Chances are that every day you open your equity portfolio, the negative returns might be worrying you. But before you let the current market volatility get the better of you, know that Indian equities have after all turned out to be a green flag, if historical records are to go by.
Despite undergoing their fair share of ups and downs, Indian Equities have delivered more than 10% returns over 7 years, 85% of the times, according to a recent report by FundsIndia. Strikingly, there is no instance of negative returns over 7 years, with the lowest return given by Indian equities being 5%.
Since inception in June 1999, Nifty 50 Total Returns Index (TRI) tripled in 10-11 years around 81% of the times while equities multiplied money 4 times in 12-13 years 77% of the times. Investing in Indian equities with a time frame of 7+ years increases the odds of returns > 10%, in most instances.
Equity, debt, gold, or real estate: Which asset class is the winner in the long run?
The winning asset class not only outperformed the other asset classes in the long run but also beat inflation 7-9%. Among the asset classes, Indian equities have emerged as the clear winner in the long run. According to FundsIndia’s Wealth Conversations Report May 2026 report, Nifty 50 TRI beat inflation by 7-9% on average.
For example, if you had invested in Jan 2003, then over a 3-year time frame equities would have outperformed inflation by 38%.
- Indian equities gave a CAGR of 13.2% i.e. multiplied 86 times in last 35+ years
- Equities have outperformed debt over the long run by 6-8%
- Over 15–20-year periods, equities outperformed gold by 2-3%
- Equities outperformed real estate by 5-6%
The report underlines that 10-20% decline happens almost every year and a 30-60% decline should be a part of expectation for every 7-10 years.
What should be the ideal asset allocation for a good portfolio mix?
Asset Allocation is an important driver of long-term returns. The reports points out that a higher debt exposure lowers portfolio declines during market falls, but also lowers long term returns. Data shows that US equities are the top performed in 2026 so far with 11.6% returns, followed by gold at 11.5% return.
In 2025, gold emerged as the best asset class delivering 75% return, followed by US equities with 23.8% return.
Between calendar year 2010 and 2025, the yellow metal has bagged the top spot 7 times, with the biggest return delivered in 2025.
| PORTFOLIO / PAST ANNUALISED RETURNS | 3 year | 5 year | 7 year | 10 year | 15 year | 20 year |
| Equity 70% : Debt 30% | 10% | 10% | 11% | 11% | 10% | 11% |
| Equity 50% : Debt 50% | 9% | 9% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% |
| Equity 30% : Debt 70% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 9% | 9% | 9% |
| Equity 70% : Debt 15% : Gold 15% | 16% | 14% | 14% | 14% | 12% | 13% |
| Equity 50% : Debt 25% : Gold 25% | 19% | 15% | 15% | 13% | 12% | 13% |
| Equity 30% : Debt 35% : Gold 35% | 21% | 16% | 16% | 13% | 12% | 13% |
In terms of 5-year rolling returns, a 70% equity, 15% debt and 15% gold portfolio has delivered over 10% returns 85% of the times.
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The same portfolio mix has delivered over 10% returns 92% of the times in terms of 7-year rolling returns.
Some key highlights of the report:
- Gold has outperformed inflation by 5-6% over the long run
- Gold has delivered >7% returns, 2/3rd of the times across 7-year periods
- Longer the time frame, equities have higher odds of better returns vs gold
- Real estate has beaten Inflation over longer time frames (15-20 years) provided the entry is right
- Real estate has underperformed equities by 4-6% over the long run
- Debt historically has delivered 6-8% over 5+ years
- High credit quality, shorter duration debt funds should form a part of your core debt portfolio
