Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity indices showcased courageous performance on last trading day of the week by gaining around a percent in the session, with both the S&P BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty50 climbing to fresh record levels. The beginning of August series in the futures and options (F&O) space accelerated buying by participants, which supported the upside. Markets traded with full traction throughout the session, as sentiments remained up-beat with report that foreign direct investment (FDI) from nations widely regarded as tax havens such as Cayman Islands and Hong Kong jumped in 2017-18, even as overall India-bound investments showed a slower rise, year-on-year (Y-o-Y). From the Cayman Islands, inflows rose in a single year from a low $71.03 million to a whopping $1.23 billion. Traders took some encouragement with Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia’s statement that the US wants to reduce its trade deficit with India as quickly as possible, asserting that the Trump administration is aggressively pushing New Delhi on the issues of medical devices, pharmaceuticals, dairy products and agriculture.

Key indices continued their rally mood to reach at fresh intraday high points in last leg of trade, taking support from Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant’s statement that the government’s digitization initiative will bring more transparency in the system. Sentiments remained jubilant with a private report that after almost a year and half of disruptions in Indian economy due to demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the consumer sentiment is up in the month of July on all fronts from jobs, investments, health of the economy to personal finance. Domestic sentiments were buoyed with another private report stating that trading across borders, payment of indirect taxes and insolvency resolution are the three sets of reforms where India is upbeat, ahead of the release of the World Bank’s ease of doing business report later this year.

On the global front, Asian markets ended mostly in green, while European markets were trading in green in early deals on Friday, amid continuing optimism after the agreement between the EU and US to suspend new tariffs as trade talks continue. Back home, textile stocks were under pressure after private report stating that the ongoing indefinite strike of transporters has cast a shadow on the $130-billion textile industry which is facing a staggering loss of up to Rs 1,500 crore. Besides, oil & gas stocks were in focus with Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh’s statement that there is scope for India and Vietnam to deepen cooperation in the oil and gas sector despite ‘all the troubles’ the Southeast Asian country faces.

The BSE Sensex ended at 37315.48, up by 330.84 points or 0.89% after trading in a range of 37134.88 and 37368.62. There were 20 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.87%, while Small cap index was up by 0.85%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.94%, Consumer Durables up by 1.88%, FMCG up by 1.84%, Oil & Gas up by 1.73% and Energy up by 1.46%. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were ITC up by 4.56%, Tata Motors - DVR up by 4.56%, Tata Motors up by 3.50%, Tata Steel up by 2.76% and ICICI Bank up by 2.57%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Adani Ports & SEZ down by 1.24%, Power Grid down by 1.23%, TCS down by 0.93%, Coal India down by 0.89% and Maruti Suzuki down by 0.70% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, welcoming the Parliament’s decision on the long-awaited amendment in the Prevention of Corruption Act, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) president Rashesh Shah has said that this will help in expediting the decision-making process in the government besides a revival in bank lending. India’s public sector bankers, struggling to deal with bad loans and investigative scrutiny of their commercial decisions, got a break with this decision.

Shah also said that the applicability of the law only if any official has accumulated assets disproportionate to his income or has misappropriated assets, will go a long way in protecting the honest officials from undue harassment. He concluded that overall, this will help in improving the ease of doing the business scenario in the country.

In order to prevent honest bankers from prosecuting agencies, the Parliament passed the Prevention of Corruption Act (Amendment) Bill, 2018, on July 24, 2018. The amendments propose significant changes to the anti-corruption law, ranging from redefining criminal misconduct to bringing collusive bribe givers under the lens of the investigative agencies.

The CNX Nifty ended at 11275.05, up by 107.75 points or 0.96% after trading in a range of 11210.25 and 11283.40. There were 34 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were ITC up by 4.70%, Indian Oil up by 4.47%, Tata Motors up by 3.83%, Hindalco up by 3.46% and Titan Co up by 3.39%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Dr. Reddys Lab down by 2.38%, Bajaj Finserv down by 1.44%, TCS down by 1.01%, Coal India down by 0.96% and Adani Ports & SEZ down by 0.95% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading in green; UK’s FTSE 100 surged by 46.99 points or 0.61% to 7,710.16, Germany’s DAX rose by 47.30 points or 0.37% to 12,856.53 and France’s CAC was up by 14.50 points or 0.26% to 5,495.05.

Asian equity markets ended higher on Friday, although growth concerns kept Chinese markets under pressure. While easing of US-EU trade tension supported underlying sentiments, the upside remained limited ahead of US GDP data tonight and the Bank of Japan policy meeting due next week. Japanese shares closed higher on taking comfort from signs of rapprochement between the United States and Europe over trade issues, though investors remained cautious on speculation that the Bank of Japan might hint at signal to unwind its massive stimulus program next week.