Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity benchmarks gave up most of their losses in dying hour of trade to come off their intraday low points, but failed to erase all losses and ended with minor cut. It was a negative start to the markets as traders remain concerned with the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) statement that pre-monsoon rainfall from March to April, a phenomenon critical to agriculture in some parts of the country, has recorded 27 per cent deficiency. The IMD recorded 43.3 millimetres of rainfall across the country from March 1 to April 24 as against the normal precipitation of 59.6 millimetres. This was 27 per cent less of the Long Period Average (LPA). Selling further crept in with private report stating that the decline in economic growth momentum in October-December quarter of FY19 is likely to continue. As per the report, subdued consumption demand and election related uncertainty is expected to weigh on India's industrial production.

Local stocks remained sluggish in late afternoon session with a private report stating that surging global oil prices will pose a first big challenge to India's new government, whoever wins an election now underway, especially as domestic prices have been allowed to lag, meaning consumers are in for a painful surge as they catch up. However, the markets made a smart rebound in dying hour of trade, as traders found some solace with Union minister Suresh Prabhu’s statement that the country is working on district-based developmental model to achieve aggregate growth. He said if the national growth was at 6% and those of the districts was 4%, the aggregate growth would be 10%. Traders also took a note of a report stated that about 200 American companies are seeking to move their manufacturing base from China to India post the general elections.

On the global front, Asian markets ended mostly higher on Tuesday, despite readings on China's manufacturing activity failed to meet expectations, underscoring weakness in the world's second-largest economy despite Beijing's attempts to spur growth. European markets were trading in red, weighed down by banks as investors parsed through a mixed bag of earnings, while sentiment remained fragile over growth worries after weak factory data from China clouded modest economic growth numbers from the Eurozone.

Back home, the BSE Sensex ended at 39024.92, down by 42.41 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 38753.46 and 39105.88. There were 13 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 1.15%, while Small cap index was down by 1.26%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.59%, Oil & Gas up by 1.35%, IT up by 1.29%, TECK up by 0.99% and Consumer Durables up by 0.98%, while Telecom down by 2.36%, Realty down by 2.29%, Auto down by 1.76%, Bankex down by 1.31% and Power down by 1.26% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were HCL Tech. up by 3.80%, Tata Steel up by 2.20%, HDFC Bank up by 1.79%, Infosys up by 1.61% and HDFC up by 1.24%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 29.87%, Indusind Bank down by 5.71%, Hero MotoCorp down by 3.71%, Maruti Suzuki down by 2.70% and Power Grid down by 2.41% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, raising concerns over rainfall in India, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) stated that pre-monsoon rainfall from March to April has recorded 27% deficiency. IMD said it is a phenomenon critical to agriculture in some parts of the country. The IMD recorded 43.3 millimetres of rainfall across the country from March 1 to April 24 as against the normal precipitation of 59.6 millimetres. This was 27% less of the Long Period Average (LPA). The highest deficiency of 38% was recorded in the northwest India division of the IMD, which comprises states of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh.

IMD said this was followed by the Southern peninsula division comprising all five states of the South India and the Union Territory of Puducherry, Goa and coastal Maharashtra, where the deficiency recorded was 31%. East and northeast India division recorded 23% deficiency. The Central India division is the only one to have recorded more 5% rainfall than the normal. Pre-monsoon showers, thunderstorms and lightening have killed more than 50 people in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan this month.

Several parts of India receive pre-monsoon rainfall which is critical for those regions. The phenomenon, which is usually from March to May end, is vital as it helps in bringing the temperatures down. One of the reasons for a pre-monsoon rainfall is excessive heating from March to June which several parts of the country witness. Additional Director General of the IMD said the moisture from the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal aids in creation of thunderstorms.

The CNX Nifty ended at 11749.00, down by 5.65 points or 0.05% after trading in a range of 11655.90 and 11756.25. There were 25 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were JSW Steel up by 5.22%, Indian Oil Corp. up by 3.83%, HCL Tech. up by 3.63%, Zee Entertainment up by 3.60% and BPCL up by 2.74%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 29.85%, Indiabulls Housing Finance down by 6.02%, Indusind Bank down by 5.82%, Bharti Infratel down by 3.87% and Hero MotoCorp down by 3.84% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading in red; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 17.25 points or 0.23% to 7,423.41, France’s CAC fell 25.31 points or 0.45% to 5,555.67 and Germany’s DAX was down by 17.91 points or 0.15% to 12,310.11.

Asian markets ended mostly higher on Tuesday with the rise in Chinese stocks despite data showed factory activity in China expanded for a second straight month in April but at a much slower pace, rekindling investor concerns over slowing global growth. The official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing unexpectedly fell to 50.1 in April from 50.5 in March, while the Caixin-Markit China PMI slipped to 50.2 against the 50.8 reading in the previous month. Growth in China's services sector also slowed in the month, an official survey showed. Investors also awaited a raft of economic data from the euro zone, the US Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting starting later in the day and the latest developments on the trade front for directional cues. However, Seoul shares ended down after Samsung Electronics, the world's biggest Smartphone and memory chip maker, reported a slump in first-quarter net profits, hit by multiple factors. Upbeat industrial output data helped to limit the downside to some extent. A government report showed that industrial output in South Korea climbed a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent month-on-month in March, - rebounding from the 3.4 percent contraction in February. Meanwhile, the Japanese markets were closed for the Golden Week holidays.