Key gauges continue to trade higher in morning session

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade higher in morning session, amid gains in index-heavyweights Indusind Bank, Dr. Reddys Lab and Power Grid. Sentiments remained up-beat as the US-India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF) described Union Budget as bold and visionary, which would launch India’s economy into a growth trajectory. It added that the budget positions India towards its target of a $5 trillion economy. Additional support also came with trade Promotion Council of India's (TPCI's) Founder Chairman Mohit Singla’s statement that the country's exports, which have recorded a growth of 5.4 percent in January, reflects the trade has been on the path of quick recovery. He said the exports have also recorded positive growth in December 2020 and it is a reflection that Indian products have been sustaining its global demand despite challenges. Adding to the optimism, Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said the GST revenue shortfall faced by the states is likely to come down with the improved collections in the last few months.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, following the gains on Wall Street amid easing concerns about the retail trading frenzy, upbeat corporate earnings results, and optimism about more U.S. fiscal stimulus. Back home, on the sectoral front, stocks related to cement sector remained in focus with the South India Cement Manufacturers Association said the steps announced by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the budget to boost the realty sector would give a big fillip to cement demand in the country.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 50076.48, up by 278.76 points or 0.56% after trading in a range of 49515.88 and 50231.39. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 1.05%, while Small cap index was up by 1.00%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Healthcare up by 2.32%, Telecom up by 2.02%, Consumer Durables up by 1.44%, TECK up by 1.35% and IT up by 1.33%, while Realty down by 0.38% and Energy down by 0.05% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Indusind Bank up by 8.96%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 4.50%, Power Grid up by 3.78%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 3.70% and Sun Pharma up by 3.11%. On the flip side, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.77%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.74%, ITC down by 0.87%, SBI down by 0.69% and Reliance Industries down by 0.55% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar has said the reform measures announced in the budget 2021-22 are aimed at taking India out of the COVID-19-induced downturn and making the country a better destination for private investment, both for domestic and foreign investors.

Further, Kumar said he is confident that the government will cross the next fiscal year's disinvestment target of Rs 1.75 lakh crore. On disinvestment target of Rs 1.75 lakh crore for the next fiscal year, He said a lot of preparatory work has already been done in the last 8-9 months, and now market conditions have changed. He also stressed that reform measures announced in the Budget will help us achieve the target of $ 5 trillion economy.

Noting that for the first time, the finance minister has announced a real-time dashboard for monitoring the progress of asset monetisation and disinvestments, Kumar said, ‘So, there is focus on implementation this time.’ On the government's proposal to privatise two public sector banks and one general insurance company in 2021-22, he said all the necessary preparation has to be done which includes engaging with all the stakeholders.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14737.00, up by 89.15 points or 0.61% after trading in a range of 14574.15 and 14754.90. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Indusind Bank up by 9.36%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 4.41%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 4.03%, Cipla up by 3.95% and Power Grid up by 3.76%. On the flip side, Maruti Suzuki down by 1.73%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.72%, SBI down by 0.81%, ITC down by 0.78% and JSW Steel down by 0.60% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 226.64 points or 0.8% to 28,588.81, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 76.96 points or 0.49% to 15,837.01, Jakarta Composite soared 79.89 points or 1.32% to 6,123.73, KOSPI rose 26.47 points or 0.85% to 3,123.28, Shanghai Composite gained 6.97 points or 0.2% to 3,540.65 and Straits Times advanced 17.25 points or 0.59% to 2,934.54.

On the flip side, Hang Seng decreased 137.95 points or 0.47% to 29,110.75.