Benchmarks trade flat with positive bias

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade flat with positive bias in the morning session in absence of any buying triggers. The rupee rose against the dollar as the US Congress gave its final seal of approval to a sweeping tax legislation. The special CBI court pronounce the judgment in the 2G scam, which rocked the telecom sector some years ago and played a major part in cementing the UPA government’s reputation of being corrupt. The court acquitted all accuses including former telecom minister A Raja acquitted in 2G case. The street took note that the Cabinet approved the introduction of the Consumer Protection Bill, 2017, to amend the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, with focused on faster redressal of consumer grievances and to ensure stringent action against unfair trade practices. The Bill seeks to enlarge the scope of the existing Act and proposes stricter actions against misleading advertisements and food adulteration. Separately, foreign investment inflows to India rose nearly $45 billion between April and October, 20 per cent more than what it was in the same period last year with improved outlook on the Indian economy, which is undergoing structural reforms. The rise in dollar inflows amid tightening of monetary policy across major markets including the US and the UK is a positive for India.

The upsides was however capped with the details of the minutes of the MPC meeting held on December 5 and 6 released by the RBI, where RBI Governor Urjit Patel flagged concerns over rising global oil prices and uncertainties on fiscal and external fronts. Two other members in the panel, Deputy Governor Viral Acharya and Executive Director Michael Debabrata Patra, flagged the issue of inflation in petroleum products. Public sector banks were trading under pressure after the finance ministry yesterday said that it has not provided the entire amount towards capital infusion in public sector banks as most of them failed to meet the performance target. As part of Indradhanush Plan to revitalize state-owned lenders, the government had proposed to infuse Rs 70,000 crore out of Budgetary Allocations in them.

Traders were seen piling up position in Capital goods, Healthcare and Industrials stocks, while selling was witnessed in Auto, Telecom and Bankex sector stocks. In scrip specific development, Pidilite Industries was trading firm as the meeting of the board of directors will be held on December 26 to consider the proposal to buyback the fully paid-up equity shares of the company. Bank of India and United Bank of India were trading in red as the Reserve Bank of India imposed certain restrictions on both banks due to a sharp rise in non-performing loans and erosion in capital. RBI triggered prompt corrective action (PCA) against the banks wherein the regulator monitors their performance.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green. The Bank of Japan kept monetary policy steady despite growing signs of strength in the economy, signaling that it was in no rush to edge away from crisis-mode stimulus with inflation still distant from its 2 percent target. Back home, the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty were trading above the psychological 33,700 and 10,400 levels respectively. The market breadth on BSE was positive in the ratio of 1578:702, while 137 scrips remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 33781.24, up by 3.86 points or 0.01% after trading in a range of 33748.82 and 33860.99. There were 16 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.35%, while Small cap index was up by 0.74%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Capital Goods up by 1.05%, Healthcare up by 1.05%, Industrials up by 0.73%, Basic Materials up by 0.68% and Power up by 0.56%, while Auto down by 0.44%, Telecom down by 0.42%, Bankex down by 0.28%, Consumer Durables down by 0.17% and FMCG down by 0.13% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 1.84%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.43%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.19%, NTPC up by 0.81% and Tata Steel up by 0.73%.

On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 2.65%, ICICI Bank down by 0.78%, Infosys down by 0.75%, Hindustan Unilever down by 0.56% and Bharti Airtel down by 0.53% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Union Cabinet has approved the Consumer Protection Bill, 2017, paving the way for its introduction in Parliament. Once approved by Parliament, the new law will replace the current Consumer Protection Act, 1986. The Bill enforces consumer rights, and provides a mechanism for redressal of complaints regarding defect in goods and deficiency in services.

The new bill seeks to enlarge scope of the existing law and make it more effective and purposeful. It seeks to establish a Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to promote, protect and enforce consumer rights. It proposes to have Consumer Dispute Redressal Commissions, which will be set up at the district, state and national levels.

It also provides for ban on celebrities for misleading advertisements and has provisions for post-litigation stage mediation as an alternate dispute resolution mechanism. The bill also provides for product liability action. The manufacture or service provider will face two to five years imprisonment, and a fine of Rs 10-50 lakh for making false or misleading advertisements. Also, the consumer can now lodge a complaint from anywhere in the country, unlike the existing law under which a consumer had to register the complaint at the same place from where the product was purchased.

In August 2015, the Centre had introduced the Consumer Protection Bill in the Lok Sabha to repeal the 30-year-old Consumer Protection Act, 1986. However, the consumer affairs ministry has brought a fresh bill as there were many amendments to the bill introduced in 2015. The Cabinet has approved introduction of the Consumer Protection Bill, 2017, leading to withdrawal of the 2015 bill.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 10447.15, up by 2.95 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 10439.55 and 10473.95. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Sun Pharma up by 1.88%, Hindalco up by 1.57%, BPCL up by 1.31%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.26% and Ambuja Cement up by 1.22%.
On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 2.71%, Infosys down by 1.07%, Bharti Infratel down by 0.86%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.84% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.80% were the top losers.

The Asian markets were trading mostly in green; FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI increased 0.46 points or 0.03% to 1,747.09, Taiwan Weighted increased 2.11 points or 0.02% to 10,506.63, Shanghai Composite increased 15.69 points or 0.48% to 3,303.29, Jakarta Composite increased 62.63 points or 1.03% to 6,172.11 and Hang Seng increased 144.61 points or 0.49% to 29,378.70.

On the other hand, KOSPI Index decreased 33.77 points or 1.37% to 2,438.60 and Nikkei 225 decreased 19.99 points or 0.09% to 22,871.73.