New Delhi, March 13 -- Stocks to buy for the long term: Even as the recent sharp selloff in the Indian stock market has dragged all major indices significantly lower, the banking sector has been among the top laggards this month so far.

The Nifty Bank index has lost 11% in March so far compared to an 8% fall in the benchmark Nifty 50. The Nifty Private Bank index, too, is down 11% for the month. However, the PSU Bank index has lost more than 13% this month so far.

The main reason behind the fall in shares of PSU banks, or the public sector banks(PSBs), is bond price volatility. When bond yields rise, bond prices fall, leading to mark-to-market (MTM) losses on banks' bond portfolios. Rising bond yields directly reduce the treasury income...