Indian state capitalism looks to be in trouble

India’s stockmarket swooned upon the news that Narendra Modi, the country’s business-friendly prime minister, would return to power diminished and in a coalition after a recent general election. One benchmark, though, fell especially sharply and has yet to recover: the Bombay Stock Exchange’s index for Public Sector Undertakings (BSE PSU). It comprises 56 companies that have some private ownership but remain mostly owned, and entirely controlled, by the state.

This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Leviathan bound”