Benchmarks extend losses in early noon session

Indian bourses extended their losses in early noon session with Sensex and Nifty trading down by 79 and 27 points respectively, amid negative signals from other Asian markets. Stocks from IT, TECK and Auto counters were trading lower, while Utilities, Power and Realty counters were supporting the markets. Markets continued to trade lower with report that the US and Indian trade negotiators ended talks on Friday without making major progress on a range of disputes over tariffs and other protectionist measures imposed by both sides that are straining bilateral ties. Selling further crept in with private report that the economy may be in the midst of a protracted phase of slowdown and the weakness could stretch into the next fiscal, as green shoots of a recovery in key indicators - from industrial production, exports and corporate sales to non-food credit growth - are barely visible. Meanwhile, according to a private report government could boost its revenues by more than Rs 55,000 crore if it implements a task force report that calls for a complete rejig of income tax slabs and capital gains tax regime.

On the global front, Asian equity benchmarks are trading lower amid uncertainty about China-US trade deal. Moreover, rising political turmoil in Hong Kong dampened market sentiments. Back on street, in scrip specific development, shares of Jet Airways touched its lower circuit after reports suggested founder Naresh Goyal was under Serious Fraud Investigation Office's (SFIO) lens for siphoning off funds.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 40244.58, down by 79.03 points or 0.20% after trading in a range of 40192.81 and 40385.61. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining, 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.44%, while Small cap index was up by 0.28%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 1.10%, Power up by 0.92%, Realty up by 0.72%, PSU up by 0.66% and Telecom was up by 0.51%, while IT down by 1.04%, TECK down by 0.79%, Auto down by 0.47%, FMCG down by 0.24%, Consumer Discretionary was down by 0.22% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 3.24%, Yes Bank up by 2.32%, Tata Motors - DVR up by 0.84%, Tata Motors up by 0.77% and Bharti Airtel was up by 0.76%. On the flip side, TCS down by 1.73%, HCL Technologies down by 1.53%, Infosys down by 1.16%, Sun Pharma down by 1.16% and Asian Paints was down by 1.14% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, India Inc has said Indian economy possesses strong fundamentals and will revive on account of various reform measures taken by the government. This comes in the backdrop of Moody’s Investors Service changing the outlook on India's rating to 'negative' from 'stable', saying the government has been partly ineffective in addressing economic weakness, leading to rising risks that the growth will remain lower.

Assocham President B K Goenka has stated that with its strong fundamentals, India is managing the effects of global slowdown with resolute measures in a host of sectors, besides taking up structural reforms in taxation, banking, finance, and thus change in India's ratings by Moody's Investor Service to 'negative' from 'stable' is incomplete in its assessment. He also said ‘we in India Inc., fully share Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's optimistic outlook about the Indian economy, with inflation staying low and the current account situation remaining quite strong.'

Besides, D K Aggarwal, president of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the economy is set to recover strongly in 2020 with a growth rate of over 7 percent. He believed that the government has undertaken various reform measures in the recent times to revive the economy which are expected to give fruitful results, going forward. He added that significant cut in corporate tax for domestic firms will accelerate the investments in manufacturing, open up new employment opportunities and kick-start economic growth trajectory of the country.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11880.35, down by 27.80 points or 0.23% after trading in a range of 11864.50 and 11920.30. There were 22 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were NTPC up by 3.58%, Yes Bank up by 2.61%, Zee Entertainment up by 2.59%, GAIL India up by 1.18% and JSW Steel was up by 0.78%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 2.36%, TCS down by 1.69%, Cipla down by 1.68%, Grasim Industries down by 1.59% and HCL Technologies was down by 1.57% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading in red; Hang Seng decreased 679.28 points or 2.46% to 26,971.86, KOSPI fell 2.57 points or 0.12% to 2,134.66, Taiwan Weighted dropped 163.38 points or 1.41% to 11,416.16, Shanghai Composite declined 35.13 points or 1.19% to 2,929.05, Jakarta Composite lost 36.97 points or 0.6% to 6,141.02, Straits Times trembled 19.15 points or 0.59% to 3,245.15 and Nikkei 225 was down by 52.75 points or 0.23% to 23,339.12.