Sensex, Nifty trade near neutral lines with negative bias

Indian equity benchmarks remained weak during late morning session, with both Sensex and Nifty trading near their neutral lines with a negative bias. Negative cues from other Asian markets kept key indices lower in late morning deals. However, downside remained capped, as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Indian economy is witnessing a strong recovery after a long and strict lockdown. Addressing a press conference to announce more stimulus measures to boost growth, she said macro-economic indicators are pointing towards recovery.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, even after Malaysia's economy contracted at a slower pace in the third quarter after the reopening of the economy and better foreign demand. The official data revealed that gross domestic product fell 2.7 percent on a yearly basis in the third quarter, following a sharp 17.1 percent decline seen in the second quarter. GDP was forecast to fall 3.2 percent. Quarter-on-quarter, the economy registered a sharp growth of 18.2 percent, in contrast to a 16.5 percent fall seen in the second quarter.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 43307.65, down by 49.54 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 43053.37 and 43522.25. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.32%, while Small cap index was up by 0.66%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Energy up by 1.43%, Healthcare up by 0.78%, Consumer Discretionary up by 0.70%, Realty up by 0.58% and Oil & Gas up by 0.55%, while Capital Goods down by 0.74%, Bankex down by 0.68%, Telecom down by 0.62%, PSU down by 0.46% and Industrials down by 0.32% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finserv up by 2.28%, Reliance Industries up by 1.70%, Asian Paints up by 1.18%, Titan Company up by 0.97% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.90%. On the flip side, Larsen & Toubro down by 2.45%, SBI down by 1.83%, Indusind Bank down by 1.55%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.10% and HDFC down by 1.10% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, industrial production, measured on the basis of Index of Industrial Production (IIP), grew slightly by 0.2 per cent in September 2020 with higher output of mining and power generation sectors. The IIP had contracted by 4.6 per cent in September 2019, while 7.36 per cent contraction posted in August 2020. The data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed that for the month of September 2020, the Quick Estimates of Index of Industrial Production (IIP) with base 2011-12 stood at 123.2.

As per the IIP data, manufacturing sector production registered a decline of 0.6 per cent. The output of mining and power segments grew at 1.4 per cent and 4.9 per cent, respectively. The Indices of Industrial Production for the Mining, Manufacturing and Electricity sectors for the month of September 2020 stood at 87.6, 125.3 and 166.4 respectively.

As per Use-based classification, the indices stood at 112.1 for Primary Goods, 88.4 for Capital Goods, 132.2 for Intermediate Goods and 128.5 for Infrastructure/ Construction Goods for the month of September 2020. Further, the indices for Consumer durables and Consumer non-durables stood at 125.9 and 149.9 respectively for the month of September 2020.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said with the gradual relaxation of restrictions, there has been a relative improvement in the economic activities by varying degrees as well as in data reporting. it added that it may not be appropriate to compare the IIP in the post-pandemic months with the IIP for months preceding the COVID-19 pandemic.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 12685.40, down by 5.40 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 12607.70 and 12735.95. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Eicher Motors up by 7.26%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.29%, Coal India up by 2.09%, Reliance Industries up by 1.71% and Hero MotoCorp up by 1.34%. On the flip side, Tata Motors down by 2.58%, Larsen & Toubro down by 2.44%, SBI down by 1.74%, Indusind Bank down by 1.52% and HDFC Life Insurance down by 1.27% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 166.00 points or 0.65% to 25,354.88, Hang Seng decreased 144.17 points or 0.55% to 26,025.21, Jakarta Composite lost 26.71 points or 0.49% to 5,431.89, Shanghai Composite declined 24.93 points or 0.75% to 3,313.75 and Straits Times trembled 13.44 points or 0.5% to 2,698.46. On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 14.42 points or 0.11% to 13,236.20 and KOSPI rose 14.62 points or 0.59% to 2,490.24.