Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets traded on a lackluster note throughout the day and ended the session with modest cut. The key benchmark indices - Sensex and Nifty - lost some of their upward movement as stocks developed cold feet because of selling pressure. The equity benchmarks made a positive start and traded slightly in green in early deals taking support from Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) report which predicted Asia’s economy to expand faster in 2017; South Asia to remain the fastest growing of all sub-regions and India to achieve a 7.4 percent growth due to strong consumption. Separately, describing newly implemented Goods and Services Tax (GST) as a win-win situation for all, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that it will expand the tax net, end ‘inspector raj’ and bring down prices of goods for the common man. Pitching the GST as a measure beneficial for the country, he said that prices of goods have come down between 4-8% since roll-out of new indirect tax regime from July 1 and the real effect could be felt after three months. Mixed reactions were displayed in banking stocks taking clues from CRISIL’s report which stated that the banks may have to incur significant losses in the process of resolving the mammoth bad loans. Lenders may have to forget 60% of their outstanding dues or about Rs 2.4 lakh crore from top 50 stressed companies that could not repay their loans leading to insolvency battles. Investors were eyeing for more corporate earnings to determine the further directions. Reliance Industries closed in red ahead of its June quarter earnings. According to a private poll, the company is expected to post consolidated net sales of Rs 76,326 crore and net profit of Rs 7,764.5 crore for the three months ended 30 June.

On the global front, Asian markets closed mostly in green. The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady and pushed back again the timing for achieving its 2 percent inflation target, reinforcing expectations it will lag well behind major global central banks in dialing back its massive stimulus programme. The European markets were trading in green as investors awaited a rate decision by the European Central Bank (ECB). The euro zone’s public deficit dropped in the first quarter of the year to its lowest level in nearly a decade, driven by a widening surplus in Germany and despite France’s increasing fiscal gap.

Back home, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) closed in green, while Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) closed in red after the Cabinet gave an in-principle approval to sell the government’s entire 51.11% stake in HPCL to ONGC in a bid to create a state-run integrated oil major with a market value of $42 billion, that can compete with private and foreign players.

The BSE Sensex ended at 31902.61, down by 52.74 points or 0.17% after trading in a range of 31859.50 and 32057.12. There were 7 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended mixed; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.54%, while Small cap index was up by 0.15%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 0.68%, Capital Goods up by 0.21%, Bankex up by 0.13% and Consumer Durables up by 0.09%, while Metal down by 1.07%, IT down by 0.88%, Basic Materials down by 0.86%, TECK down by 0.77% and Healthcare down by 0.66% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Axis Bank up by 3.55%, ONGC up by 1.63%, HDFC Bank up by 1.04%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.84% and Larsen & Toubro up by 0.51%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 2.59%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.68%, Infosys down by 1.14%, NTPC down by 1.14% and Dr. Reddy’s Lab down by 1.09% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, raising its growth forecast for Asia’s economy for this year, the Asian Development Bank in its latest report has said that the South Asia will remain the fastest growing of all sub-regions in Asia and the Pacific, while Indian economy is expected to achieve previous growth projections 7.4 per cent in 2017 and 7.6 per cent in 2018 on the back of strong consumption demand.

In its Asian Development Outlook Supplement report, the ADB sees the improved growth prospects for developing Asia owing to a strong export demand in the first quarter (Q1) and pegged growth rate of 5.9 per cent for it. The report further said that the combined growth for the major industrial economies will remain at 1.9 per cent in 2017 and 2018.

ADB report sees improved outlook for Central Asia this year as stronger domestic demand and exports in some countries have fueled an unexpected recovery in the sub-region, forecasting growth rate at 3.2 per cent in 2017 and 3.8 per cent in 2018 compared to the original projections of 3.1 per cent and 3.5 per cent, respectively. Besides, it said that growth projections for Southeast Asia are expected to remain at 4.8 per cent in 2017 and 5.0 per cent in 2018.

The CNX Nifty ended at 9870.90, down by 28.70 points or 0.29% after trading in a range of 9863.45 and 9922.55. There were 12 stocks advancing against 39 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Axis Bank up by 3.72%, ONGC up by 1.53%, HDFC Bank up by 1.16%, Indiabulls Housing up by 0.80% and Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.62%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 2.40%, Bharti Infratel down by 2.08%, Aurobindo Pharma down by 1.91%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.66% and Vedanta down by 1.65% were the top losers. (Provisional)

The European markets were trading in green; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 40.37 points or 0.54% to 7,471.28, Germany’s DAX increased 55.98 points or 0.45% to 12,508.03 and France’s CAC increased 15.7 points or 0.3% to 5,231.77.

Asian equity markets ended mostly in green on Thursday after oil prices hit six-week high and the Bank of Japan kept its lavish monetary stimulus intact, as widely expected. The European Central Bank reviews its monetary policy later today, with investors looking for any hints that it could start to remove some of its extraordinary levels of support for the euro zone economy. Oil prices held steady after climbing nearly 2 percent overnight on data showing another big weekly decline in US crude oil and gasoline stockpiles, while gold edged lower ahead of ECB rate decision. Chinese shares ended higher on expectations of solid earnings from cyclical sectors such as mining and steel. Further, Japanese shares rose as the yen weakened following the BOJ’s decision to leave its monetary policy on hold. Investors’ sentiments were also buoyed by upbeat trade data pointing to sustained economic recovery. Japan's trade balance returned to surplus in June, though the net balance came in below expectations.