Weak trade continues over Dalal Street

Weak trade continued over the Dalal Street in late morning deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading below their neutral lines. Negative cues from other Asian markets impacted trade over the street. Domestic sentiments were negative, even after the government extended for the third time the deadline for making payment under the direct tax dispute settlement scheme 'Vivad Se Vishwas' by three months to March 31, 2021.  As per a Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) notification, declaration under the Vivad se Vishwas Scheme shall be required to be furnished latest by December 31, 2020. However, only in respect of the said declarations made, the payment without additional amount can now be made up to March 31, 2021.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, even after consumer confidence in South Korea rebounded in October. The Bank of Korea said on Wednesday, as its latest index score jumped to 91.6 - up sharply from 79.4 in September. Consumer sentiment regarding current living standards was five points higher than in September, at 86, and that concerning the future outlook for living standards was six points higher than in the previous month, at 91. Consumer sentiment related to future household income was six points higher than in September, at 94, and that concerning future household spending was eight points higher than in the previous month, at 100.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 40309.39, down by 212.71 points or 0.52% after trading in a range of 40207.53 and 40664.35. There were 8 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.11%, while Small cap index was up by 0.04%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 3.98%, Auto up by 0.83%, Power up by 0.50%, Industrials up by 0.34% and Capital Goods up by 0.33%, while Bankex down by 1.07%, Realty down by 1.04%, Metal down by 0.51%, IT down by 0.41% and FMCG down by 0.30% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 5.48%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.70%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.32%, ONGC up by 0.60% and Bajaj Finserv up by 0.59%. On the flip side, HDFC down by 2.19%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.90%, HCL Tech down by 1.75%, Indusind Bank down by 1.20% and Titan Company down by 1.12% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, expressing confidence over India’s economic growth, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar said that growth would be in positive territory in the second half of this fiscal (H2FY21), and will do even better than a large part of the world in 2021-22. Though, he also expressed concerns about the uncertainly over the pandemic, which has kept the economy sluggish.

Accepting that there may not be green shoots in the economy at present, he said there are some stems that are very much visible like rising freight, power demand, farm production and other numbers. He admitted that the Indian economy would see a contraction in July-September, but opined that the decline must be slow. He added that there will be positive growth in the second half this fiscal.

Kumar said the structural reforms will help India achieve positive growth in the second of this fiscal and improve further in the next fiscal. He noted that ‘We should not be de-motivated by our negative GDP growth. There are many measures (packages) in the pipeline’. He also clarified that India's move towards self-reliance does not mean isolation from the global economy.

Niti Aayog Vice Chairman also said India wants level playing field for its entrepreneurs so that exports can be increased. About facilitating global companies to reduce their production concentration in one country and invest in India to set up export-oriented manufacturing facilities, he informed that the government has already introduced production linked incentive scheme for such players.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 11843.40, down by 46.00 points or 0.39% after trading in a range of 11813.80 and 11929.40. There were 23 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharti Airtel up by 5.54%, UPL up by 2.59%, Tata Motors up by 2.25%, Hero MotoCorp up by 2.20% and Maruti Suzuki up by 1.61%. On the flip side, HDFC down by 2.20%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.80%, HCL Tech down by 1.70%, ICICI Bank down by 1.26% and Indusind Bank down by 1.21% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 103.75 points or 0.44% to 23,382.05, Taiwan Weighted dropped 73.87 points or 0.57% to 12,801.14, Hang Seng decreased 71.88 points or 0.29% to 24,715.31, Jakarta Composite lost 15.82 points or 0.31% to 5,128.23 and Straits Times trembled 12.01 points or 0.48% to 2,500.86. On the flip side, KOSPI rose 3.65 points or 0.16% to 2,334.49 and Shanghai Composite gained 5.28 points or 0.16% to 3,259.60.