Indian markets maintain upward momentum

Mirroring other Asian peers, Indian equity markets maintained their upward momentum in the afternoon session, following gains in telecom, metal and basic materials stocks. Healthy buying was observed in blue-chip stocks like Bharti Airtel, Indusind Bank and Axis Bank. Besides, broader indices - BSE Mid cap and Small cap - are also following main indices with gains of over 1% each. Traders remain energized with World Trade Organisation (WTO) stating that India has implemented several measures to facilitate trade, such as simplification of procedures and customs clearances for imports and exports. Some support also came with private report stating that in the upcoming union budget for FY 2021-22, the government is likely to announce SWIFT - Special Window for Financial Investors Facilitation - for big foreign investors in India.  SWIFT will cater to global financial investors with an investment proposal of more than Rs 5,000 crore.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly higher on the prospects of a large fiscal stimulus in the United States after Democrats won control of the Senate. Back on street, in scrip specific development, L&T jumped as its arm wins order from ONGC and Thermax surged on incorporating step down subsidiary company.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 48299.71, up by 125.65 points or 0.26% after trading in a range of 48209.31 and 48558.34. There were 17 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 1.08%, while Small cap index was up by 1.08%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 4.36%, Metal up by 3.51%, Basic Materials up by 2.06%, Realty up by 1.90% and Industrials was up by 1.85%, while IT down by 1.01%, FMCG down by 0.60%, TECK down by 0.32% and Consumer Durables was down by 0.21% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 5.29%, Indusind Bank up by 3.76%, Axis Bank up by 2.09%, HDFC up by 2.07% and Larsen & Toubro was up by 1.95%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 2.18%, Infosys down by 1.53%, Nestle down by 1.29%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.25% and HCL Tech was down by 1.15% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Geneva-based World Trade Organisation (WTO) has said that during the period 2015-20, India has implemented several measures to facilitate trade, such as a reduction in the number of documents required and the automation of the customs clearance system for imports and exports. It noted that the other trade-facilitation initiatives introduced by India since 2015 include introduction of Indian Customs Electronic Gateway (ICEGATE); Single Window Interface for Facilitation of Trade (SWIFT); the Direct Port Delivery and the Direct Port Entry facilities; and the increased use of the Risk Management System (RMS).

WTO has stated that India's trade policy remained largely unchanged since the previous review. It said the country continues to rely on trade policy instruments such as the tariff, export taxes, minimum import prices, import and export restrictions, and licensing. It pointed out that these are used to manage domestic demand and supply requirements, protect the economy from wide domestic price fluctuations, and ensure conservation and proper utilization of natural resources.

As a result, it said frequent changes are made to tariff rates and other trade policy instruments, which creates uncertainty for traders. To support both domestic production and exports, it said India continues to provide a number of incentives, in the form of direct subsidies and price support schemes, tariff concessions or exemptions, or preferential rates of interest. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14193.10, up by 46.85 points or 0.33% after trading in a range of 14165.45 and 14256.25. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharti Airtel up by 5.43%, Tata Steel up by 5.43%, Hindalco up by 4.77%, Indusind Bank up by 3.91% and Adani Ports was up by 3.62%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 2.10%, Infosys down by 1.59%, Divis Lab down by 1.58%, Nestle down by 1.35% and Hindustan Unilever was down by 1.24% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly higher; KOSPI rose 73.32 points or 2.47% to 3,041.53, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 230.87 points or 1.54% to 15,214.00, Jakarta Composite soared 73.54 points or 1.21% to 6,139.22, Straits Times advanced 44.63 points or 1.56% to 2,907.64 and Nikkei 225 was up by 434.19 points or 1.6% to 27,490.13.

On the flip side, Hang Seng decreased 146.13 points or 0.53% to 27,546.17 and Shanghai Composite was down by 15.44 points or 0.43% to 3,535.44.