Lackluster trade continues on Dalal Street in early noon deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued their lackluster trade in early noon session, amid negative signal from other Asian markets. Traders were seen in selling position for Yes Bank, Tata Motors - DVR and Vedanta stocks, while buying was witnessed in HDFC, Bajaj Finance and Hero MotoCorp stocks. Besides, broader indices were also trading in red, dragging their larger peers lower during the trade. Anxiety remained on the street with the India Meteorological Department’s (IMD) statement that the country’s monsoon rains were 20 per cent below average in the week ending on Wednesday, as rainfall was scanty over the central, western and southern parts of the country. Sentiments were also weighed down as Asian Development Bank (ADB) in its supplement to the Asian Development Outlook 2019 has slashed India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 7 percent for the current fiscal (FY20), from 7.2 percent projected earlier, on the back of fiscal shortfall concerns.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading in red, on concerns about uncertainty in US-China trade talks and the Japan-South Korea trade dispute. Back on street, on the sectoral front, Sugar industry stocks were in focus as the government has permitted export of 1,239 tonnes raw sugar under its tariff-rate quota (TRQ) to the US, which enables shipments to enjoy relatively low tariff.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 39115.73, down by 99.91 points or 0.25% after trading in a range of 39087.76 and 39204.47. There were 6 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index lost 0.77%, while Small cap index was down by 0.56%.

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal down by 1.86%, Auto down by 1.62%, Realty down by 1.47%, Consumer Durables down by 1.33% and Consumer Discretionary was down by 0.95%, while there were no gainers on sectoral indices.

The top gainers on the Sensex were HDFC up by 1.87%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.49%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.04%, HDFC Bank up by 0.97% and ITC was up by 0.51%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 11.68%, Tata Motors - DVR down by 3.68%, Vedanta down by 2.88%, Tata Motors down by 2.83% and Maruti Suzuki was down by 2.68% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in a significant move, the Union cabinet has cleared seven amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) that will enforce a strict 330-day timeline for corporate resolution process, including litigation and other judicial processes, as well as make resolution plan binding on all stakeholders. Presently, the resolution plan for an insolvent company has to be cleared within 270 days.

The amendments are aimed at filling critical gaps in the corporate insolvency resolution framework, maximising value from the resolution process as well as save time. The IBC has been amended twice so far. As per the amendment approved by the Cabinet, the resolution plan would be binding on all stakeholders including the central government, any state government or local authority to whom a debt in respect of the payment of the dues may be owed.

Further, the Committee of Creditors (CoC) may take the decision to liquidate the corporate debtor, any time after constitution of the committee and before preparation of Information Memorandum for the resolution. With the amendments, there would be more clarity on allowing comprehensive corporate restructuring schemes such as mergers and demergers as part of the resolution plan. Within the powers of the CoC, commercial consideration would be taken into account when it comes to distribution proposed in resolution plan.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11656.30, down by 31.20 points or 0.27% after trading in a range of 11644.85 and 11677.15. There were 14 stocks advancing against 36 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Wipro up by 3.02%, HDFC up by 1.88%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.41%, Britannia up by 1.03% and Hero MotoCorp was up by 1.01%. On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 11.69%, Tata Motors down by 2.98%, Vedanta down by 2.88%, Maruti Suzuki down by 2.69% and Mahindra & Mahindra was down by 2.65% were the top losers.

 
All Asian markets were trading in red; Hang Seng decreased 167.47 points or 0.59% to 28,425.70, Taiwan Weighted dropped 29.20 points or 0.27% to 10,799.28, KOSPI fell 8.49 points or 0.41% to 2,064.43, Nikkei 225 slipped 422.94 points or 1.97% to 21,046.24, Jakarta Composite lost 1.13 points or 0.02% to 6,393.48, Straits Times trembled 11.71 points or 0.35% to 3,353.16 and Shanghai Composite was down by 22.49 points or 0.77% to 2,909.20.