Benchmarks continue to trade in red in late morning session

Indian bourses continued to trade in red in the late morning session as funds and retail investors engaged in reducing positions amid a weak trend in global markets. The possibility of a Fed rate hike in December has dampened the investors’ sentiment. The loss of the NDA in the Bihar elections also created uncertainty among the investors, as the poll debacle is perceived as a major challenge for the government to push their key economic reform initiatives. Sentiments also remained subdued on report that foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 861.06 crore on November 9, 2015. However, losses remained capped as the Paris-based think tank OECD, despite cutting the global growth forecast has said that with “relatively robust” growth prospects, the Indian economy is expected to expand by 7.2 percent this fiscal but difficulty in passing key structural reforms and large non-performing loans are holding it back. Also, Fitch Ratings has said that BJP's defeat in the Bihar assembly elections is unlikely to have any major implications on the economic front.

On the global front, Asian stocks traded mostly lower in early trade, as investors fret over the fragile outlook for global growth and the Federal Reserve’s plan to raise US interest rates soon. Furthermore, US stocks ended Monday with their sharpest decline in six weeks, marking a fourth consecutive session of losses for the S&P 500. However, investors find some support as Soft China data often fuels expectations for more of the stimulus measures that have tended to underpin Chinese shares.

Back on street, stocks from Consumer Durables and Auto counters were supporting the markets’ uptrend, while those from Oil & Gas, Metal and PSU counters were adding to the underlying cautious undertone. In scrip specific development, Shares of Shilpa Medicare have surged after the company reported 28% year on year (YoY) jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 22.22 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 (Q2).  Furthermore, Pfizer has rallied after the company reported a massive jump in its standalone net profit at Rs 61.64 crore for the September quarter 2015 as against a net profit of Rs 1.76 crore for the same period last year.

The market breadth on BSE was negative, out of 2161 stocks traded, 1121 stocks advanced, while 956 stocks declined on the BSE. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 25963.15, down by 158.25 points or 0.61% after trading in a range of 25937.26 and 26094.09. There were 8 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in mix; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.36%, while Small cap index up by 0.27%.

The only gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 0.48% and Auto up by 0.39%, while Oil & Gas down by 1.87%, Metal down by 1.49%, PSU down by 1.07%, Power down by 0.98% and Realty down by 0.97% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Hero MotoCorp up by 1.44%, Bajaj Auto up by 1.38%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.09%, Axis Bank up by 0.84% and Maruti Suzuki up by 0.69%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 3.95%, Dr. Reddys Lab down by 2.81%, Hindalco down by 2.63%, BHEL down by 2.60% and GAIL India down by 1.73% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to continue improving the rural roads in the states like Assam, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal, the Government of India along with Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed a $273 million loan agreement. This loan constitutes the third tranche, which is also the last tranche of the $800 million financing facility under the Rural Connectivity Investment Programme (RCIP).

The loan will help to construct over 6,000 kilometers of all-weather rural roads in the aforesaid five states to be completed in June 2018, benefiting over 4,200 rural habitations. The enhanced connectivity will improve access of rural communities to markets, district headquarters, health and education facilities, and other centers of economic activity.

The Ministry of Rural Development (MORD) is the executing agency of the project at the central level, while the Governments of States of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal have been entrusted with overall implementation at the respective State level. The third tranche is expected to be completed by December, 2017. The implementing agencies at the State level will be the respective State Rural Roads Development Agencies.     

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 7857.00, down by 58.20 points or 0.74% after trading in a range of 7849.10 and 7885.10. There were 10 stocks advancing against 40 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hero MotoCorp up by 1.70%, Zee Entertainment up by 1.46%, Bajaj Auto up by 1.39%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.90% and Axis Bank up by 0.87%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 4.27%, Hindalco down by 3.19%, Dr. Reddys Lab down by 2.95%, BHEL down by 2.79% and Ambuja Cement down by 2.54% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading in mostly red, Hang Seng was down by 1.27%, Taiwan Weighted down by 1.19%, Nikkei 225 down by 0.09%, KOSPI Index down by 1.67% and Jakarta Composite was down by 0.04%. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite was up by 0.02%.