Avoiding PSUs will help

It may not make you rich, but will insulate from decisions made to meet divestment targets

This week, columnists and commentators will be focussed on discussing likely returns in 2019. Rather than adding to the crowd, it makes sense to offer a piece of advice which is likely to save investors money, not just in 2019 but also in the longer run.

The advice is simple: Avoid exposure to public sector units (PSUs). The reason is equally simple: The promoter, meaning the government, treats minority shareholders with contempt and is less than interested in profitability. This has always been the case with PSUs, and has gotten worse in the past few years, when the slogan of “disinvestment”