Benchmarks resume northward journey; Nifty regains 8,800 mark

Resuming their northward journey after a day of halt, Indian equity benchmarks ended the session with a gain of over half a percent and frontline gauges recapturing their crucial 8,800 (Nifty) and 29,000 (Sensex) levels. Sentiments remained up-beat on reports that index for industrial output (IIP) for the month of February came in at 5%, way higher than street expectation of a number of around 3.50% and also higher compared to 2.6% in January, mainly on account of splendid growth of capital goods and consumer goods sector.

Some support also came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi wooing German investors said that opportunities in India are “seamless” and huge for a vibrant economic partnership. He also assured that ‘Invest India’ has been set up and country desks in it that will be networked to the states, he said that we will nurture innovation and protect intellectual property. However, upside remained capped as investors stayed on sidelines ahead of CPI data for March which is slated to be announced later in the day, though all eyes this week will be on corporate performance of big companies like TCS and Reliance Industries.

Global cues too remained supportive, European markets have made a positive start and were trading in green in early deals on Monday. Asian markets ended mostly in the green on Monday, as weak Chinese trade data intensified expectations for more economic stimulus measures from Beijing.

Back home, some support also came with reports that foreign institutional investors were net buyers in equities to the tune of Rs 363 crore on Friday, as per provisional stock exchange data. Meanwhile, power companies functioning in Delhi, like Tata Power showed some up move after they sought 20% hike in power tariff citing severe fund crunch. Select stocks from real estate sector too remained on buyers’ radar after HDFC and State Bank of India cut interest rates on housing loans. Additionally, shares of upstream oil exploration and production companies edged higher on increasing global crude oil prices. However, metal shares remained subdued after data showed that China’s imports contracted by 12.7% in March 2015 compared to the same month last year.

The NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index Nifty rose by over fifty points and ended above the psychological 8,800 support level, while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index -- Sensex surged by over one hundred and sixty points to finish above the psychological 29,000 mark. Broader markets too traded with traction throughout the trade and ended the session with a gain of around half a percentage point. The market breadth remained in favor of advances, as there were 1,703 shares on the gaining side against 1,124 shares on the losing side while 137 shares remain unchanged.

Finally, the BSE Sensex surged 165.06 points or 0.57% to 29,044.44, while the CNX Nifty gained 53.65 points or 0.61% to 8,834.00.

The BSE Sensex touched a high and a low of 29072.51 and 28843.94, respectively. The BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.31%, while Small cap index gained 0.81%.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 3.18%, BHEL up by 2.98%, Sun Pharma up by 2.69%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.30% and Reliance Industries up by 2.07%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 2.58%, Hindalco down by 1.38%, GAIL India down by 1.13%, Tata Motors down by 1.06% and Sesa Sterlite down by 0.57% were the top losers.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 1.60%, Healthcare up by 1.46%, Capital Goods up by 1.43%, INFRA up by 1.20% and Power up by 0.99%, while Auto down by 0.64% and Realty down by 0.22% were the only losing indices on BSE.

Meanwhile, in an attempt to lure investors from Germany and the rest of the world at the inauguration of Hannover Messe Fair, the world`s biggest industrial fair, Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured of a welcoming business environment in India with a ‘predictable, stable and competitive’ tax regime.

PM also asserted that this government would do all that it requires to remove unnecessary regulations, simplify procedures for ease of conducting business in the country and enabling foreign companies to participate in the ‘Make in India’ programme.

Further, he also highlighted that his country had did its bit to simplify procedures by turning goods and service tax which is a long needed revolution, a ground reality. He also highlighted the country’s incremental use of digital technology to accumulate multiple approvals and endless waits.

PM also highlighted that “Make in India” was not just a brand or simply a slogan and that his ministry had really moved with speed and boldness to fulfill its pledge of creating a stable economic environment railway, which is the thread that binds India and now a fast track for country’s transformation.

The CNX Nifty touched a high and low of 8,841.65 and 8,762.10 respectively.

The top gainers on Nifty were Idea Cellular up by 3.52%, BHEL up by 3.28%, Bharti Airtel up by 3.26%, Sun Pharma up by 3.12% and Cairn India up by 2.24%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.13%, ACC down by 2.81%, Tata Motors down by 1.16%, GAIL down by 1.04% and SSLT India down by 0.67% were the top losers.

European Markets were trading in the green; Germany's DAX was up by 0.01%, France's CAC was up by 0.02% and UK's FTSE 100 was up by 0.60%.

The Asian markets closed mostly in green on Monday, with Chinese stock markets touched a seven-year highs as weak Chinese trade data intensified expectations for more economic stimulus measures from Beijing. China’s export sales contracted 15 percent in March while import shipments fell at their sharpest rate since the 2009 global financial crisis, a shock outcome that deepens concern about sputtering Chinese economic growth. The tumble in exports - the worst in about a year - compared with expectations for a 12 percent rise could heighten worries about how a rising yuan has hurt demand for Chinese goods and services abroad. In a sign that domestic demand was also tepid, imports into the world’s second-biggest economy shrank 12.7 percent last month from a year ago. That was the biggest slump in imports since May 2009. Chinese Trade Balance fell to 3.08B, from 60.60B in the preceding month.

The Bank of Japan raised its economic assessment for three of Japan’s nine regions in a quarterly report, signaling that the benefit of its stimulus programme was broadening. The central bank kept intact its optimistic assessment for the remaining six regions, stressing that solid demand at home and overseas is underpinning output and the job market. Japan’s Corporate Goods Price Index rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 0.7%, from 0.5% in the preceding month while Japan’s Core Machinery Orders rose to -0.4%, from -1.7% in the preceding month. Japan’s M2 Money Stock rose to a seasonally adjusted 3.6%, from 3.5% in the preceding month.