Benchmarks trade flat in afternoon deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade in a tight range near neutral line as traders remained cautious as the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation rose to 1.55 percent in November, as against 1.48 percent in October. WPI inflation in October 2020 was at an eight-month high as manufactured products turned costlier. November 2019 WPI inflation was at 0.58 percent, due to increase in prices of food articles. Adding pessimism, former chief statistician Pronab Sen said that at the moment India's current macroeconomic situation is very uncertain and the country's Gross domestic product (GDP) could contract closer to 10 percent in the current fiscal (FY21). He also said that although the overall macro management of the economy by the government has not been very good but this particular slowdown is really beyond its control.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed amid U.S. Food and Drug Administration's authorization of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech for emergency use. Back home, the BSE Sensex is currently trading at 46117.58, up by 18.57 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 46056.65 and 46373.34. There were 19 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.72%, while Small cap index was up by 0.65%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 1.61%, Oil & Gas up by 1.44%, Metal up by 1.11%, Utilities up by 0.98% and Consumer Durables was up by 0.90%, while Auto down by 0.94%, IT down by 0.55%, TECK down by 0.38% and Realty was down by 0.34% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were ONGC up by 2.69%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.12%, NTPC up by 2.00%, Tata Steel up by 1.42% and Titan Company was up by 1.34%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.90%, Bajaj Auto down by 1.48%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.10%, Infosys down by 0.86% and Maruti Suzuki was down by 0.80% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant has said that India's private credit-to-GDP ratio is the lowest among its global peers and the government is in the process of putting frameworks and protocols in place for credit to be pushed to segments that have largely been untapped. He said credit scenario in India in recent years for a greater part has been seen as a drag on the economy. He added that micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) play a crucial role in providing employment but their credit needs are largely unmet by the formal financial sector.

Noting that financial inclusion depends on the regulatory environment, Kant said while a new business model will be required to fill the current gap in achieving the necessary credit flow, there is a need to change the regulation as and when required. He also said the entire process will require bringing all stakeholders such as banking and industry professionals, together. He also said the MSME sector will have more credit needs going forward, so, more innovative methods will be the key to meet demands of the sector.

Niti Aayog CEO further said MSME's credit gap is currently estimated to be Rs 25 lakh crore. He also said the government has been pushing faster formalization of the economy and on credit fronts, the government has taken several key steps. He also pointed out that the financial sector is undergoing a massive change and there has been dramatic change in India's credit scenario also. He noted that over the past few years, there has been a flood of fintech (financial technology) players, which are bringing transformational change in the way financial services are provided.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 13522.65, up by 8.80 points or 0.07% after trading in a range of 13503.65 and 13597.50. There were 28 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Cipla up by 3.76%, ONGC up by 2.79%, Coal India up by 2.60%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.24% and Indian Oil Corp. up by 2.02%. On the flip side, Hero MotoCorp down by 2.27%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.92%, Eicher Motors down by 1.88%, Wipro down by 1.56% and Bajaj Auto down by 1.51% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Straits Times advanced 36.49 points or 1.29% to 2,858.19, Nikkei 225 surged 79.92 points or 0.3% to 26,732.44, Jakarta Composite soared 70.89 points or 1.19% to 6,009.22 and Shanghai Composite was up by 15.18 points or 0.45% to 3,362.37.

On the other hand; KOSPI fell 7.86 points or 0.28% to 2,762.20, Hang Seng decreased 146.53 points or 0.55% to 26,359.34 and Taiwan Weighted was down by 50.64 points or 0.36% to 14,211.05.