Chandrayaan-3's Vikram soft lands on Moon: What it means for stock market and India's economy

Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander made a soft landing on the moon making India the fourth country to reach moon and the first country to explore the southern pole or the dark side of the moon. This remarkable feat has now increased investor confidence, as many companies that aided ISRO are listed in the stock market.

Market experts believe that this feat would encourage international investors to invest in the country and expect more avenues to open in the space sector.

“This could magnetise a greater influx of international investments into the country. Beyond the immediate prestige, the mission holds the promise of unlocking novel commercial avenues in the space domain”, Sonam Srivastava, smallcase manager and Founder of Wright Research told Business Today.

Also Read: Chandrayaan-3 mission: 13 space stocks rally; add $2.5 billion m-cap this week

He also added that sectors such as telecommunications, remote sensing and satellite navigation stand to benefit, potentially catalysing job generation and spurring economic growth. However he also said that investors and market watchers have to be pragmatic.

Individual investor Safir Anand told Business Today that this landing could trigger huge interest in research and development and colloborative modes.

“It can support many small medium companies who provide parts or servicing or MRO (maintenance, repair and operations). It can boost ‘Make in India’ and ‘collaborate with India’,” Anand told Business Today.

Also Read: ISRO's Chandrayaan-3: Companies behind India's third moon mission

Kolkata based investor Abhishek Basumallick told Business Today that even though this achievement does not have an immediate or direct economic benefit, this has enormous signalling power to the rest of the world about India's scientific achievements.

“The USSR, US and China are the only countries that have achieved this before. A lunar soft-landing portrays to the world that India is both an economic and scientific power to be reckoned with. Although there is no direct and immediate economic benefit, it definitely has enormous signalling power to the rest of the world about India's scientific achievements,”Abhishek Basumallick, Chief Investment Advisor at Intelsense Capital told Business Today.

Another investor Soumya Malani believes that the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 could be huge boost for Indian space economy and that it would encourage government to spend more on these missions which can lead to positive sentiment for the related companies. Malani also added that this success would inspire younger generation to pursue careers in such fields

“It will definitely attract a lot of investment not only in the companies that have been part of this mission but also overall in the Indian space exploration sector as a whole”, Malani told Business Today.

Meanwhile Independent market analyst Ambareesh Baliga told Business Today, it is sentimentally positive for the companies that supplied components for Chandrayaan-3 but it will be short-term.

“Other countries may look to utilise our expertise going ahead. And for the companies which were associated with this project like Larsen & Toubro, BEML, HAL, MTAR etc – it’s sentimentally positive - may give an upside for the stocks in the short term. However, we should remember that these supplies form a small part of their overall revenue and we surely don't expect mass production of Chandrayaans”, Baliga told Business Today