Benchmarks continue to trade in red in early noon session

Indian bourses continued to trade in red in the early noon session, with Sensex losing over 400 points and Nifty falling below the 11,500 level, amid weak Asian cues. Weak broader indices along with sell off at Power, Utilities and IT counters dragged the markets lower. Sentiments got undermined on report that India's fiscal deficit gap is set to increase by at least 70 basis points to 4 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) for 2019-20 after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a cut in corporate tax rates on September 20. Markets further cooled off with Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) report that it has lowered India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 6.5 percent for the current fiscal (FY20), weighed down by the GDP growth slipping to a six-year low in the April-June quarter of 2019-20.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading lower on account of concerns surrounding geo-political uncertainty in the US after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a formal impeachment inquiry into US President Donald Trump. Back home, in scrip specific developments, shares of Speciality Restaurants gained on incorporating WOS company. Besides, Aster DM Healthcare surged on inking lease agreements for two new hospital projects in Bangalore.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 38692.85, down by 404.29 points or 1.03% after trading in a range of 38652.15 and 39087.20. There were 8 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index lost 1.20%, while Small cap index was down by 0.75%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 1.79%, Utilities up by 1.18%, IT up by 0.52%, Energy up by 0.37% and TECK was up by 0.36%, while Auto down by 2.58%, Metal down by 1.97%, Bankex down by 1.82%, Realty down by 1.71%, consumer discretionary was down by 1.50% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid Corporation up by 4.31%, NTPC up by 2.61%, TCS up by 1.61%, HCL Technologies up by 0.71% and Reliance Industries was up by 0.66%. On the flip side, Tata Motors - DVR down by 4.42%, SBI down by 4.33%, Tata Motors down by 4.01%, HDFC down by 3.34% and Maruti Suzuki was down by 3.16% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said India should aim for attracting largest foreign direct investment (FDI) share globally and has everything going for it, given its vibrant digital profile, huge market and investor-friendly policies to woo foreign companies. He also said that the rapid pace of economic development, India’s rising clout globally and citizen-centric digital transformation initiatives are irreversible.

Prasad has stated that given the recent decision on tax relief for manufacturing, India has the same tax regime as Vietnam and Thailand. He also said “If any foreign investor is not given a good treatment by my officers, I will not like it. If I hear a complaint...I want my team to be open and accessible because we need investments.” Adding further, he said that India has become the 5th largest economy globally. He said “If this is the level of India’s maturity in economic development surely why we should be ninth biggest recipient of FDI...In my view, India must be the top most centre for FDI. This is the goal and we all need to work in that direction.'

According to the minister, FDI has surged over the last few years and grossed $64 billion during the financial year 2018-19. Telecom sector attracted FDI worth $2.67 billion, while electronics, computer software and hardware together witnessed $6.4 billion. FDI into India grew by 28 percent to $16.33 billion during the first quarter of the current fiscal (Q1FY20) against $12.7 billion in the year-ago period. India has been leveraging technology not just for benefits to economy and commerce but also digital empowerment. Currently, the country has a digitally thriving ecosystem for commerce.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11468.30, down by 119.90 points or 1.03% after trading in a range of 11463.05 and 11564.95. There were 11 stocks advancing against 39 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid Corporation up by 4.36%, NTPC up by 2.26%, TCS up by 1.60%, Zee Entertainment up by 0.99% and Bajaj Finserv was up by 0.96%. On the flip side, SBI down by 4.46%, Tata Motors down by 4.05%, Eicher Motors down by 3.40%, Maruti Suzuki down by 3.35% and HDFC was down by 3.29% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading in red, Shanghai Composite declined 17.41 points or 0.58% to 2,967.93, Hang Seng decreased 305.15 points or 1.16% to 25,975.85, KOSPI fell 23.01 points or 1.1% to 2,078.03, Straits Times trembled 22.40 points or 0.71% to 3,133.06, Nikkei 225 slipped 86.96 points or 0.39% to 22,011.88, Taiwan Weighted dropped 44.32 points or 0.41% to 10,873.69 and Jakarta Composite was down by 16.78 points or 0.27% to 6,120.83.