Crédit Agricole Asset Management has launched a new Indian equity fund, CAAM Funds India Infrastructure, within its international flagship SICAV (open-ended) CAAM Funds, domiciled in Luxembourg. This UCITS III compliant sub-fund, managed by CAAM Hong Kong, aims to allow clients to benefit from domestic growth in India by investing at least two thirds of the sub-fund’s assets in India’s leading infrastructure-related companies. Historically, the chronic state of India’s infrastructure has been the country’s most significant constraint to achieving a higher level of economic growth, efficiency and development, says CAAM. During the next five years, $500 billion should be spent on infrastructure in India, creating enormous growth opportunities for India’s leading companies serving the sector. Currently, the universe of investable infrastructure opportunities in India stands at around 150 companies. This group should expand to 200-250 companies in the next two to three years to provide more scope for active stock picking, according to CAAM. CAAM aims to pick only 35 to 40 stocks, with a strong bias towards infrastructural requirements - materials, energy, telecommunications, transport, water and financials and the average portfolio holding period will be 12 to 18 months. The risk tolerance of the sub-fund is centered on an indicative average tracking error of 6 per cent to 8 per cent, allowing the investment team to implement a particularly active management style in order to make the most of market opportunities.