Passive funds go niche: should you bet on sectoral or thematic funds?
The timing has helped. Even as headline indices have struggled, several sectoral indices have delivered strong returns, attracting investor interest. In the six months to 30 July 2026, the Nifty 50 Total Return Index (TRI) fell 3.3%, while the Nifty 500 TRI gained just 1.8%. Over the same period, the Nifty Pharma TRI rose 22%, Nifty Healthcare 20.8%, Nifty Realty 15.3%, Nifty Capital Markets 13% and Nifty India Defence 12.7%. TRI returns capture both stock price gains and dividends.
