Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity benchmarks ended in red terrain on Thursday. Key indices started on strong note, taking support 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. Market participants also took a note of ICRA Ratings' report that non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) are likely to see a 7-9 percent growth in their asset under management (AUM) in FY22 but access to funding would be crucial for them to have a sustained improvement.

In late morning deals, markets trimmed gains but managed to remain higher for the most part of the session, as Income Tax department said it has issued refunds worth over Rs 1.64 lakh crore to over 1.41 crore taxpayers till January 4, this fiscal. This includes Personal income tax (PIT) refunds amounting to Rs 53,070 crore and corporate tax refunds of over Rs 1.10 lakh crore during this period. 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.

However, in the last hour of the trade, markets turned negative to end lower, amid reports that the non-food component in the price basket will continue to keep inflation at a high level and result in a 'long pause' in interest rates. The bank report said over a six month period, food inflation is likely to ease, but non-food may be sticky on account of rigidity in domestic fuel taxation, marginal hikes in manufacturing costs after months of the shutdown, commodity price rises, telecom price adjustments and return in demand impulses in certain core categories.

On the global front, European markets were trading higher driven by hopes that a bumper U.S. stimulus package and large-scale coronavirus vaccine rollouts across the continent will spur a strong economic recovery. Asian markets ended mostly higher on Thursday, after the private sector in Singapore moved into expansion territory in December, the latest survey from Markit Economics showed on Wednesday with a PMI score of 50.5. That's up from 46.7 in November, and it moves above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Individually, new orders increased for the first times since January with respondents mentioning stronger demand, a rise in e-commerce sales and promotional activity.

The BSE Sensex ended at 48093.32, down by 80.74 points or 0.17% after trading in a range of 48037.87 and 48558.34. There were 12 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 1.05%, while Small cap index was up by 0.85%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 3.70%, Telecom up by 2.99%, Basic Materials up by 1.67%, Industrials up by 1.57% and Capital Goods up by 1.38%, while FMCG down by 1.07%, IT down by 0.95%, Power down by 0.62%, TECK down by 0.42% and Utilities down by 0.15% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 3.75%, Indusind Bank up by 3.22%, Axis Bank up by 2.48%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.31% and Larsen & Toubro up by 1.92%. On the flip side, Titan Co down by 2.03%, Nestle down by 2.00%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.97%, Infosys down by 1.53% and HCL Tech. down by 1.38% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman has reviewed the progress of National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) implementation. The agenda was to discuss the progress of NIP projects, expenditure incurred so far and the initiatives taken to expedite the project implementation. This was the second review meeting by the Finance Minister with various Ministries & Departments to monitor and accelerate NIP project implementation.

In a meeting, Finance Minister said that NIP is a part of the Government of India’s initiative to provide world class infrastructure to its citizens and enhance the ease of living. The Finance Minister asked the two ministries/departments to push the infra-expenditure by effectively implement all NIP projects in time and to ensure quick resolution of unresolved issues in coordination with State Governments and other Ministries.

Besides, Ministries/Departments were also asked to promote investible projects by holding discussions with prospective investors. Ministries were also asked to update the National Infrastructure Pipeline dashboard regularly to allow seamless online monitoring.

The CNX Nifty ended at 14137.35, down by 8.90 points or 0.06% after trading in a range of 14123.10 and 14256.25. There were 27 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Tata Steel up by 5.70%, Hindalco up by 5.35%, Bharti Airtel up by 3.80%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 3.43% and Indusind Bank up by 3.22%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 2.10%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 2.05%, Hindustan Unilever down by 2.00%, Divis Lab down by 1.98% and Titan Co down by 1.92% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 4.30 points or 0.06% to 6,846.16, France’s CAC increased 21.85 points or 0.39% to 5,652.45 and Germany’s DAX was up by 45.95 points or 0.33% to 13,937.92.

Asian markets ended mostly higher on Thursday as Democratic victories in the Georgia runoff elections give US President-elect Joe Biden a clearer path to boosting fiscal stimulus. Chinese shares ended higher after the country's central bank pledged to keep its monetary policy accommodative in 2021, focusing on supporting small firms as the economy recovers. Though, Hong Kong shares declined after the New York Stock Exchange moved to delist Chinese telecoms firms again. Surging infections around the world and lockdowns in major economies added some pressure on market sentiments.