India's LIC share sale closes with retail portion undersubscribed

The government of India has been selling some of its shares in a big insurance company called the Life Insurance Corporation of India, or LIC for short.

When the government sells shares, people can buy them, just like buying a piece of the company.

Big investors, like banks and funds, were very interested and bought a lot of shares.

Small investors, called retail investors, did not buy as many shares as the government expected.

Out of every 100 shares saved for them, they bought about 69.

The government made the sale bigger, to $3.3 billion, because the big investors wanted more.

The share sale was the biggest of its kind in India through a stock exchange.

LIC's stock price has gone down since the company first sold shares in 2022.

Some experts think the stock could still make money for investors who wait a few years.

The government offered a small discount to retail buyers to make it more attractive.