Benchmarks trade lower in early deals; Sensex slips below 28,400 mark

Pressurized by feeble global cues, Indian equity benchmarks have made a sluggish start and are trading with a cut of around one third of a percent. The US markets made a mixed closing in last session following a lackluster trading. Traders initially reacted positively to the apparent dovishness of the Fed but a report showing a modest uptick in initial jobless claims in the week ended March 14th, weighed on the sentiments in the latter trade. The Asian markets were trading mostly in the red at this point of time led by decline in materials and technology stocks, though the Chinese stocks advanced for the eighth day to its highest level since 2008.

Back home, depreciation in Indian rupee too weighed down sentiments. The rupee depreciated by five paise at 62.57 against the US dollar in early trade today on fresh demand for the American currency from importers. Traders also remained on sidelines focussing on domestic developments included the ongoing budget session in Parliament. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley referring to doubts expressed by various sections over the GDP figure of 7.4 percent for 2014-15 as projected by the Central Statistical Organisation's (CSO), sought to dispel doubts, saying that the GDP calculations are made independently by the CSO, which is a credible organisation.

On the sectoral front, healthcare, software and technology witnessed the maximum gain in trade, while power, public sector undertaking and fast moving consumer goods remained the top losers on the BSE sectoral space. The broader indices too were reeling under pressure, while the market breadth on the BSE was negative; there were 676 shares on the gaining side against 1,223 shares on the losing side while 54 shares remain unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 28383.54, down by 86.13 points or 0.30% after trading in a range of 28332.75 and 28484.36. There were 10 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.49%, while Small cap index down by 0.62%.

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Healthcare up by 1.28%, IT up by 0.48% and TECK up by 0.43% while, Power down by 1.73%, PSU down by 1.40%, FMCG down by 1.10%, Infrastructure down by 1.01% and Realty down by 0.97% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 2.24%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.27%, Wipro up by 1.23%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 0.94% and Infosys up by 0.86%. On the flip side, NTPC down by 6.48%, GAIL India down by 2.59%, BHEL down by 2.29%, Tata Motors down by 1.99% and Axis Bank down by 1.68% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, to make the most of cheap prices, India is set to import 8 million barrels of Iraqi oil to fill its first strategic petroleum reserve (SPR), which would help it counterbalance the impact of an expected pause in China’s strategic stocks build and the start of spring maintenance at Asian refiners.

According to reports, India’s oil ministry on Tuesday has instructed state refiners Indian Oil Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation to each seek two very large crude carriers (VLCC) of Basra oil for arrival in May-June, totaling 8 million barrels.

Further towards this development, tenders are expected to be issued this month, while a meeting of federal cabinet to approve issue of tenders is expected to take place next week. A committee of directors suggested Basra oil on account of its suitability in refineries on India`s east coast. However, this is expected to be a one-off purchase as the stocks will be used only in case of supply disruptions.

Lastly, India’s finance ministry has provided Rs 24 billion from revised budget estimates for the current fiscal year to fill the first SPR.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8596.70, down by 37.95 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 8589.75 and 8627.90. There were 14 stocks advancing against 36 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Sun Pharma up by 2.43%, Lupin up by 1.66%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.19%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 1.00% and Infosys up by 0.80%. On the flip side, NTPC down by 6.07%, BHEL down by 2.66%, GAIL India down by 2.44%, BPCL down by 2.18% and Tata Motors down by 2.09% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in the red; Hang Seng dipped 69.09 points or 0.28% to 24,399.80, Jakarta Composite decreased 21.59 points or 0.4% to 5,432.26, Taiwan Weighted slipped 9.72 points or 0.1% to 9,727.01, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI declined 8.52 points or 0.47% to 1,800.61, Shanghai Composite shed 8.41 points or 0.23% to 3,573.87, KOSPI Index dropped 7.95 points or 0.39% to 2,029.94 and Nikkei 225 was down by 6.88 points or 0.04% to 19,469.68. On the flip side, Straits Times was up by 20.56 points or 0.61% to 3,406.72.