Key benchmark indices continue to trade in red

Key benchmark indices continued to trade in red in the afternoon session on fresh selling mainly in Metal, Realty, Oil & Gas, Energy and PSU sectors amidst mixed global cues. Investors remained cautious ahead of state elections results, including that of the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh, and a US Federal Reserve policy meeting next week. However, the downside was capped taking support from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement that his government has been able to tame inflation which had gone out of control before 2014 and no political party could raise the issue during the polls in five states. PM cited examples of how different organizations around the world including the World Bank, IMF and others have appreciated the demonetization move. In scrip specific development, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) was down by around a percent after reporting 1.22 % fall in its production to 44401 units in February 2017 as compared to 44950 units in same month last year.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed amid mounting geopolitical risks in the region and rising expectations that the Federal Reserve would tighten monetary policy next week. Investors also remained cautious ahead of the release of China's trade data for February later in the day, which may show a higher export growth that will signal global recovery.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 28831.66, down by 167.90 points or 0.58% after trading in a range of 28815.48 and 29022.32. There were 5 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.78%, while Small cap index was down by 0.58%.

The only gaining sectoral index on the BSE was Healthcare up by 0.07%, while Metal down by 2.13%, Realty down by 1.60%, Oil & Gas down by 1.46%, Energy down by 1.26% and PSU down by 1.14% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Cipla up by 0.27%, Power Grid up by 0.26%, TCS up by 0.13%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.08% and HDFC Bank up by 0.05%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 2.28%, Axis Bank down by 1.95%, Adani Ports &Special down by 1.85%, ONGC down by 1.66% and Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.25% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to check demonetization’s impacts over economy, a key Parliamentary panel is expected to submit its report in next month after reviewing various submissions, including by RBI Governor Urjit Patel. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), headed by senior Congress leader K V Thomas, is looking into the adverse impact on various sectors and overall GDP growth due to note ban.

Thomas said that the PAC asked central bank to come out with the exact number of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes which were demonetized and deposited with banks after government announced the move on November 8.  He said that the RBI has sought some more time to arrive at the final figure. He added that the report will be presented before the end of the budget session. 

Recently, the Parliamentary Committee had called top bureaucrats from the Finance Ministry, including Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia and Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, to discuss issues relating to demonetization. Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal had told Parliament that currency notes worth Rs 15.44 lakh crore (17,165 million pieces of Rs 500 and 6,858 million pieces of Rs 1,000 notes) were in circulation on November 8.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8901.40, down by 45.50 points or 0.51% after trading in a range of 8891.95 and 8957.05. There were 13 stocks advancing against 38 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Yes Bank up by 1.22%, ACC up by 0.75%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.69%, Eicher Motors up by 0.60% and Power Grid up by 0.39%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 2.54%, Tata Steel down by 2.22%, BPCL down by 2.12%, Axis Bank down by 1.92% and ONGC down by 1.68% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; KOSPI Index increased 1.36 points or 0.06% to 2,095.41, Taiwan Weighted rose 15.38 points or 0.16% to 9,753.45 and Hang Seng gained 106.4 points or 0.45% to 23,787.47. On the other hand, Nikkei 225 decreased 90.12 points or 0.47% to 19,254.03, Shanghai Composite was down by 5.02 points or 0.15% to 3,237.38 and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI slipped 1.73 points or 0.1% to 1,726.93.