Bourses back in green terrain

Indian equity bourses cut all of their losses in late afternoon session to come back in green terrain, on the back of firm cues from European markets. Sentiments turned positive, after Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said that the government's recent decision to cut corporate tax rates is a bold measure and augurs well for the economy. Adding some relief, credit rating agency, Crisil Research also said that the reduction in corporate tax announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman could help the top 1,000 listed companies in the country save at least Rs 37,000 crore this fiscal year.

On the global front, European markets were trading in green, as Germany's business confidence strengthened slightly in September on a better assessment of the current situation, while expectations for coming months worsened again. The survey results from the ifo Institute showed that the ifo business confidence index climbed to 94.6 from 94.3 in August. Asian markets were also trading in green.

Back home, mining sector stocks were under pressure, after Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) said that mining industry in India is still the highest taxed in the world despite the government's decision to slash corporate tax rate.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 39235.98, up by 145.95 points or 0.37% after trading in a range of 38913.06 and 39306.37. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining, while 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.41%, while Small cap index was up by 0.27%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 2.58%, Energy up by 2.26%, TECK up by 2.14%, Oil & Gas up by 0.53% and Healthcare up by 0.45%, while Metal down by 1.43%, Capital Goods down by 1.30%, PSU down by 1.23%, Realty down by 0.89% and Telecom down by 0.76% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 4.17%, Reliance Industries up by 3.94%, Tech Mahindra up by 3.14%, Yes Bank up by 2.62% and Tata Motors up by 2.31%. On the flip side, SBI down by 2.71%, Larsen & Toubro down by 2.34%, Hero MotoCorp down by 2.26%, Asian Paints down by 2.21% and Axis Bank down by 2.13% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, few days after corporate tax cut announcement by the government, credit rating agency, Crisil Research in its latest report has said that the move may help about 1,000 listed companies in the country to save at least Rs 37,000 crore in taxes during current financial year.

The agency further noted that segments linked to the consumer would benefit the most, given higher effective tax rates of over 30 per cent, while export-linked sectors such as IT and pharma will benefit the least, accounting for only 5-6 per cent of potential savings. That’s because they already enjoy low effective tax rates.

Meanwhile, with an aim to revive growth and investment in country, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on September 20, 2019 announced a slew of measures including a cut in corporate taxes. The government has also decided to not levy enhanced surcharge introduced in Budget on capital gains arising from the sale of equity shares in a company liable for securities transaction tax (STT).

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11619.90, up by 19.70 points or 0.17% after trading in a range of 11539.20 and 11655.05. There were 21 stocks advancing against 29 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Infosys up by 4.34%, Reliance Industries up by 3.80%, BPCL up by 3.70%, Tech Mahindra up by 3.05% and Tata Motors up by 2.35%. On the flip side, Eicher Motors down by 4.36%, Indian Oil Corporation down by 3.54%, JSW Steel down by 3.28%, SBI down by 2.84% and Bharti Infratel down by 2.63% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng increased 52.12 points or 0.2% to 26,274.52, Nikkei 225 surged 19.75 points or 0.09% to 22,098.84, Straits Times advanced 12.32 points or 0.39% to 3,155.56, KOSPI rose 9.34 points or 0.45% to 2,101.04 and Shanghai Composite gained 8.43 points or 0.28% to 2,985.51. On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted dropped 1.01 points or 0.01% to 10,918.01 and Jakarta Composite lost 83.96 points or 1.35% to 6,122.24.

European markets were trading mostly in green; CAC gained 7.55 points or 0.13% to 5,638.31 and DAX rose 1.88 points or 0.02% to 12,344.21, while FTSE was down by 5.99 points or 0.08% to 7,320.09.