Benchmarks trim gains; trade continues in green

Indian equity markets trimmed gains but continued trading in green in the late afternoon session on account of buying in frontline blue chip counters. The sentiments were on optimistic note from the early trade after Central Statistics Office (CSO) released advanced Gross Domestic Product (GDP) estimate, according to which the Indian economy is poised to grow by 7.4% in the current year, bettering 6.9% recorded last year. Traders were seen piling position in Bankex, Auto and Infra while selling was witnessed in Oil & Gas, Realty and TECK sector stocks. Hectic buying activity was witnessed in auto stocks after industry data Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) reported that domestic passenger car sales increased 3.14% to 1,69,300 units in January 2015, while two-wheeler sales in January rose 1.07% to 13,27,957 units. In scrip specific development, JK Tyre & Industries was trading firm after the company reported 55.53% jump in consolidated net profits for the third quarter ended December 31, 2014. Hindalco Industries was trading in green after its subsidiary Novelis delivered strong December quarter earnings. Bank of India was trading in green as it will raise up to Rs 641.99 crore by selling shares to Life Insurance Corporation and New India Assurance to fund its business growth and meet global risk norms.

On the global front, the Asian markets were trading on mixed note, while the European markets were trading mostly on pessimistic note. Back home, the NSE Nifty and BSE Sensex were trading above the psychological 8,500 and 28,200 levels respectively. The market breadth on BSE was positive in the ratio of 1315:1239 while 112 scrips remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 28262.21, up by 34.82 points or 0.12% after trading in a range of 28044.49 and 28633.72. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.09%, while Small cap index up by 0.02%.

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Bankex up by 1.04%, Auto up by 1.03%, INFRA up by 1.01%, Power up by 1.00%, Metal up by 0.86% while, Oil & Gas down by 0.92%, Realty down by 0.63%, TECK down by 0.26%, IT down by 0.25%, FMCG down by 0.02% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.14%, SBI up by 2.09%, Tata Motors up by 2.00%, GAIL India up by 1.77% and ICICI Bank up by 1.65%.

On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 2.06%, HDFC down by 1.75%, TCS down by 1.57%, Reliance Industries down by 1.53% and Wipro down by 0.86% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, a Parliamentary panel has invited suggestions on the proposed amendment to the Electricity Act, which seeks to provide choice of power suppliers to consumers and propel growth in the sector, for examination. The Standing Committee on Energy (Sixteenth Lok Sabha) under the Chairpersonship of Kirit Somaiya, Member of Parliament, has referred the Electricity Amendment Bill, 2014 for examination and presenting a report to Parliament.

Considering the importance of the subject, the committee has invited suggestions, views and suggestions from stakeholders, individuals, experts, institutions/and organisations interested in the subject within 10 days of publication of communique of February 10.

The amendments have been suggested in order to promote competition, efficiency and improvement in the supply of electricity resulting in capacity addition and benefiting consumers.

While, the Cabinet, in December, approved various amendments to the existing Electricity Act 2003, Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal had earlier indicated that amendments to the Electricity Act,2014  should come into effect by April.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8541.45, up by 15.10 points or 0.18% after trading in a range of 8470.50 and 8646.25. There were 28 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid Corporation up by 2.90%, ACC up by 2.61%, Bank of Baroda up by 2.57%, SBI up by 2.22% and Asian Paints up by 2.16%.

On the flip side, DLF down by 2.96%, HCL Tech down by 2.45%, BPCL down by 2.29%, Sun Pharma down by 2.04% and HDFC down by 1.91% were the top losers.

The Asian markets were trading mixed; FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI increased 2.26 points or 0.12% to 1,813.84, Hang Seng increased 7.1 points or 0.03% to 24,528.10, Straits Times increased 14.4 points or 0.42% to 3,432.42 and Shanghai Composite increased 46.47 points or 1.5% to 3,141.59.

On the other hand, Nikkei 225 decreased 59.25 points or 0.33% to 17,652.68, Jakarta Composite decreased 31.86 points or 0.6% to 5,316.61, Taiwan Weighted decreased 27.8 points or 0.3% to 9,393.70 and KOSPI Index decreased 11.14 points or 0.57% to 1,935.86.

The European markets were trading mostly in red; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 17.59 points or 0.26% to 6,819.56, Germany’s DAX decreased 2.58 points or 0.02% to 10,660.93 while, France’s CAC increased 5.7 points or 0.12% to 4,656.78.