Domestic equity indices continue to trade in green territory

Domestic equity benchmarks continued their trade in positive territory in late morning session. Traders continued to take support from World Bank’s report stating that remittances to India rose 9.9% in 2017 with total inflows of around $69 billion, adding that the robust flows to the country are likely to continue in 2018. India would benefit from stronger economic conditions in advanced economies, particularly the US, and the positive impact of an increase in oil prices on the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Market-men also took some encouragement from the report highlighting that goods and services tax (GST) collections for March exceeded Rs 96,000 crore by April 23, the largest mop-up for any month since the comprehensive indirect tax’s launch in July last year. Traders shrugged off a report which stated that India’s bad loans are fifth highest in the world and surged dramatically after March 2015.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, as investors paused for breath following the heavy selling of recent sessions and waited to see if the dollar's rally was sustainable. Back home, in the specific development, Sanwaria Consumer gained on planning to raise funds worth Rs 400 crore for future capacity expansions/acquisitions/working capital requirements through QIP/Placement of shares to Institutions/FII/ Mutual Funds etc. Besides, Berger Paints surged on getting nod to install integrated paint plant and construction chemical manufacturing capabilities at an investment of about Rs 200 crore at Sandila Industrial Area in Uttar Pradesh.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 34587.55, up by 136.78 points or 0.40% after trading in a range of 34465.49 and 34612.43. There were 16 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.31%, while Small cap index was up by 0.39%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Energy up by 1.36%, Healthcare up by 1.02%, Oil & Gas up by 0.87%, Realty up by 0.49% and FMCG was up by 0.45%, while Metal down by 2.39%, Basic Materials down by 0.99%, IT down by 0.91%, TECK down by 0.87% and Telecom was down by 0.67% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Yes Bank up by 3.90%, ICICI Bank up by 1.97%, Reliance Industries up by 1.91%, Dr Reddys Laboratories up by 1.64% and HDFC was up by 1.32%. On the flip side, Wipro down by 2.14%, Tata Steel down by 1.63%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.05%, Infosys down by 0.97% and TCS was down by 0.69% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, an informal ministerial panel has explored options like levying a cess on sugar to the tune of 5 percent, production-linked subsidy of about Rs 4.5 per kg and reduction of GST on ethanol from 18 percent to 5 percent, in order to help sugar mills in clearing dues worth Rs 19,000 crore to sugarcane farmers. A high-powered panel of ministers led by Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari discussed all the three proposals and a formal cabinet note on them is expected to be made soon. 

Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has said that there was also a suggestion that certain percentage of ethanol blending should be made mandatory to boost ethanol production. He noted that the government has already doubled import duty on sugar to 100 percent from 50 percent and scrapped export duty to check sliding domestic prices. In addition, he said that the government has also asked mills to compulsorily export 2-4 million tonnes (MT) of sugar.

According to industry body Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA), India’s sugar production in the current season up to April 15, has touched an all-time high of 29.98 MT on higher cane output, leading to a surge in arrears to farmers at over Rs 20,000 crore. It also said that sugar production of India, the world's second-largest producer after Brazil, stood at 20.3 MT in the 2016-17 marketing year (October-September). The annual domestic demand is estimated at 25 MT. ISMA had said sugar prices have been under severe pressure in the last 4-5 months and have fallen by Rs 9 per kg across the country. It added that as compared to the cost of production, the current ex-mill sugar prices are around Rs 8 per kg lower and the sugar mills are incurring substantial losses.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 10602.30, up by 17.60 points or 0.17% after trading in a range of 10573.20 and 10609.85. There were 23 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Yes Bank up by 3.96%, Lupin up by 2.08%, ICICI Bank up by 2.06%, Reliance Industries up by 1.96% and Dr Reddys Laboratories was up by 1.67%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 7.98%, Vedanta down by 3.00%, Wipro down by 2.44%, Tech Mahindra down by 2.17% and Tata Steel was down by 1.79% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red, Taiwan Weighted declined 117.63 points or 1.1% to 10,579.50, Jakarta Composite losses 74.76 points or 1.19% to 6,233.38, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI slipped 9.76 points or 0.52% to 1,870.60 and KOSPI Index was down by 5.76 points or 0.23% to 2,468.35.

On the flip side, Shanghai Composite gained 55.56 points or 1.81% to 3,123.57, Nikkei 225 surged 181.57 points or 0.82% to 22,269.61 and Hang Seng was up by 285.45 points or 0.94% to 30,539.85.