Indian stocks shrug off the coronavirus crisis

Covid-19 has spent the last 18 months overturning expectations around the world and India has been no exception. When the pandemic first took hold, there were fears that such apopulous country with limited healthcare would be very badly hit. But after an initial wave of cases and a chaotic lockdown that left millions of migrant workers stranded around the country, the worst seemed to be over.

By the end of last year, the economy had reopened, new cases remained relatively low and it looked plausible that India had somehow built up enough immunity to return to normal while keeping coronavirus at bay. Unfortunately, that turned out to be very wrong.

In April, cases soared to record highs. Exactly why remains unclear, as with much about coronavirus. Some put the blame for spreading the virus around the country on a number of crowded events, including election rallies and religious pilgrimages. Others point to the emergence of a more transmissible variant called B.1.617.2, or Delta. (The fact that many other countries that initially coped well, such as Thailand and Vietnam, have now seen large outbreaks, while Indonesia seems to be following a similar trajectory to India, suggests that India’s mass events probably aren’t solely responsible.)

The healthcare system collapsed,