Category momentum: reading sector rotation through index funds
Using one fund house's Nifty index funds as clean sector proxies — so the gaps are sector performance, not manager noise.
“Which sector is leading?” is hard to answer honestly with sector funds, because comparing them across fund houses mixes three different things: the sector's performance, each fund's costs, and each manager's skill. StockLearn's Sector Momentum view removes two of those with one trick.
The method: one fund house as a clean proxy
It tracks a single AMC's Nifty index funds (ICICI Prudential's) as sector proxies. Same fund house, so cost and tracking differences are minimal — which means the gaps between the lines reflect sector performance, not manager noise. Each line is rebased to 100 at the start of the window, so you can see exactly when one sector overtakes another (the crossover points).
| Sector proxy (1Y, indexed) | Growth over window |
|---|---|
| Nifty Auto | +13.8% |
| Nifty Pharma | +13.3% |
| Nifty Next 50 | +5.0% |
| Midcap 150 | +4.7% |
| Nifty Bank | +3.6% |
| Smallcap 250 | −0.0% |
| Nifty 50 | −2.2% |
| Nifty IT | −19.7% |
What it shows at a glance
The spread top-to-bottom is about 33 points — Auto and Pharma leading, IT deeply lagging, the broad Nifty 50 slightly negative. That dispersion is the whole point: “the market” masks enormous differences between sectors, and the rebased lines make the rotation visible instead of buried in a table.
Read it as a proxy, not gospel
Index funds approximate their sector; they aren't the sector itself. The indexed lines show growth over the chosen window (not annualised), and leadership rotates — this is a snapshot, not a forecast. It pairs with our research on how fast sector leadership actually rotates.
Key takeaways
- Using one AMC's index funds strips out cost/manager noise, so gaps reflect sector performance.
- Lines rebased to 100 make crossover (rotation) points obvious.
- Illustrative 1Y: Auto +13.8% and Pharma +13.3% led; IT −19.7% lagged — a ~33-point spread.
- “The market” hides how differently sectors perform.
- Proxies and snapshots — leadership rotates; not a forecast.
See these ideas on real stocks
StockLearn runs this read on ~2,000 NSE stocks every evening. Nifty 50 is free, no login.
Browse today's scan →This article describes how a StockLearn tool works, using illustrative snapshots of its display. Figures shown are examples as of the date noted, derived from public AMFI/NSE data, and may lag or differ from official AMC/exchange figures. It is educational, not investment advice. Past performance does not indicate future results.