Bourses remain sluggish in late afternoon deals

Indian equity bourses remained sluggish in late afternoon session, on the back of weak opening in European markets. In line with the larger peers, the broader indices too were lingering under pressure with losses of over 1.30% each, while Oil & Gas sector stocks declined the most among all sectoral indices on the BSE. Trading sentiments remained pessimistic as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that pre-monsoon rainfall from March to April has recorded 27% 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. Some concerns also came 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.

On the global front, European markets were trading in red, as Eurozone economic sentiment weakened for a tenth straight month in April to its lowest level in nearly three years, amid a sharp deterioration in the morale in industry to its weakest level in about five years. The survey data from the European Commission showed that the economic sentiment index decreased to 104 from 105.6 in March. Asian markets were trading mixed, as China's manufacturing data disappointed investors, with both official and private surveys pointing to slower growth this month. Weak services sector data also added to economic uncertainty.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 38896.42, down by 170.91 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 38753.46 and 39068.67. There were 9 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 1.31%, while Small cap index was down by 1.34%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 1.47%, TECK up by 1.15%, Consumer Durables up by 0.65%, Metal up by 0.27% and Oil & Gas up by 0.03%, while Realty down by 2.51%, Telecom down by 2.45%, Auto down by 2.03%, Bankex down by 1.78% and Power down by 1.70% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were HCL Tech up by 3.70%, Infosys up by 2.14%, HDFC Bank up by 1.70%, Asian Paints up by 1.08% and TCS up by 0.81%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 29.11%, Indusind Bank down by 5.67%, Hero MotoCorp down by 4.27%, Vedanta down by 2.74% and Maruti Suzuki down by 2.44% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to improve margins and profit, Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India has urged engineering exporters to adopt intellectual property rights (IPR).

The industry body is going to set up an IPR cell under the aegis of the upcoming Kolkata Technology Centre. The aim of this cell would be to facilitate Micro- Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in obtaining IPR, provide training and arrange awareness campaigns whenever required.

Meanwhile, EEPC India Chairman Ravi Seghal said that the adoption of IPR to protect the innovative ideas and strategies is required in a highly competitive global economy, where pressure on businesses to follow IPR is increasing by the day and more so from the large markets of the developed countries.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11702.45, down by 52.20 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 11655.90 and 11748.75. There were 20 stocks advancing against 30 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Zee Entertainment up by 4.39%, HCL Tech. up by 3.55%, JSW Steel up by 3.20%, Infosys up by 2.03% and Indian Oil Corporation up by 1.64%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 29.11%, Indiabulls Housing Finance down by 8.52%, Indusind Bank down by 5.83%, Hero MotoCorp down by 4.17% and Bharti Infratel down by 3.94% were the top losers.

Asian Market were trading mixed; Shanghai Composite gained 6.29 points or 0.21% to 3,068.79, Jakarta Composite soared 16.84 points or 0.26% to 6,442.74 and Taiwan Weighted strengthened 28.67 points or 0.26% to 10,967.73. On the flip side, Hang Seng decreased 213.43 points or 0.71% to 29,679.38, KOSPI fell 12.84 points or 0.58% to 2,203.59 and Straits Times trembled 12.05 points or 0.35% to 3,394.97.

All European markets were trading in red; FTSE slipped 14.93 points or 0.20% to 7,425.73, CAC fell 22.26 points or 0.40% to 5,558.72 and DAX was down by 14.54 points or 0.12% to 12,313.48.