Benchmarks trade modestly in green

Indian equity benchmarks continued their lackluster trade in green in late morning session, extending yesterday’s gain on sustained buying by participants. The benchmark indices remained volatile in morning ahead of corporate earnings and Union Budget that scheduled to be announced on February 1. Piling on Wednesday’s loss, the rupee plunged against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday on increased demand for the American currency from importers. Besides, the dollar’s strength against other currencies overseas also weighed on the rupee. Traders were taking support with Minister for Road Transport and Shipping Nitin Gadkari’s statement, who showcasing India’s growth story before global business leaders at WEF annual meeting, said it is the appropriate time to invest in the country and added that the country is also working on ways to improve purchasing power of common men as that will present further opportunities. The street also took note of private financial services major report that India’s growth numbers are likely to slide in the next two quarters, but a sharp rebound is expected in the second half of 2017 as the demonetization impact will be transitory and not long lasting. The factors responsible for a V-shaped recovery in the second half of this year include release of pent-up demand, minimal wealth destruction post demonetization and fiscal gains for the government that are likely to accrue in 2017-18.

Traders were seen piling position in Oil & Gas, Consumer Durables and FMCG stocks, while selling was witnessed in Power, Bankex and Metal sector stocks. In scrip specific development, Monnet Ispat & Energy was trading firm on reports that JSW Steel, along with Synergy Capital and Blackstone are in discussions with lenders for a controlling stake in the company, through the strategic debt restructuring (SDR) route. Debt-ridden steelmaker, Uttam Galva Steels was in green amid news that Aion Capital Partners, which is a joint venture between Apollo Global Management and ICICI Venture, is in talks with the promoters and lenders of the company for a comprehensive restructuring package.

On the global front, Asian shares were trading mostly in red, with Tokyo posting strong gains despite a bumpy ride for Toshiba shares as investors welcome a slightly weaker yen. China stocks edged down after two consecutive gaining sessions. Back home, the NSE Nifty and BSE Sensex were trading above the psychological 8,400 and 27,200 levels respectively. The market breadth on BSE was positive in the ratio of 1193:949, while 130 scrips remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 27286.42, up by 28.78 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 27219.89 and 27296.86. There were 12 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.25%, while Small cap index was up by 0.25%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 1.28%, Consumer Durables up by 1.12%, FMCG up by 0.71%, PSU up by 0.30% and Auto up by 0.25%, while Power down by 0.43%, Bankex down by 0.41%, Metal down by 0.33%, IT down by 0.13% and Capital Goods down by 0.07% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Tata Motors up by 2.05%, Bharti Airtel up by 2.01%, ONGC up by 1.26%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.09% and ITC up by 1.04%.
On the flip side, Axis Bank down by 1.55%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.87%, Wipro down by 0.70%, Tata Steel down by 0.55% and TCS down by 0.43% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, presenting growth story of India before global business leaders at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting 2017, Minister for Road Transport and Shipping Nitin Gadkari has said that this is the right time for investing in India and added that the country is working on ways to improve purchasing power of common men as that will help to boost further opportunities.

Gadkari has stated that the country is also working on record road construction projects and is not facing any problems relating to land acquisition and environmental clearances. He noted that the port sector is also growing at a fast pace and six new ports are being developed, while the country is focusing big on cruise tourism. He further added that Inland riverway is another key focus and work has started with the Ganga. 

Talking on demonetisation move, the Minister has said that the move will help in strengthening the economy as well as encourage more investments. He also said that in the beginning there were some problems, but now things have improved considerably and everything would be completely normal within a month. He pointed out that payments through digital modes have helped a lot and also said that toll collections have gone up. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8419.90, up by 2.90 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 8404.05 and 8427.90. There were 20 stocks advancing against 31 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Tata Motors - DVR up by 2.61%, Tata Motors up by 2.24%, Idea Cellular up by 2.22%, BPCL up by 2.11% and Bharti Infratel up by 1.93%.

On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 1.61%, Axis Bank down by 1.57%, IndusInd Bank down by 1.01%, Eicher Motors down by 0.97% and Hindalco down by 0.90% were the top losers.

The Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng decreased 137.22 points or 0.59% to 22,961.04, Taiwan Weighted decreased 20.82 points or 0.22% to 9,321.15, Shanghai Composite decreased 2.55 points or 0.08% to 3,110.46 and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI decreased 1.41 points or 0.08% to 1,663.61.

On the other hand, KOSPI Index increased 1.78 points or 0.09% to 2,072.32, Jakarta Composite increased 7.46 points or 0.14% to 5,302.25 and Nikkei 225 increased 186.21 points or 0.99% to 19,080.58.