Eredene Capital

India-focused investment fund Eredene Capital reported a strong set of results for the year to March, with its net asset value rising to 23p (21.9p).

The fund, which invests in a number of Indian shipping and logistics companies, saw its NAV per share increase 5% to 23p (2009: 21.9p) amidst a year that CEO Alastair King described as a 'challenging twelve months for global trade'.

King, previously on the board of Galahad Gold, told Growth Company Investor, 'We are pleased to see the increase in the value of our investments, as our projects have matured’. In addition, he emphasised that 'growth in India is continuing at a fast rate and we would like to continue to benefit from the macroeconomic trends we believe will continue to rise over the coming years', adding that Eredene represents an 'elegant' way to invest in the India growth story.

Portfolio constituents include warehousing business MJ Logistics, in which Eredene holds a 90% stake, as well as a 49% slice of the Sattva CFS & Logistics Vichoor Container Freight Station in the Tamil Nadu state. Regarding investment in India and the recent visit by David Cameron, King argues that 'it is not as if British business has just woken up to India, there have been a number of companies doing business there for years’.

Moreover, he dismisses suggestions the Indian economy is overheating. 'Growth will carry on in India', explains King, 'because there is a great realisation that Indian businesses are expanding, sucking in imports and becoming integrated into world trade’.

Recommended by Growth Company Investor in 2008 at 14.5p, shares in Eredene, robustly-financed with £27m cash, have since put on 38% and should have further to go off the back of the Indian growth story. As such, they are worth holding onto for the time being.