This India ETF is the only one among its peers that's risen this year — and pros see more upside

Published Wed, Mar 1 20239:17 PM EST

The VanEck Digital India ETF is the only India-focused stock exchange-traded fund listed on Western exchanges to have posted gains this year. The NYSE-listed fund, which goes by the ticker DGIN , has eked out just 0.6% this year. But that marginal gain stands out amid an average loss of 5% suffered by other ETFs this year. DGIN is also expected to rise by 17.45% over the next year, according to the weighted average of analyst price targets of constituent stocks compiled by FactSet. VanEck says the ETF exposes investors to "companies leading the digital transformation of India's economy." The fund manager says the ETF is diversified as it has in its portfolio 35 companies, across all sizes, in the "technology, telecommunications, and internet applications" sectors. VanEck says it will not allocate more than 8% of the portfolio to any specific stock to minimize risk further. The emerging market fund tracks the MVIS Digital India Index. It holds companies such as India's biggest IT outsourcing giant Infosys as well as high-growth Uber competitors Zomato and Delivery. The table below shows the 19 stock ETFs screened by CNBC Pro that are traded in North America or Europe and focus on the world's fifth-largest economy. The widespread losses on Indian markets this year contrasts with last year's price action. The benchmark NIFTY 50 has lost 3% this year, down from a gain of 5.8% in 2022. Investment banks attribute part of the decline in stock prices to rising interest rates in India. "This is playing out quite quickly after deposit rates have gone up as households - for whom the deposit rate is the risk-free rate - are beginning to shift away from equities," said UBS strategist Sunil Tirumalai in a note to clients. "We suspect this will remain the dominant theme setting the direction for Indian markets in the near term." Stocks have also been battered after short-seller Hindenburg Research alleged fraud at Indian conglomerate Adani Enterprise in January. While the Adani Group has rejected those allegations , the debacle has soured foreign investor sentiment. "The uncertainties surrounding the Adani Group and their large amount of USD bonds outstanding may have a negative impact on investor sentiment toward India credit," said Rahul Jain, head of India research at Goldman Sachs, in a note to clients on Feb. 9. However, the short-term turmoil in Indian markets hasn't upset long-term bulls on the Indian economy, according to Dutch bank ING. As momentum remains strong at a 6.7% annualized GDP growth rate, ING anticipates more than 6% growth in 2023 as well. CNBC Pro did not include the Canada-listed iShares India Index ETF and BMO MSCI India ESG Leaders Index ETF and U.S.-listed VanEck India Growth Leaders ETF owing to a lack of price targets from FactSet.