Ahmedabad: Gujarat added active stock market investors faster than other major states in June as the Indian stock markets got a breather after the sensex gained about 2,000 points. The state registered a 12.8% monthly rise, taking its active investor count to 14.6 lakh, according to data from the National Stock Exchange.Tamil Nadu registered the second-highest monthly growth among the leading states at 11.7%, behind Gujarat’s 12.8%. Uttar Pradesh ranked third with 11.2 lakh, registering a 4.3% monthly increase. Market participants said lower volatility and favourable global signals helped improve retail sentiment.Maharashtra remained the leader in absolute numbers with 20.8 lakh investors, accounting for 17.2% of the country’s total, the NSE report revealed. It recorded a 6.5% rise in active investors during the month.The five states with the largest active investor bases together accounted for about 51% of the national total in June, the report stated.The report said all 10 leading states recorded an increase in investor participation during the month.Maharashtra and Gujarat also led in equity cash turnover generated by individual investors. Maharashtra recorded turnover of Rs 3.45 lakh crore in June, up 3.2% from May. Gujarat’s turnover rose 0.5% to Rs 1.9 lakh crore.Market participants attributed the improvement in retail sentiment to lower volatility, easing global pressures, and other favourable market signals. Vanesh Panchal, a stockbroker and merchant banker from Ahmedabad, said geopolitical tensions like the US-Iran war had caused greater volatility and kept many investors away from trading in March and April.“Participation has improved since then as retail interest recovered. Gujarat has the third-highest number of registered individual investors, and equity trading runs deep in the state. Lower crude oil prices supported the market’s recovery in June and encouraged more investors to return to trading,” Panchal said.
