Benchmarks trim gains; trade continues in green

Indian equity markets trimmed gains but continued their firm trade in the late afternoon session on account of buying in frontline blue chip counters. The sentiments were on optimistic note on sustained buying activities by both funds and retail investors amidst pre-budget optimism on Street. Traders were seen piling positions in Capital Goods, Auto and IT stocks while selling as witnessed in Oil & Gas, Consumer Durables and Infra sector stocks. In scrip specific development, SpiceJet was trading in green a day after the aviation ministry gave its initial approval to the airline’s revival plan submitted by its co-founder Ajay Singh, who is now back at the helm. Muthoot Finance was trading in red after the company reported its third quarter net profit which fell 20.7% year-on-year to Rs 154 crore, dented by lower net interest income.

On the global front, the Asian markets were trading mostly in green while the European markets were trading mostly on pessimistic note. Back home, the NSE Nifty and BSE Sensex were trading above the psychological 8,700 and 28,900 levels respectively. The market breadth on BSE was negative in the ratio of 1288:1467 while 109 scrips remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 28933.60, up by 44.74 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 28933.60 and 29060.41. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.04%, while Small cap index up by 0.33%.

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Capital Goods up by 0.86%, Auto up by 0.56%, IT up by 0.35%, TECK up by 0.29%, Realty up by 0.17% while, Oil & Gas down by 1.03%, Consumer Durables down by 0.77%, Infra down by 0.52%, PSU down by 0.21%, Power down by 0.17% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 3.94%, Tata Motors up by 2.39%, Axis Bank up by 2.30%, ONGC up by 1.52% and Cipla up by 1.40%. On the flip side, NTPC down by 2.37%, Reliance Industries down by 2.16%, Hero MotoCorp down by 1.38%, SBI down by 1.03% and Maruti Suzuki down by 0.96% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, exuding confidence about foreign and domestic investors contributing in a big way to the Indian growth story, Union Minister Piyush Goyal underscored the country's power sector is set for $250 billion investment across different segments. The minister highlighted that investments were expected across diverse areas of the energy sector, including in renewables, transmission and distribution segments.

Further, giving break-up of the investment, Goyal unveiled that while renewables were set to get $100 billion, the transmission and distribution segment would get $50 billion, each. He added that another $60-70 billion were expected to be invested in power generation, including for restarting stalled projects and for new ones, while $5-6 billion were earmarked for energy efficiency projects. Besides, $20-25 billion investments has also been set aside for associated infrastructure required in replacement of old and out-dated equipments, among others.

Meanwhile, raising money for funding these investments is the last thing that the government is worried about as it has gauged a sense of excitement among the investors about the ambitious target that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set, which is to ensure 24×7 power for all households as also for the industry and the farmers.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8742.55, up by 13.05 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 8734.90 and 8772.70. There were 26 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Sun Pharma up by 3.83%, IDFC up by 2.76%, DLF up by 2.57%, Asian Paints up by 2.51% and Tata Motors up by 2.36%. On the flip side, Reliance Industries down by 2.43%, NTPC down by 2.09%, PNB down by 1.71%, HCL Tech. down by 1.46% and Hero MotoCorp down by 1.40% were the top losers.

The Asian markets were trading mostly in green; FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI increased 9.47 points or 0.54% to 1,779.56, Straits Times increased 17.28 points or 0.52% to 3,371.74, Shanghai Composite increased 19.73 points or 0.59% to 3,343.34, Jakarta Composite increased 42.91 points or 0.82% to 5,258.18, Nikkei 225 increased 48.54 points or 0.28% to 17,329.02, Taiwan Weighted increased 49.8 points or 0.53% to 9,369.51 and Hang Seng increased 170.05 points or 0.7% to 24,522.63.

On the other hand, KOSPI Index decreased 0.41 points or 0.02% to 1,920.82.

The European markets were trading mostly in red; Germany’s DAX decreased 9.43 points or 0.09% to 10,289.80 and France’s CAC decreased 6.43 points or 0.14% to 4,478.39. On the other hand, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 9.19 points or 0.14% to 6,737.23.