Please see the below article from EPIC Investment Partners detailing their discussions on India and the roll out and impact of AI. Received this morning 19/05/2026.
Today’s news that Standard Chartered plans to eliminate thousands of support roles over the next four years, joining the ranks of global lenders using artificial intelligence to trim headcount, will have sent a further shiver down the backs of the leaders of many Indian IT companies. The bank aims to reduce corporate functions roles by more than 15% by 2030 while scaling up the practical use of AI to streamline processes.
The share prices of Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys have fallen 40% and 30% respectively over the past twelve months. This compares to a broader Indian market decline of 7% and the 40% plus rally in the Asia ex Japan and emerging market asset classes.
The roll out of AI is bad news for the Indian economy. Broadly speaking, the Indian current account balance has been steady at between 0% and -1% of GDP over the past decade. Nothing to worry about with the domestic economy growing rapidly with heavy spending on infrastructure a particular feature.
However, a closer look at the merchandise trade account is warranted. The trade account deficit has increased from 0-1% of GDP in 2020 to minus 3-4% today. The rapid growth in the export of services has been the key feature keeping the overall current account deficit more or less in balance. This is now in doubt. We note the persistent weakness of the Indian rupee over the past twelve months.
Indian equities have been perceived as an ‘anti AI’ trade for a while. This perception is unlikely to change any time soon.
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Alex Clare
19/05/2026