India is a nation with a developing middle class and an appetite for gold and silver. However, it is still a developing economy, with a stock market that should be seen as such. Given the volatility in the more established world markets it is sensible to choose your battles wisely when you invest in India. It is time that Indian investors start looking at building a more rounded investment portfolio; a portfolio which comprises a mix of assets, geographical regions and strategies.

Any developing nation can have ups and downs. India is one of the more stable economies in the developing world, but, if you look at the way the Nigerian stock markets crashed, costing many their life savings, it is clear that regulation and prudence are the way to go in developing markets. Even China is facing struggles right now.

Mixing up investments

Any financial adviser worth their salt will explain that you need to have a mix of asset classes and to spread your risk across different geographical regions in order to have a balanced portfolio. They will also look at your attitude to risk and try and blend the portfolio to match your favoured approach. It does not always sit well for investors in developing countries to take the 3% and 4% gains that are so well received in the West; they are simply used to expecting much higher returns.

It is therefore a good idea to take a look at some other instruments to use in your investment portfolio. With the emergence of forex platforms, many people have started to learn how to trade for themselves. Millions have been trading using fundamental and technical analysis; looking to eke out a profit. Some people have even developed full-time incomes doing so.

Playing the stock markets

As well as people seeking bundled investments with banks and in share portfolios, people have also started investing in stock markets themselves. By choosing stocks carefully it is possible to get some decent returns. Understanding a balance sheet and financial statements can be a very daunting task though.

New investment mechanisms

There is a new wave of investment mechanisms, such as binary options. These provide the opportunity to have a more simple investment process where you make predictions based on directional movements over defined periods of time. Raphael Besnard, from optionsclick binary broker, explains “with binary options you can feed an appetite for investment risk to the level you wish. You can trade 60 second binaries, or take a position over an extended period of time. The beauty is that you can earn good ratios if you can make good predictions.” You can read a bit more about how a binary options broker works in this 365trading review.

Binary options, and forex are not for everyone, just as many people choose to avoid the stock markets. The point is to consider a blended approach to your investment strategies so that your eggs are not all in one basket, and so that you can have a mix of profit opportunities. You should take smaller positions in the more risky mechanisms, but they may be where you end up turning the majority of your profits over a prolonged period of time. Somewhere along the line the West has managed to lose sight of how to make profit through investments. Developing countries certainly should not go this way; but investors in India need to be more creative in the way they manage their wealth.