Benchmarks extend gains supported by metals and oil & gas

Indian equity benchmarks extended early gains in the afternoon session, hovering near intra-day high level on increased buying by funds and retail investors. The frontline gauges were trading comfortably above the crucial 8,250 (Nifty) and 26,800 (Sensex) mark. The sentiments were upbeat with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley expressing confidence that direct and indirect tax mop-up will surpass Budget estimate of Rs 16.3 lakh crore by March-end.  Investors took support with the private report stating that government is expected to meet the fiscal deficit target of 3.5 per cent of GDP in the current financial year, despite recent demonetisation move and potential delay in roll out of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). The domestic sentiment was also buoyed due a firm trend in Asian market. Meanwhile, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India increased by 27% at $27.82 billion during the April-October period of the current fiscal as against $21.87 billion in the same period last fiscal.  In scrip specific development, Sun Pharma was up by over a percent after the pharma major announced successful Phase 3 confirmatory clinical trial results for Seciera for the treatment of dry eye disease.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, tracking the overnight gains on Wall Street and as the U.S. dollar retreated from 14-year highs. Investors also digested minutes from the Federal Reserve's December meeting released overnight, which indicated that the Fed's decision to raise interest rates by a quarter point was partly due to an assumption of more expansionary fiscal policy under President-elect Donald Trump. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 26864.32, up by 231.19 points or 0.87% after trading in a range of 26738.42 and 26871.14. There were 28 stocks advancing against 2 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 1.09%, while Small cap index was up by 0.95%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 2.75%, Oil & Gas up by 1.56%, PSU up by 1.32%, Bankex up by 1.24% and Auto up by 1.23%, while there were no losers on BSE sectoral front.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Adani Ports &SEZ up by 3.85%, Tata Steel up by 3.51%, Tata Motors up by 2.75%, ONGC up by 2.62% and ICICI Bank up by 1.95%. On the flip side, TCS down by 0.65% and Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.50% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in a positive surprise Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India increased by 27% at $27.82 billion during the April-October period of the current fiscal as against $21.87 billion in the same period last fiscal. The FDI numbers indicates that the government has been able to create a suitable climate in which the foreign investors feel confident that interest is protected.

According to Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), manufacturing constituted around 41.5% of the equity inflows, while non-manufacturing were around 58.5% during April 2014 to Sept 2016. Total FDI in the country in the last financial year was $55.6 billion, up by 23% over previous year. DIPP also stated that trademarks filing has increased by 10% and its examination grew by 250% so far this fiscal till November and added that trademark pendency has come down to 3 months and is expected to be 1 month by March 2017. 

The main sectors including services, telecom, trading, computer hardware and software and automobile were the major areas which attracted FDI inflows. The country receives maximum FDI from Singapore, Mauritius, the Netherlands and Japan. FDI is considered crucial for country, which needs around $1 trillion for overhauling its infrastructure sector such as ports, airports and highways to boost growth. Growth in foreign investments will also help improving the country's balance of payments (BoP) situation and strengthen the rupee value against other global currencies, especially the US dollar.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8264.30, up by 73.80 points or 0.90% after trading in a range of 8223.70 and 8267.00. There were 47 stocks advancing against 4 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Ports &SEZ up by 3.71%, Tata Steel up by 3.32%, Aurobindo Pharma up by 3.01%, Yes Bank up by 2.91% and Tata Motors up by 2.71%. On the flip side, Bharti Infratel down by 1.79%, TCS down by 0.68%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.47% and Tech Mahindra down by 0.43% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Shanghai Composite increased 4.07 points or 0.13% to 3,162.86, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI gained 7.86 points or 0.48% to 1,655.33, Jakarta Composite rose 26.03 points or 0.49% to 5,327.21, Taiwan Weighted was up by 71.18 points or 0.77% to 9,358.14 and Hang Seng increased 320.91 points or 1.45% to 22,455.38. On the flip side, Nikkei 225 decreased 73.47 points or 0.37% to 19,520.69 and KOSPI Index was down by 3.69 points or 0.18% to 2,041.95.