Markets remain in green in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade in green terrain in morning deals, led by gains in IT, TECK, FMCG and Telecom stocks. Sentiments remained positive with Union Minister Piyush Goyal’s statement that India is strengthening the entire ecosystem through rapid structural reforms to achieve the same. He said ‘we are working simultaneously to bring about a quantum leap in our quality, in our productivity, in our efficiency, so that Indian Industry can truly expand our export basket, making it bigger, better and broader’. Some support also came with report that India’s exports grew 16.22 percent YoY to $6.21 billion in the first week of January, mainly driven by healthy growth in pharmaceuticals, and engineering sectors, reflecting signs of revival. Imports during January 1-7 this year too increased by 1.07 percent to $8.7 billion as against $8.6 billion in the same period of 2020. Meanwhile, FPIs have pumped Rs 5,156 crore into Indian capital markets in the first six trading sessions this year amid expectations of strong third-quarter earnings and a reformist budget. As per depositories data, FPIs invested a net Rs 4,819 crore in equities and Rs 337 crore in debt segment between January 1 and 8.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, as investors turned cautious following news about growing calls for U.S. President Donald Trump's removal from office. Back home, on the sectoral front, there was some reaction in coal industry stocks with a private report stating that India's coal import declined by 17 per cent to 137.16 million tonne (MT) in the April-November period of the current fiscal. There will be some result reactions too, to keep the markets in action.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 49074.22, up by 291.71 points or 0.60% after trading in a range of 49015.22 and 49269.02. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.49%, while Small cap index was down by 0.11%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 2.11%, TECK up by 1.87%, FMCG up by 1.39%, Telecom up by 0.96% and Realty up by 0.16%, while Metal down by 1.98%, Basic Materials down by 1.13%, Capital Goods down by 1.08%, PSU down by 0.81% and Power down by 0.77% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 3.41%, HCL Technologies up by 2.37%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.91%, HDFC Bank up by 1.89% and Bharti Airtel up by 1.80%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 2.09%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.57%, Axis Bank down by 1.46%, SBI down by 1.42% and Larsen & Toubro down by 1.06% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Ratings agency ICRA in its latest report has said that the domestic demand for petroleum products is expected to increase at a healthy rate of 8 to 10 per cent in next financial year (FY22) on a year-on-year basis. The report said a growth in economy and pick-up in industrial activity.

The report explained that growth in Motor Spirit (MS) consumption is expected due to preference for personal mobility while higher off-take of High Speed Diesel (HSD) and industrial fuel would likely be driven by a pick-up in economic activity. As per the report, Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) demand is expected to lag due to the discretionary nature and the perceived risk of air travel.

Furthermore, the report pointed out capex and investments are expected to be healthy in FY22, as companies make up for the time lost due to restrictions and lockdowns in FY21. It said a clearer outlook on demand and prices, and a greater impetus for local manufacturing under 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' are expected to spur demand over the long term.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14420.25, up by 73.00 points or 0.51% after trading in a range of 14401.65 and 14479.70. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Infosys up by 3.28%, HCL Technologies up by 2.35%, Tata Motors up by 2.22%, Wipro up by 2.14% and HDFC Bank up by 1.86%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 2.59%, ONGC down by 2.24%, Hindalco down by 2.07%, JSW Steel down by 1.79% and Adani Ports &SEZ down by 1.67% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Taiwan Weighted dropped 26.38 points or 0.17% to 15,437.57, KOSPI fell 22.27 points or 0.71% to 3,129.91, Straits Times trembled 8.80 points or 0.29% to 2,984.39 and Shanghai Composite declined 8.34 points or 0.23% to 3,561.77.

On the flip side, Hang Seng increased 185.40 points or 0.67% to 28,063.62 and Jakarta Composite soared 81.01 points or 1.29% to 6,338.85.