Markets trade flat with negative bias in range-bound session of trade

In the extremely range-bound session of trade, Indian benchmark indices altering between positive and negative territory, were now trading flat with bit of negative bias as investors and foreign funds were adopting a cautious approach, amid global turmoil after Britain decided to exit the European Union in a historic referendum on June 24. However, investors got some comfort with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s statement that the impact of the Brexit vote on India would not be significant, as the underlying fundamentals of the economy were robust. Jaitley however, noted that Indian companies with significant operations in the UK would have to tailor their businesses accordingly to deal with the fallout. Some support also came with Moody's Investors Service’s stating that India's decision to relax foreign direct investment in sectors including defence, aviation, and retail is a positive development for the country's sovereign ratings. The announcement is credit positive because it demonstrates a continuation of reform momentum and paves the way for private investment and a boost in productivity. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading in red in early trade as indices struggled to digest the uncertainty triggered by Britain's decision to exit the European Union. Further, Japanese stocks rebounded after getting slammed in last week, while Chinese shares advanced after the central bank weakened its fixing for the yuan by the most since August. Back home, stocks from Realty, Oil & Gas and PSU counters were supporting the markets’ uptrend, while those from IT, Teck and Auto counters were adding to the underlying cautious undertone. In scrip specific development, shares of Aban Offshore surged after the company’s arm received order from ONGC for the deployment of the Drillship Aban Abraham for a firm period of 2 years. Furthermore, Larsen & Toubro has gained after the company’s Construction arm received orders worth Rs 2,416 crore.

The market breadth remained optimistic as there were 1597 shares on the gaining side against 491 shares on the losing side, while 127 shares remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 26394.01, down by 3.70 points or 0.01% after trading in a range of 26298.87 and 26438.84. 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 0.70%, while Small cap index gained 1.28%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 1.60%, Realty up by 1.56%, PSU up by 1.10%, Capital Goods up by 1.03% and FMCG up by 0.95%, while IT down by 1.37%, TECK down by 1.29% and Auto down by 0.28% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were SBI up by 1.63%, NTPC up by 1.34%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.34%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 1.23% and GAIL India up by 1.17%. On the flip side, TCS down by 2.65%, Infosys down by 1.32%, Power Grid down by 1.03%, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.01% and Wipro down by 0.77% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that amid global headwinds India continues to maintain a high growth rate at 7.6 per cent in 2015-16 compared to 7.2 per cent in the previous year. Commenting on India’s growth rate, he said India is maintaining a high growth rate at time of global difficulties and is sticking with its agenda of reforms push and infrastructure creation.

Jaitley who was ddressing the annual general meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), said that the Bank has come up amid huge expectations in a difficult time for the global economy and that India is preparing basket of projects worth $2-3 billion for AIIB funding.

Highlighting that India's endeavour is to reach a higher level of growth and to sustain it, Jaitley said, 'We have made India and open economy to attract more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)”. He added that India has undertaken reforms in FDI and initiated large investments in rural infrastructure, national highways, inland waterways, shipping, power sector and smart cities.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8087.00, down by 1.60 points or 0.02% after trading in a range of 8039.35 and 8100.75. There were 27 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were BPCL up by 3.16%, Ultratech Cement up by 2.83%, ACC up by 1.97%, Aurobindo Pharma up by 1.94% and Grasim Industries up by 1.79%. On the flip side, TCS down by 2.90%, Zee Entertainment down by 1.82%, Infosys down by 1.39%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.22% and Power Grid down by 1.09% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng decreased 0.41%, Taiwan Weighted slipped 0.28%, Jakarta Composite dipped 0.38%, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI shed 0.45% and KOSPI Index was down by 0.21%. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite increased 0.98% and Nikkei 225 was up by 1.85%.