Bourses continue to move in green territory

Key benchmark indices continued to move in green territory in afternoon session, as investors took comfort from positive macroeconomic data. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) in its latest data showed that India’s industrial output grew at an 11-month high of 8.1% in October mainly on the back of mining, power and manufacturing sectors coupled with higher offtake of capital as well as consumer durable goods. Industrial production measured in terms of Index of Industrial Production (IIP) grew 1.8% in October 2017. The previous high IIP growth rate was recorded in November last year at 8.5%. Also, India’s retail inflation eased to 2.33% in November as compared to 4.88% in November last year and was 3.31% in October. Some support also came with S&P Global’s statement that India’s rapid economic growth will be enough to offset worries about the independence of its central bank and keep its credit rating in the coveted investment grade bracket. Sharp recovery in the rupee value against dollar along with positive cues from other Asian markets too influenced investor sentiment.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 35946.24, up by 167.17 points or 0.47% after trading in a range of 35892.51 and 36047.99. There were 22 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 1.07%, while Small cap index was up by 0.93%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 1.62%, Auto up by 1.02%, Capital Goods up by 1.00%, FMCG up by 0.97% and Bankex up by 0.92%, while there were no losers on the BSE sectoral front.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Indusind Bank up by 2.51%, Tata Motors - DVR up by 2.40%, Tata Motors up by 2.17%, SBI up by 1.86% and Maruti Suzuki up by 1.64%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 1.46%, TCS down by 1.23%, Coal India down by 0.99%, Adani Ports &SEZ down by 0.61% and Power Grid down by 0.38% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President Ganesh Kumar Gupta has urged newly-appointed the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das to ensure smooth flow of credit to exports sector which is falling sharply on year on year basis, affecting the liquidity of exporters particularly the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Gupta has said that while exchange rate is market driven, RBI's intervention is essential to stem extreme volatility in rupee as it is neither beneficial for exporters nor importers. He also noted that a movement of rupee in narrow band of 5 percent would be more appropriate for export sector as near predictability in rate would reduce the cost of hedging as well. Adding further, he said that the new governor will act as an effective bridge between the government and the central bank, so as to give necessary boost to the Indian economy.

In a bid to boost outbound shipments, the commerce ministry is working closely with the finance ministry to take measures for ensuring adequate availability of funds to exporters. The country's merchandise exports grew by 13.27 percent to $191 billion during April-October 2018-19.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 10796.45, up by 58.85 points or 0.55% after trading in a range of 10771.70 and 10816.55. There were 32 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Indiabulls Housing Finance up by 8.27%, Indusind Bank up by 2.81%, HPCL up by 2.76%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.42% and BPCL up by 2.05%. On the flip side, UPL down by 1.68%, Sun Pharma down by 1.46%, TCS down by 1.31%, Coal India down by 1.09% and Eicher Motors down by 0.71% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading in green; Nikkei 225 surged 213.44 points or 0.99% to 21,816.19, Jakarta Composite soared 62.66 points or 1.02% to 6,178.24, Straits Times advanced 14.19 points or 0.46% to 3,114.18, KOSPI rose 12.98 points or 0.62% to 2,095.55, Shanghai Composite gained 32.36 points or 1.24% to 2,634.51, Hang Seng increased 316.04 points or 1.21% to 26,502.75 and Taiwan Weighted was up by 42.31 points or 0.43% to 9,858.76.