Benchmarks trade slightly in green

The Indian equity benchmarks traded slightly in green in late afternoon session. Traders were seen piling positions in PSU, Metal and Auto sector while selling was witnessed in IT and TECK sector stocks. Some comfort came with the report that recovery in the Indian services sector was sustained in November as new work orders supported business activity growth and the first rise in employment in nine months. Adding some optimism, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar has said the Indian economy is coming out of the pandemic-induced degrowth and GDP growth will enter the positive territory in the fourth quarter of this fiscal (Q4FY21). Kumar also said the Centre's new agriculture reform laws are aimed at increasing the income of farmers and the present agitation was a result of misunderstanding and miscommunication which need to be removed.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green after Britain became the first Western nation to grant emergency approval of a COVID-19 vaccine and apparent progress among lawmakers in Washington toward a compromise financial rescue package. European markets were trading mostly in red.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 44674.17, up by 56.13 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 44570.35 and 44953.01. There were 19 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.78%, while Small cap index was up by 0.74%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 2.58%, Metal up by 1.99%, Oil & Gas up by 1.58%, Auto up by 1.46% and Utilities was up by 1.29%, while IT down by 0.36% and TECK was down by 0.26% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 6.38%, SBI up by 4.17%, ONGC up by 3.71%, NTPC up by 3.27% and Bajaj Finserv up by 3.16%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 1.73%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.32%, HDFC down by 1.30%, Bajaj Auto down by 1.02% and Power Grid down by 0.98% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the growth of India’s service sector slowed in the month of November, although it remained well above the 50-level that separates growth from contraction, with a further upturn in new work supporting business activity growth and the first rise in employment for nine months.

As per the survey report, the seasonally adjusted Nikkei Services Business Activity Index fell to 53.7 in November from 54.1 in October. Further, the Nikkei India Composite PMI Output Index -- which measures both manufacturing and services - eased to 56.3 in November from 58.0 in October. The report further noted that new business inflows rose for the second straight month and solidly, despite growth easing from October.

The upturn in total new work was driven by the domestic market, with new export orders decreasing sharply again in November. Services firms hired additional workers in November, ending an eight-month sequence of job shedding. However, the rate of employment growth was marginal overall as some companies reported having sufficient staff to cope with current workloads.

On the price front, rates of inflation for input costs and output charges accelerated, both of which outpacing their respective long-run averages. Meanwhile, services firms were confident of a rise in business activity in the coming 12 months. The overall degree of optimism improved to a nine-month high. Positive sentiment was boosted by hopes that a vaccine for COVID-19 will be rolled out.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 13140.15, up by 26.40 points or 0.20% after trading in a range of 13112.25 and 13216.60. There were 37 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 6.45%, ONGC up by 4.07%, SBI up by 4.01%, Hindalco up by 3.67% and NTPC up by 3.48%. On the flip side, SBI Life down by 1.79%, HDFC Bank down by 1.69%, HDFC down by 1.35%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.34% and Infosys down by 1.01% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green, Hang Seng increased 195.92 points or 0.74% to 26,728.50, KOSPI rose 20.32 points or 0.76% to 2,696.22, Jakarta Composite soared 8.95 points or 0.15% to 5,822.94, Nikkei 225 surged 8.39 points or 0.03% to 26,809.37 and Straits Times was up by 8.21 points or 0.29% to 2,819.16. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite declined 7.24 points or 0.21% to 3,442.14 and Taiwan Weighted was down by 12.05 points or 0.09% to 13,977.09.

European markets were trading mostly in red, France’s CAC decreased 11.80 points or 0.21% to 5,571.21 and Germany’s DAX was down by 22.11 points or 0.17% to 13,291.13. On the flip side, UK’s FTSE 100 was up by 10.32 points or 0.16% to 6,473.71.