Markets trade choppy despite firm global cues

Local benchmarks were trading choppy in late afternoon session with sensex and nifty were trading slightly in red terrain despite firm global cues. Traders shrugged off report that the country's foreign direct investment (FDI) has got a big push by the launch of Make in India programme in September 2014 and surged up by 46 per cent during October 2014 and May this year.  Selling in banking counter too dampened sentiment and HDFC Bank  gave up gains after Q1 earnings announcement, its net profit was slightly below estimates, an uptick in gross NPA ratio to 1.04 per cent weighed on the stock.

On the global front, Asian peers edged higher on Thursday, while the yen and New Zealand's dollar sank to six-week lows amid signs regional policy makers are preparing to unleash stimulus at a time when corporate earnings are proving more resilient.The European markets too have made a positive start.

Back home, in scrip specific development, Axis Bank was trading 2 per cent down at Rs 547.50 after the bank reduced the base rate by 10 basis points from the current 9.45 per cent to 9.35 per cent. This will be effective from July 27, 2016.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 27849.38, down by 66.51 points or 0.24% after trading in a range of 27805.52 and 27988.76. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.47%, while Small cap index added 0.41%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 1.04%, PSU up by 0.44%, Realty up by 0.41%, Consumer Durables up by 0.25% and Auto up by 0.10%, while Power down by 0.64%, Bankex down by 0.54%, Capital Goods down by 0.37%, IT down by 0.18% and TECK down by 0.09% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Adani Ports & SEZ up by 1.63%, Coal India up by 1.31%, Cipla up by 1.15%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.82% and Asian Paints up by 0.82%. On the flip side, Axis Bank down by 2.08%, Dr. Reddys Lab down by 1.38%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.19%, Reliance Industries down by 1.14% and Power Grid Corpn. down by 1.10% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the country's foreign direct investment (FDI) has got a big push by the launch of Make in India programme in September 2014 and surged up by 46 per cent during October 2014 and May this year. The FDI during October 2014 and May this year has jumped up to 61.58 billion from $42.31 billion in comparison to previous 20 months (February 2013 to September 2014).

During the period, the sectors which attracted maximum FDI include services, trading, automobile and power. Commerce and Industry, Nirmala Sitharaman has said that to further boost the investment environment and bring in more foreign capital, the government is also taking various steps like opening up FDI in many sectors, carrying out FDI related reforms and improving ease of doing business. She added that DIPP has advised ministries and states to simplify and rationalise the regulatory environment through business process re-engineering and use of information technology.

The `Make in India’ initiative launched in September 2014, aims to promote India as an important investment destination and a global hub for manufacturing, design, and innovation. Last fiscal 2015-16, the country has received $40 billion FDI which increased by 29 percent from $30.93 billion from the previous fiscal.The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8557.60, down by 8.25 points or 0.10% after trading in a range of 8544.25 and 8585.25. There were 24 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were ACC up by 4.74%, BPCL up by 1.99%, Adani Ports &Special up by 1.63%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.58% and Ambuja Cement up by 1.53%. On the flip side, Axis Bank down by 2.10%, Bank Of Baroda down by 1.52%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.46%, Dr. Reddys Lab down by 1.32% and BHEL down by 1.28% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green, Shanghai Composite increased 8.59 points or 0.28% to 3,036.48, Jakarta Composite climbed 13.56 points or 0.26% to 5,256.38, Taiwan Weighted surged 48.88 points or 0.54% to 9,056.56, Nikkei 225 jumped 128.33 points or 0.77% to 16,810.22, Hang Seng rose 216.57 points or 0.99% to 22,099.05. On the flip side, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI decreased 7.88 points or 0.47% to 1,661.73, KOSPI Index was down 3.24 points or 0.16% to 2,012.22.