Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets traded on a firm note throughout the day and ended the session with gains of more than seven tenth of percent. Buying intensified in last hour which helped Sensex close near highest point of trade and Nifty end at the highest point of the day. The equity benchmarks made a positive start and traded in fine fettle a day after BJP maintained its stronghold in Gujarat and also won elections in Himachal Pradesh. Sentiments were upbeat on a private report which highlighted brighter growth prospects for India by FY20 and beyond. India’s growth prospect is likely to see a slowdown in the next two years followed by recovery in the medium term, with 2019-20 GDP expected at around 7.6 per cent.  The report added that India’s growth story has a two-part narrative. The first is a slowdown and gradual recovery in the short run, likely over 2017-18 and 2018-19 as key sectors revive from disruptions related to the implementation of the goods and services tax (GST). The subsequent narrative is of brighter growth prospects in the medium term (2019-20 and beyond). Some support also came from Finance Ministry’s year end review report which highlighted major achievements of the government during 2017-18 year (FY18) and said that overall fundamentals of the economy remained strong in the current financial year, on the back of firm macroeconomic indicators, improvement in World Bank’s ease of doing business ranking and sovereign rating upgrade by Moody’s. Moreover, Jaitley said the government wants to bring petroleum and petroleum products under the ambit of GST and is awaiting the states’ response on the same.

Meanwhile, investors took note that the BJP’s victory in the Gujarat elections, hard-fought as it was, points clearly to the possible direction of the Budget that finance minister Arun Jaitley will present in February. Given its setbacks in non-urban areas, the big focus of the ruling party will be on agriculture and the rural economy, apart from a likely boost in minimum support prices (MSP). Public sector banks were buzzing in today’s trade on global rating agency Moody’s report that capital raising by a number of Public Sector Banks (PSBs), including PNB and UBI, is credit positive because it will help improve their loss-absorbing buffers. Sugar stocks were buzzing on news that the government will scrap the stockholding limit on sugar traders. The stockholding limit currently on the traders is about 500 tonnes of sugar that he can keep on a maximum limit. The limit reduces the buying interest of the traders.

On the global front, Asian markets closed mixed. The World Bank raised its forecast for China’s economic growth in 2017 to 6.8 percent from 6.7 percent it projected in October, as personal consumption and foreign trade supported growth. The European markets were trading mostly in green. German exports and imports will hit record highs in 2018, the BGA trade association said, adding that companies in Europe’s largest economy will continue to reap benefits of a recovery in the United States, the European Union and China.

Back home, select stocks related to tourism and hotel space were buzzing in today’s trade with the Union Tourism Minister K J Alphons’ statement that there was no adverse impact of the GST rollout on foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in the country.

The BSE Sensex ended at 33841.76, up by 240.08 points or 0.71% after trading in a range of 33666.62 and 33856.02. There were 23 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 1.50%, while Small cap index was up by 1.49%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 3.53%, Consumer Disc up by 2.43%, Telecom up by 2.30%, Consumer Durables up by 1.85% and Realty up by 1.61%, while IT down by 0.42% was the lone losing index on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 5.71%, Hero MotoCorp up by 4.90%, Tata Motors up by 3.27%, Tata Motors - DVR up by 2.94% and Bajaj Auto up by 2.78%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Wipro down by 1.20%, Infosys down by 1.01%, HDFC down by 0.75%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.54% and IndusInd Bank down by 0.43% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, highlighting major achievements of the government during 2017-18 year (FY18), the Finance Ministry in its year end review report has said that overall fundamentals of the economy remained strong in the current financial year, on the back of firm macroeconomic indicators, improvement in World Bank's ease of doing business ranking and sovereign rating upgrade by Moody's.

The report also highlighted various reforms measures taken by the government to sustain growth of the country including Goods and Services Tax (GST), demonetization and recapitalization of public sector banks. The Finance Ministry termed the GST as ‘transformational reform’, as it has brought transparency and accountability in business transactions along with ensuring ease of doing business and rationalization in tax rates, while on note ban it said that the exercise has helped to cleanse the economy of black money and increased number of taxpayers.

As per the review report, manufacturing, electricity, gas, water supply & other utility services trade, hotels, transport & communication and services related to broadcasting sectors registered growth of over 6.0% in Q2 of 2017-18 over Q2 of 2016-17. The Finance Ministry also stated that enhancing the quality of life remained primary goal for Government when it put into implementation the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission to benefit more than 48 Lakh Central Government Employees.

The CNX Nifty ended at 10472.20, up by 83.45 points or 0.80% after trading in a range of 10406.00 and 10472.20. There were 39 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 5.77%, Hero MotoCorp up by 4.79%, UPL up by 3.93%, Tata Motors up by 3.75% and Eicher Motors up by 3.21%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, HCL Tech down by 1.41%, Infosys down by 1.14%, HDFC down by 0.81%, HPCL down by 0.38% and Sun Pharma down by 0.34% were the top losers. (Provisional)

The European markets were trading mostly in green; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 18.44 points or 0.24% to 7,555.45, Germany’s DAX increased 5.43 points or 0.04% to 13,317.73, while France’s CAC decreased 1.76 points or 0.03% to 5,418.82.

Asian equity markets made a mixed closing on Tuesday as investors remained optimistic about the outlook for Republican tax reform and the World Bank raised its forecast for China's growth in 2017, citing rising household incomes and a recovery in global trade. The US House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the tax bill later in the day, while a vote in the Senate is expected to follow shortly on the heels. Chinese shares ended higher, reflecting gains in other regional markets and overnight gains on Wall Street. Meanwhile, Japanese shares edged lower amid profit taking as the year-end holiday season approaches.