Indian equity benchmarks trimmed some of their gains but are still trading in positive terrain in late afternoon session. Buying in frontline stocks Kotak Mahindra Bank, TCS, ICICI Bank and ONGC helped the markets to trade in green. Traders turned pessimistic with the World Bank’s statement that as a result of the deadly coronavirus pandemic, which has resulted in a global recession, remittances to India are likely to drop by 23% from $83 billion last year to $64 billion this year. However, market participants took support with anticipation of another stimulus package from the government, in the wake of novel coronavirus outbreak. Principal Economic Adviser Sanjeev Sanyal has said more calibrated monetary and fiscal stimulus measures are on the anvil to deal with the economic fallout from COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown. Meanwhile, the Centre has slashed the subsidy on non-urea fertilisers, a move that would reduce the burden on the exchequer to Rs 22,186.55 crore in this fiscal amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
On the global front, European markets were trading lower as investors braced for worsening business activity data with the coronavirus outbreak battering the global economy, while Unilever slumped after pulling its full-year forecast. Back home, on the sectoral front, Tourism & hospitality sector remained in focus, as Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism & Hospitality (FAITH), has appealed for an immediate relief package from the government to stay afloat and avoid job losses.
The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 31628.95, up by 249.40 points or 0.79% after trading in a range of 31292.92 and 31850.90. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.
The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 1.28%, while Small cap index was up by 1.31%.
The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 2.48%, Bankex up by 2.16%, TECK up by 2.10%, Metal up by 1.70% and Realty was up by 0.95%, while Consumer Durables down by 1.41%, FMCG down by 0.60%, Utilities down by 0.51%, Power down by 0.38% and Capital Goods was down by 0.34% were the top losing indices on BSE.
The top gainers on the Sensex were Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 6.92%, TCS up by 4.05%, ICICI Bank up by 3.24%, ONGC up by 2.98% and HCL Tech up by 2.36%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 4.00%, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.75%, Power Grid down by 1.69%, Indusind Bank down by 1.25% and Hero MotoCorp down by 1.20% were the top losers.
Meanwhile, in order to deal with the economic fallout from COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown, Principal Economic Adviser Sanjeev Sanyal has said more calibrated monetary and fiscal stimulus measures are on the anvil. He expressed hope that a significant part of the economy will be functioning, if not everything, by May 3. He added that international passenger travel would remain shut for a long time, not for weeks but for months.
Regarding internal economy, he said it will be opened up in phases and efforts would be made to provide a cushion to the sectors hit hard by the lockdown through a series of measures from both fiscal and monetary sides. He noted that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has already announced two stimulus packages and Governor Shaktikanta Das has hinted at more measures in the future depending on requirement.
To mitigate hardships faced by the poor, he said the government last month announced a staggering Rs 1.70 lakh crore package to cushion the bottom of the pyramid by providing free food and ex-gratia. He said ‘we are willing to spend. We will spend a lot. We do have resources particularly on the monetary side but we will also make fiscal resources available...we will get a package sooner rather than later, which is already in preparation...we will do it in a calibrated way.’
Sanyal further said the Indian model to tackle the problem has been appreciated the world over. He also said ‘the world over people are now beginning to appreciate the approach we took. In fact, other countries are beginning to follow us. You have seen Singapore has gone back. So in many ways we are pioneers in this approach and well before the rest of the world would be out, the Indian economy will be opened.’ He highlighted that the world has also recognised efficiency of India's administrative machinery in handling such kind of lockdown without much of a problem.
The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 9264.85, up by 77.55 points or 0.84% after trading in a range of 9170.15 and 9326.20. There were 28 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.
The top gainers on Nifty were Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 6.81%, Zee Entertainment up by 5.24%, TCS up by 4.13%, ICICI Bank up by 3.35% and Hindalco up by 3.14%. On the flip side, Titan Co down by 3.95%, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.82%, Shree Cement down by 2.17%, Power Grid down by 1.70% and Grasim Industries down by 1.54% were the top losers.
European markets were trading lower, UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 30.54 points or 0.53% to 5,740.09, France’s CAC decreased 16.05 points or 0.36% to 4,395.75 and Germany’s DAX was down by 71.94 points or 0.69% to 10,343.09.
