Domestic indices trade flat in early deals

Indian equity benchmarks made negative start on Friday tracking weakness in Asian peers. But, markets turned volatile and are struggling for direction. Now, domestic indices are trading flat in early deals. Buying in Auto, Consumer discretionary and Industrials stocks are supporting markets, while selling in Bankex, Healthcare and Power stocks limit the upside. Some cautiousness came in as India recorded 13,701 fresh cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). The total number of active cases in the country has fallen to 10,625,420, while the caseload tally stands at 10,625,420. Globally, more than 98 million people have been infected by the virus. The country continues to be second-most-affected globally, and ranks 13th among worst-hit nations by active cases. However, some respite came in as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in its latest assessment of the economy, indicated that the Indian economy has further recovered and estimates the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to turn positive in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Union Health Ministry said the number of healthcare workers who have received COVID-19 vaccine jabs in India till the evening of the sixth day of the nationwide immunisation drive has reached 9,99,065 as per provisional reports.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading lower tracking the mixed cues overnight from Wall Street and following the recent strong gains leading up to US President Joe Biden's inauguration. Optimism about ramped up efforts to combat the coronavirus and more stimulus under the new Biden administration have helped to prop up the markets in recent days.

Back home, logistics industry stocks were in focus with ICRA’s report that pressure on earnings and credit metrics of logistics entities, especially the smaller, unorganised players, is expected to continue over the near-term. However, it said growth over the medium-term is expected to gain momentum. In scrip specific development, Hero MotoCorp rose after surpassing the significant milestone of 100 million (10 Crores) units in cumulative production. Bajaj Auto jumped after it posted the highest ever profit-after-tax for a quarter. However, Biocon plummeted after it reported a 17 percent fall in quarterly consolidated net profit.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 49617.52, down by 7.24 points or 0.01% after trading in a range of 49361.22 and 49663.74. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.54%, while Small cap index was up by 0.35%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 2.74%, Consumer discretionary up by 1.52%, Industrials up by 0.70%, Consumer Durables up by 0.60%, IT up by 0.55%, while Bankex down by 0.73%, Healthcare down by 0.24%, Power down by 0.22%, Utilities down by 0.05% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Auto up by 4.52%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.09%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.97%, HCL Technologies up by 0.92% and Asian Paints up by 0.86%. On the flip side, Axis Bank down by 1.76%, HDFC Bank down by 0.84%, ICICI Bank down by 0.64%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.62% and Tech Mahindra down by 0.58% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Crisil Ratings in its latest report has stated that recovery in key export markets and pent-up demand are likely to arrest the decline in revenue of the country's diamond industry to 20 per cent at $15 billion. It said that when the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, the industry was expected to see a third of its revenue shaved off this fiscal. However, this could now get arrested at around 20 per cent.

As  per the report, the recent upsurge in spending on diamonds, riding on a combination of pent-up demand and recovery in retail offtake in key markets such as the US and China, is expected to help India's diamond industry contain its decline and close this fiscal with a revenue of over $15 billion. Sluggish demand and extended lockdowns globally saw exports plunge to $5.5 billion in the first half, almost half of the previous year's business.

However, exports in the third quarter ended December 2020 rose to an estimated monthly average of $1.6 billion, setting the industry up for a tryst with the $15-billion-mark for the full year. The report said that at the start of the financial year, the industry was grappling with significant build-up of inventory, comprising both rough and polished diamonds, over the previous seven months.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14600.10, up by 9.75 points or 0.07% after trading in a range of 14518.45 and 14612.50. There were 33 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining, while 2 stocks remain unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Auto up by 5.10%, Tata Motors up by 4.96%, Hero MotoCorp up by 3.28%, Eicher Motors up by 2.23% and Adani Ports & SEZ up by 1.57%. On the flip side, Axis Bank down by 1.61%, Coal India down by 0.98%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.78%, HDFC Bank down by 0.76% and ICICI Bank down by 0.67% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading in red; Nikkei fell 118.83 points or 0.41% to 28,638.03, Straits Times slipped 22.01 points or 0.73% to 2,995.14, Hang Seng weakened 447.65 points or 1.50% to 29,480.11, Taiwan Weighted declined 167.31 points or 1.04% to 15,986.46, KOSPI lost 2.15 points or 0.07% to 3,158.69, Jakarta Composite plummeted 80.32 points or 1.25% to 6,333.57and Shanghai Composite was down by 26.26 points or 0.73% to 3,595.00.