The correct answer is      (B.)  Banking

One of the first industries to develop in any fast-growing emerging market is banking and financial services. As consumers obtain good-paying jobs and build their disposable incomes, they need somewhere to keep their money. Banks are needed to handle basic deposits and bill payments. And as disposable income builds further, consumers can begin to afford credit, including mortgages to buy a home or loans to purchase automobiles. Finally, as a nation's population amasses savings, demand for other financial services such as investment management, savings products and insurance also goes into overdrive.

This is exactly what's happened in India. Mortgages were almost unheard of in India 15 years ago but since 2000 have been growing at an annualized pace of more than +30%. And there's plenty of potential for more growth -- the ratio of total home loans to India's gross domestic product currently stands at around 8% up from around 3% at the beginning of the decade. In the U.S., this ratio is over 70%.

That's why Indian banking stocks could be the next big thing. For example, HDFC Bank (NYSE: HDB) is India's third-largest bank, with more than 1,400 branches located around India and over 15 million customers. Loans to corporations account for about 40% of the loan book; the remaining 60% is retail lending. With an outstanding retail branch network, plenty of synergies as it integrates its recent acquisition of Centurion Bank of Punjab, and a conservative loan position, HDFC Bank should be able to sustain growth rates close to +30% in coming years despite the global economic slowdown. Yet, due to weakness in the broader Indian markets, the stock trades at a huge discount to that growth rate.

With these points in mind, StreetAuthority editor-in-chief Paul Tracy believes it's an excellent time to take advantage of the market's short-term weakness and buy into the Indian growth story. HDFC is just one of a dozen Indian companies that present unheard of opportunities in this bear market. With P/Es as low as 3.0 and double-digit projected EPS growth, investors would be crazy not to check out the latest issue of Paul's Market Advisor newsletter, where Paul offers an in-depth analysis of today's Indian market and profiles several of his favorites. To learn the names of these stocks, and to learn more about Market Advisor, please visit this link.