Limited in 1907, an important stage in industrial advancement under Indian enterprise was reached.

Indian cotton and jute textiles, steel, sugar, paper and flour mills and all companies generally enjoyed phenomenal prosperity, due to the First World War.

In 1920, the then demure city of Madras had the maiden thrill of a stock exchange functioning in its midst, under the name and style of "The Madras Stock Exchange" with 100 members. However, when boom faded, the number of members stood reduced from 100 to 3, by 1923, and so it went out of existence.

In 1935, the stock market activity improved, especially in South India where there was a rapid increase in the number of textile mills and many plantation companies were floated. In 1937, a stock exchange was once again organized in Madras - Madras Stock Exchange Association (Pvt) Limited. (In 1957 the name was changed to Madras Stock Exchange Limited).

Lahore Stock Exchange was formed in 1934 and it had a brief life. It was merged with the Punjab Stock Exchange Limited, which was incorporated in 1936.

Indian Stock Exchanges - An Umbrella Growth

The Second World War broke out in 1939. It gave a sharp boom which was followed by a slump. But, in 1943, the situation changed radically, when India was fully mobilized as a supply base.

On account of the restrictive controls on cotton, bullion, seeds and other commodities, those dealing in them found in the stock market as the only outlet for their activities. They were anxious to join the trade and their number was swelled by numerous others. Many new associations were constituted for the purpose and Stock Exchanges in all parts of the country were floated.

The Uttar Pradesh Stock Exchange Limited (1940), Nagpur Stock Exchange Limited (1940) and Hyderabad Stock Exchange Limited (1944) were incorporated.

In Delhi two stock exchanges - Delhi Stock and Share Brokers Association Limited and the Delhi Stocks and Shares Exchange Limited - were floated and later in June 1947, amalgamated into the Delhi Stock Exchnage Association Limited.

Post-independence Scenario


Most of the exchanges suffered almost a total eclipse during depression. Lahore Exchange was closed during partition of the country and later migrated to Delhi and merged with Delhi Stock Exchange.

Bangalore Stock Exchange Limited was registered in 1957 and recognized in 1963.

Most of the other exchanges languished till 1957 when they applied to the Central Government for recognition under the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956. Only Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Hyderabad and Indore, the well established exchanges, were recognized under the Act. Some of the members of the other Associations were required to be admitted by the recognized stock exchanges on a concessional basis, but acting on the principle of unitary control, all these pseudo stock exchanges were refused recognition by the Government of India and they thereupon ceased to function.


Thus, during early sixties there were eight recognized stock exchanges in India (mentioned above). The number virtually remained unchanged, for nearly two decades. During eighties, however, many stock exchanges were established: Cochin Stock Exchange (1980), Uttar Pradesh Stock Exchange Association Limited (at Kanpur, 1982), and Pune Stock Exchange Limited (1982), Ludhiana Stock Exchange Association Limited (1983), Gauhati Stock Exchange Limited (1984), Kanara Stock Exchange Limited (at Mangalore, 1985), Magadh Stock Exchange Association (at Patna, 1986), Jaipur Stock Exchange Limited (1989), Bhubaneswar Stock Exchange Association Limited (1989), Saurashtra Kutch Stock Exchange Limited (at Rajkot, 1989), Vadodara Stock Exchange Limited (at Baroda, 1990) and recently established exchanges - Coimbatore and Meerut. Thus, at present, there are totally twenty one recognized stock exchanges in India excluding the Over The Counter Exchange of India Limited (OTCEI) and the National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSEIL).

The Table given below portrays the overall growth pattern of Indian stock markets since independence. It is quite evident from the Table that Indian stock markets have not only grown just in number of exchanges, but also in number of listed companies and in capital of listed companies. The remarkable growth after 1985 can be clearly seen from the Table, and this was due to the favouring government policies towards security market industry.


Trading Pattern of the Indian Stock Market

Trading in Indian stock exchanges are limited to listed securities of public limited companies. They are broadly divided into two categories, namely, specified securities (forward list) and non-specified securities (cash list). Equity shares of dividend paying, growth-oriented companies with a paid-up capital of atleast Rs.50 million and a market capitalization of atleast Rs.100 million and having more than 20,000 shareholders are, normally, put in the specified group and the balance in non-specified group.

Two types of transactions can be carried out on the Indian stock exchanges: (a) spot delivery transactions "for delivery and payment within the time or on the date stipulated when entering into the contract which shall not be more than 14 days following the date of the contract" : and (b) forward transactions "delivery and payment can be extended by further period of 14 days each so that the overall period does not exceed 90 days from the date of the contract". The latter is permitted only in the case of specified shares. The brokers who carry over the outstandings pay carry over charges (cantango or backwardation) which are usually determined by the rates of interest prevailing.

A member broker in an Indian stock exchange can act as an agent, buy and sell securities for his clients on a commission basis and also can act as a trader or dealer as a principal, buy and sell securities on his own account and risk, in contrast with the practice prevailing on New York and London Stock Exchanges, where a member can act as a jobber or a broker only.

The nature of trading on Indian Stock Exchanges are that of age old conventional style of face-to-face trading with bids and offers being made by open outcry. However, there is a great amount of effort to modernize the Indian stock exchanges in the very recent times.

Over The Counter Exchange of India (OTCEI)

The traditional trading mechanism prevailed in the Indian stock markets gave way to many functional inefficiencies, such as, absence of liquidity, lack of transparency, unduly long settlement periods and benami transactions, which affected the small investors to a great extent. To provide improved services to investors, the countrys first ringless, scripless, electronic stock exchange - OTCEI - was created in 1992 by countrys premier financial institutions - Unit Trust of India, Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India, Industrial Development Bank of India, SBI Capital Markets, Industrial Finance Corporation of India, General Insurance Corporation and its subsidiaries and CanBank Financial Services.

Trading at OTCEI is done over the centres spread across the country. Securities traded on the OTCEI are classified into:

Listed Securities - The shares and debentures of the companies listed on the OTC can be bought or sold at any OTC counter all over the country and they should not be listed anywhere else
Permitted Securities - Certain shares and debentures listed on other exchanges and units of mutual funds are allowed to be traded
Initiated debentures - Any equity holding atleast one lakh debentures of a particular scrip can offer them for trading on the OTC.
OTC has a unique feature of trading compared to other traditional exchanges. That is, certificates of listed securities and initiated debentures are not traded at OTC. The original certificate will be safely with the custodian. But, a counter receipt is generated out at the counter which substitutes the share certificate and is used for all transactions.

In the case of permitted securities, the system is similar to a traditional stock exchange. The difference is that the delivery and payment procedure will be completed within 14 days.

Compared to the traditional Exchanges, OTC Exchange network has the following advantages:

OTCEI has widely dispersed trading mechanism across the country which provides greater liquidity and lesser risk of intermediary charges.
Greater transparency and accuracy of prices is obtained due to the screen-based scripless trading.
Since the exact price of the transaction is shown on the computer screen, the investor gets to know the exact price at which s/he is trading.
Faster settlement and transfer process compared to other exchanges.
In the case of an OTC issue (new issue), the allotment procedure is completed in a month and trading commences after a month of the issue closure, whereas it takes a longer period for the same with respect to other exchanges.
Thus, with the superior trading mechanism coupled with information transparency investors are gradually becoming aware of the manifold advantages of the OTCEI.

National Stock Exchange (NSE)

With the liberalization of the Indian economy, it was found inevitable to lift the Indian stock market trading system on par with the international standards. On the basis of the recommendations of high powered Pherwani Committee, the National Stock Exchange was incorporated in 1992 by Industrial Development Bank of India, Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India, Industrial Finance Corporation of India, all Insurance Corporations, selected commercial banks and others.

Trading at NSE can be classified under two broad categories:

(a) Wholesale debt market and

(b) Capital market.

Wholesale debt market operations are similar to money market operations - institutions and corporate bodies enter into high value transactions in financial instruments such as government securities, treasury bills, public sector unit bonds, commercial paper, certificate of deposit, etc.

There are two kinds of players in NSE:

(a) trading members and

(b) participants.

Recognized members of NSE are called trading members who trade on behalf of themselves and their clients. Participants include trading members and large players like banks who take direct settlement responsibility.

Trading at NSE takes place through a fully automated screen-based trading mechanism which adopts the principle of an order-driven market. Trading members can stay at their offices and execute the trading, since they are linked through a communication network. The prices at which the buyer and seller are willing to transact will appear on the screen. When the prices match the transaction will be completed and a confirmation slip will be printed at the office of the trading member.

NSE has several advantages over the traditional trading exchanges. They are as follows:

NSE brings an integrated stock market trading network across the nation.
Investors can trade at the same price from anywhere in the country since inter-market operations are streamlined coupled with the countrywide access to the securities.
Delays in communication, late payments and the malpractices prevailing in the traditional trading mechanism can be done away with greater operational efficiency and informational transparency in the stock market operations, with the support of total computerized network.
Unless stock markets provide professionalised service, small investors and foreign investors will not be interested in capital market operations. And capital market being one of the major source of long-term finance for industrial projects, India cannot afford to damage the capital market path. In this regard NSE gains vital importance in the Indian capital market system.

ECONOMIC PLANNING IN INDIA

Preamble

Often, in the economic literature we find the terms development and growth are used interchangeably. However, there is a difference. Economic growth refers to the sustained increase in per capita or total income, while the term economic development implies sustained structural change, including all the complex effects of economic growth. In other words, growth is associated with free enterprise, where as development requires some sort of control and regulation of the forces affecting development. Thus, economic development is a process and growth is a phenomenon.

Economic planning is very critical for a nation, especially a developing country like India to take the country in the path of economic development to attain economic growth.

Why Economic Planning for India?

One of the major objective of planning in India is to increase the rate of economic development, implying that increasing the rate of capital formation by raising the levels of income, saving and investment. However, increasing the rate of capital formation in India is beset with a number of difficulties. People are poverty ridden. Their capacity to save is extremely low due to low levels of income and high propensity to consume. Therefor, the rate of investment is low which leads to capital deficiency and low productivity. Low productivity means low income and the vicious circle continues. Thus, to break this vicious economic circle, planning is inevitable for India.

The market mechanism works imperfectly in developing nations due to the ignorance and unfamiliarity with it. Therefore, to improve and strengthen market mechanism planning is very vital. In India, a large portion of the economy is non-monitised; the product, factors of production, money and capital markets are not organized properly. Thus the prevailing price mechanism fails to bring about adjustments between aggregate demand and supply of goods and services. Thus, to improve the economy, market imperfections has to be removed; available resources has to be mobilized and utilized efficiently; and structural rigidities has to be overcome. These can be attained only through planning.

In India, capital is scarce; and unemployment and disguised unemployment is prevalent. Thus, where capital being scarce and labour being abundant, providing useful employment opportunities to an increasing labour force is a difficult exercise. Only a centralized planning model can solve this macro problem of India.

Further, in a country like India where agricultural dependence is very high, one can not ignore this segment in the process of economic development. Therefore, an economic development model has to consider a balanced approach to link both agriculture and industry and lead for a paralleled growth. Not to mention, both agriculture and industry can not develop with out adequate infrastructural facilities which only a the state can provide and this is possible only through a well carved out planning strategy. The governments role in providing infrastructure is unavoidable due to the fact that the role of private sector in infrastructural development of India is very minimal since these infrastructure projects are considered as unprofitable by the private sector.

Further, India is a clear case of income disparity. Thus, it is the duty of the state to reduce the prevailing income inequalities. This is possible only through planning.

Planning History of India

The development of planning in India began prior to the first Five Year Plan of independent India, long before independence even. The idea of central directions of resources to overcome persistent poverty gradually, because one of the main policies advocated by nationalists early in the century. The Congress Party worked out a program for economic advancement during the 1920s, and 1930s and by the 1938 they formed a National Planning Committee under the chairmanship of future Prime Minister Nehru. The Committee had little time to do anything but prepare programs and reports before the Second World War which put an end to it. But it was already more than an academic exercise remote from administration. Provisional government had been elected in 1938, and the Congress Party leaders held positions of responsibility. After the war, the Interim government of the pre-independence years appointed an Advisory Planning Board. The Board produced a number of some what disconnected Plans itself. But, more important in the long run, it recommended the appointment of a Planning Commission.

The Planning Commission did not start work properly until 1950. During the first three years of independent India, the state and economy scarcely had a stable structure at all, while millions of refugees crossed the newly established borders of India and Pakistan, and while ex-princely states (over 500 of them) were being merged into India or Pakistan. The Planning Commission as it now exists, was not set up until the new India had adopted its Constitution in January 1950.

Objectives of Indian Planning

The Planning Commission was set up he following Directive principles :

To make an assessment of the material, capital and human resources of the country, including technical personnel, and investigate the possibilities of augmenting such of these resources as are found to be deficient in relation to the nations requirement.
To formulate a plan for the most effective and balanced use of the countrys resources.
Having determined the priorities, to define the stages in which the plan should be carried out, and propose the allocation of resources for the completion of each stage.
To indicate the factors which are tending to retard economic development, and determine the conditions which, in view of the current social and political situation, should be established for the successful execution of the Plan.
To determine the nature of the machinery which will be necessary for securing the successful implementation of each stage of Plan in all its aspects.
To appraise from time to time the progress achieved in the execution of each stage of the Plan and recommend the adjustments of policy and measures that such appraisals may show to be necessary.
To make such interim or auxiliary recommendations as appear to it to be appropriate either for facilitating the discharge of the duties assigned to it or on a consideration of the prevailing economic conditions, current policies, measures and development programs; or on an examination of such specific problems as may be referred to it for advice by Central or State Governments.
The long-term general objectives of Indian Planning are as follows :

Increasing National Income
Reducing inequalities in the distribution of income and wealth
Elimination of poverty
Providing additional employment; and
Alleviating bottlenecks in the areas of : agricultural production, manufacturing capacity for producers goods and balance of payments.
Economic growth, as the primary objective has remained in focus in all Five Year Plans. Approximately, economic growth has been targeted at a rate of five per cent per annum. High priority to economic growth in Indian Plans looks very much justified in view of long period of stagnation during the British rule.