Markets trim losses in late afternoon deals

Indian equity markets erased most of their losses in late afternoon deals, on the back of positive cues from European markets. Trading sentiments got improved after India has been lauded by a high-level panel on digital cooperation launched by UN chief General Antonio Guterres for undertaking revolutionary digital initiatives to ensure economic inclusion for its 1.3 billion citizens. However, key indices remained below their neutral lines, amid reports that deal making through the private equity/venture capital routes saw a sharp 54 percent dip in May at a low $2.8 billion due to fewer large deals. There were 82 deals involving PE/VC investments of $2.8 billion in May.

On the global front, European markets were trading in green, as Germany's consumer price inflation moderated as estimated in May from a five-month high on air tickets and holiday packages. The final data from Destatis revealed that consumer price inflation eased to 1.4 percent from 2 percent in April. The rate came in line with the estimate published on May 31. However, Asian markets were trading in red, as China's consumer price inflation accelerated on food prices in May. The data from National Bureau of Statistics showed that consumer prices advanced 2.7 percent year-on-year in May, after gaining 2.5 percent in April. The rate was the fastest in more than a year and came in line with expectations.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 39711.21, down by 45.60 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 39461.27 and 39778.99. There were 15 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.55%, while Small cap index was down by 0.54%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 0.66%, Telecom up by 0.39%, Capital Goods up by 0.33% and Power up by 0.26%, while Metal down by 0.69%, Energy down by 0.66%, Basic Materials down by 0.56%, IT down by 0.54% and Auto down by 0.48% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 1.15%, Power Grid up by 1.07%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.00%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.82% and Larsen & Toubro up by 0.77%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 11.33%, Indusind Bank down by 5.32%, Vedanta down by 1.82%, ONGC down by 1.26% and Infosys down by 1.26% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to help domestic manufacturers, the government will take more steps to contain imports of defective or sub-standard steel. The local players prefer imports of defective or sub-standard steel as it is cheaper.

 According to industry experts, sub-standard steel impacts the quality of goods and hurt domestic manufacturers. The issue was discussed during a high-level meeting of steel and commerce ministries on June 11. There are already quality control guidelines for various steel products used in various industries to check imports of sub-standard items.

Further, the ministries of commerce and steel also assured engineering exporters of making all the efforts to ensure the sector's outbound shipments reach $200 billion by 2030. The country's engineering exports was up by 6.36% to $83.7 billion in 2018-19 from $78.7 billion in 2017-18.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11894.10, down by 12.10 points or 0.10% after trading in a range of 11817.05 and 11915.40. There were 22 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining, while 1 stock remained unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Indiabulls Housing Finance up by 9.33%, BPCL up by 1.51%, Zee Entertainment up by 1.43%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.08% and Grasim Industries up by 1.06%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 11.35%, Indusind Bank down by 5.45%, UPL down by 2.43%, Vedanta down by 1.88% and ONGC down by 1.52% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng decreased 187.26 points or 0.69% to 27,121.20, Nikkei 225 slipped 97.72 points or 0.46% to 21,032.00, Taiwan Weighted dropped 54.65 points or 0.51% to 10,561.01, Jakarta Composite lost 19.44 points or 0.31% to 6,256.74, KOSPI fell 5.60 points or 0.27% to 2,103.15 and Straits Times was down by 6.47 points or 0.2% to 3,201.27. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite was up by 3.94 points or 0.14% to 2,913.32.

All European markets were trading in green; FTSE gained 22.82 points or 0.31% to 7,390.44, CAC rose 8.80 points or 0.16% to 5,383.72 and DAX was up by 73.94 points or 0.61% to 12,189.62.