Indian bourses trade marginally lower in afternoon deals

Indian equities pared some of their initial losses but continued to trade marginally in red in the afternoon session on account of selling in frontline counters. Traders remain concerned as Moody's Investors Services downgraded India's outlook from 'stable' to 'negative' as concerns mount the economic slowdown will be prolonged and debt will rise. Moreover, a weak trend at other Asian markets along with depreciation in rupee value against the dollar, affected the market sentiments. However, losses in equities were capped, taking support from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showing that the non-food credit growth in the banking system stood at 8.79% year-on-year (y-o-y) for the fortnight ended November 7, the highest in the last three fortnights, following the lending outreach programmes by public-sector banks (PSBs). On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red on uncertainty over whether and when the United States and China will seal a deal marking a truce in their trade war that has slowed economic growth and roiled markets.

Back home, the BSE Sensex is currently trading at 40614.52, down by 39.22 points or 0.10% after trading in a range of 40452.26 and 40630.56. There were 12 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.08%, while Small was cap index up by 0.18%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 2.25%, Bankex up by 1.25%, Auto up by 0.94%, Consumer Durables up by 0.65% and Consumer Discretionary Goods & Services was up by 0.40%, while FMCG down by 1.07%, Power down by 0.92%, Telecom down by 0.86%, Energy down by 0.85% and Oil & Gas was down by 0.77% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Yes Bank up by 7.22%, Indusind Bank up by 3.41%, ICICI Bank up by 2.85%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.34% and Kotak Mahindra Bank was up by 1.29%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 2.67%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.77%, TCS down by 1.49%, ITC down by 1.47% and NTPC was down by 1.46% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the rating agency ICRA in its latest report has said the government’s announcement of Rs 25,000 crore special window for about 1,500 stalled affordable and mid-income housing projects is not adequate. It said ‘while the revisions in eligibility criteria appreciably expand the project coverage under the fund, especially given the large number of stressed projects which have been referred to NCLT or classified as NPA already, our initial concerns on the adequacy of the fund, the efficacy and timeliness of implementation, and demand risks for the unsold inventory associated with these projects, remain.’

According to the ICRA estimates, around Rs 35,000-45,000 crore would be required to fund the completion of the revised quantum of 4.58 lakh eligible dwelling units. Thus, it said even the enhanced fund size of around Rs 25,000 crore may be insufficient to cover construction cost for all the eligible houses.

With an aim to complete stalled housing projects in the country, the government had approved setting up of a Rs 25,000 crore bailout fund to finance 1,600 stalled housing projects, including ones that have been declared NPAs or admitted for insolvency proceedings, as it looks to boost growth by steering consumption in real estate and associated sectors. The move is likely to help 4.58 lakh housing units across the country.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11993.20, down by 18.85 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 11948.50 and 11998.45. There were 17 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining, while 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Yes Bank up by 7.83%, Indusind Bank up by 3.67%, ICICI Bank up by 2.98%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.47% and Tata Motors was up by 2.33%. On the flip side, Bharti Infratel down by 3.75%, Sun Pharma down by 2.68%, UPL down by 2.25%, GAIL India down by 2.16% and Hindustan Unilever was down by 1.83% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng decreased 216.47 points or 0.78% to 27,630.76, Jakarta Composite lost 3.61 points or 0.06% to 6,162.01, Taiwan Weighted dropped 27.02 points or 0.23% to 11,579.54, Shanghai Composite declined 12.95 points or 0.43% to 2,965.76, KOSPI fell 7.06 points or 0.33% to 2,137.23 and Straits Times was down by 30.32 points or 0.92% to 3,255.40.

On the flip side, Nikkei 225 was up by 61.55 points or 0.26% to 23,391.87.