Markets off day’s high

Key Indian equity benchmarks trimmed some of their gains in late afternoon session to come off their intraday high points, tracking weak European markets. Trading sentiments got hampered with the National Association of Software and Services Companies’ (NASSCOM) latest survey report stating that global economic uncertainties are leading to a cautionary outlook among CEOs, but they expect digitization initiatives to continue with the same momentum. But, the markets were holding their heads in green terrain, taking support with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement that the Indian economy is based on sound fundamentals and will in the near future double in size to $5 trillion. The government’s decision to infuse Rs 48,239 crore in 12 PSU banks, was also supporting the markets.

On the global front, European markets were trading in red, as Turkey consumer confidence eased for the third consecutive month in February. The figures from the Turkish Statistical Institute showed that the consumer confidence index declined to 57.8 in February from 58.2 in January. The reading was the lowest in three months. Asian markets were trading mixed, after Japanese manufacturing activity contracted in February for the first time in two-and-a-half years as factories cut output amid shrinking domestic and export orders. The private business survey showed that business confidence in Japan soured for the first time in more than six years, highlighting the growing toll that the US-China trade war is inflicting on Asia's export-reliant economies and global manufacturing.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 35922.07, up by 165.81 points or 0.46% after trading in a range of 35707.29 and 35983.07. There were 23 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.87%, while Small cap index was up by 1.07%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Basic Materials up by 1.38%, Metal up by 1.34%, Consumer Durables up by 1.01%, Industrials up by 0.97% and Capital Goods up by 0.96%, while Telecom down by 0.41% was the lone losing index on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Vedanta up by 3.22%, Tata Motors - DVR up by 2.98%, Tata Motors up by 2.82%, ONGC up by 2.57% and Tata Steel up by 2.06%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 1.19%, Infosys down by 1.01%, Maruti Suzuki down by 0.90%, Coal India down by 0.53% and Indusind Bank down by 0.44% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in its first edition of the CEO Survey, the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) has said that global economic uncertainties are leading to a cautionary outlook among CEOs, but they expect digitization initiatives to continue with the same momentum.

According to the report, digitization of businesses and enhanced customer experience have emerged as the top 2 spending areas in IT and BPM for 2019. Further, it noted that advanced analytics and AI are the top priority area for over 50% of global CEOs in terms of technology spending, followed by hybrid cloud and cybersecurity.

Going further, in the survey, almost 90% of the CEO responses showcased that skills is the new currency and 2018 will be similar or somewhat better than in the year 2018 for hiring. Increased focus on skilling and reskilling will be an industry priority as all businesses and countries are dealing with a global tech skills shortage.

Meanwhile, the survey which was based on responses of 100 Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of information technology companies, tracks CEO confidence on growth drivers in the year and the key risks to watch for.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 10792.60, up by 57.15 points or 0.53% after trading in a range of 10721.50 and 10808.85. There were 37 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining, while 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Indiabulls Housing Finance up by 5.95%, Vedanta up by 3.06%, Tata Motors up by 2.79%, ONGC up by 2.46% and Grasim Industries up by 2.19%. On the flip side, Bharti Infratel down by 2.53%, BPCL down by 2.11%, Yes Bank down by 1.33%, Infosys down by 1.00% and Maruti Suzuki down by 0.96% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Hang Seng increased 115.87 points or 0.41% to 28,629.92, Nikkei 225 surged 32.74 points or 0.15% to 21,464.23, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 47.07 points or 0.46% to 10,319.53 and Jakarta Composite soared 24.99 points or 0.38% to 6,537.77. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite declined 14.94 points or 0.54% to 2,746.28, KOSPI fell 1.10 points or 0.05% to 2,228.66 and Straits Times was down by 1.97 points or 0.06% to 3,276.41.

All European markets were trading mostly in red; UK’s FTSE 100 lost 51.90 points or 0.72% to 7,176.72, France’s CAC fell 4.97 points or 0.10% to 5,190.98, while Germany’s DAX was up by 11.18 points or 0.10% to 11,413.15.