New Delhi, Jan. 14 -- Union Budget, the mega annual event that sets the tone for markets and shapes sectoral opportunities for investors, is just half a month away. This makes it an ideal time for investors to assess how they should prepare their portfolios to benefit from the policy-led announcements that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to unveil on February 1.

Stalled trade deal, fresh tariff threats by US President Donald Trump and relentless selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have kept the stock market sentiment subdued in January so far. The Nifty 50 index is already down 1.4% during the first 10 trading days of the year.

This year's Budget assumes even more prominence in an increasingly inward-looking policy-...