Markets continue to trade choppy; Sensex breaches 27,000 mark

Indian equity benchmarks continue to trade choppy in noon deals with Sensex and Nifty declining below their crucial 27,000 and 8,150 levels, respectively, as market participants continue to square-up positions with today being the last trading session of the October derivatives expiry. Concerns that likely Fed rate hike in December would see outflows from emerging markets, too dampened sentiments. Depreciation in Indian rupee too weighed down sentiments. The rupee depreciated by 22 paise to 65.13 against the US dollar on strong demand for the US currency from importers after the US Federal Reserve indicated it may hike interest rates in December.

On the global front, Asian equity indices were trading mostly in red at this point of time with Fed outlook bolstering prospects for a December interest-rate increase. Back home, on the sectoral front, consumer durables, realty and auto 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 trading mixed, while the market breadth on the BSE was positive; there were 1,221 shares on the gaining side against 1,093 shares on the losing side while 171 shares remain unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 26962.67, down by 77.09 points or 0.29% after trading in a range of 26934.00 and 27099.11. There were 11 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red and green; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.03%, while Small cap index up by 0.15%.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 1.20%, Realty up by 0.51%, Auto up by 0.41% and Healthcare up by 0.23%, while Power down by 0.89%, PSU down by 0.82%, FMCG down by 0.76%, TECK down by 0.67% and Oil & Gas down by 0.52% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Dr. Reddys Lab up by 2.50%, Tata Motors up by 1.30%, Vedanta up by 1.24%, HDFC up by 1.22% and Lupin up by 0.93%. On the flip side, BHEL down by 4.28%, Axis Bank down by 2.28%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.93%, Coal India down by 1.71% and GAIL India down by 1.35% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that India is looking at the feasibility for providing easy and cost effective credit facilities, in order to built capacities in the developing nations, particularly in Africa. On the other side, she has asked the African countries to leverage 'Duty Free Tariff Preferences' (DFTP) offered by India.

Under DFTP scheme India provides duty free market access on over 95 per cent of tariff lines to least developed countries. Sitharaman has said that businesses in India and Africa could leverage the benefits offered by the DFTP while exploring each other's markets. Moreover, She added that not many countries have offered such overarching reduction in tariffs for least developed countries (LDCs), including those in Africa. 

Sitharaman has advised the financial institutions and think tank in Africa and India to popularize the advantages of the scheme. She pointed out that India has been encouraging services cooperation with African nations. she further said that 'Africa has the potential for development of Tourism, Healthcare, Hospitality and ICT sectors. The Government of India supported Pan-Africa E-Network has contributed significantly to the Africa's skill development and healthcare delivery'.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8147.95, down by 23.25 points or 0.28% after trading in a range of 8134.25 and 8179.60. There were 23 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Dr. Reddys Lab up by 2.39%, Yes Bank up by 1.90%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.58%, Vedanta up by 1.33% and Tata Motors up by 1.18%. On the flip side, BHEL down by 4.24%, BPCL down by 2.57%, Axis Bank down by 2.32%, Bharti Airtel down by 2.08% and Power Grid down by 2.02% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Jakarta Composite tumbled 101.13 points or 2.19% to 4,507.61, Taiwan Weighted declined 94.91 points or 1.1% to 8,571.08, Hang Seng decreased 94.64 points or 0.41% to 22,861.93, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI shed 12.53 points or 0.74% to 1,673.98 and KOSPI Index was down by 8.35 points or 0.41% to 2,034.16. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite increased 5.57 points or 0.16% to 3,380.77 and Nikkei 225 was up by 32.69 points or 0.17% to 18,935.71.