Benchmarks trim some gains in late afternoon session

The Indian benchmarks trimmed some of their initial gains in late afternoon session but managed to remain in green territory. Traders were seen piling up positions in ONGC, Larsen & Toubro and NTPC stocks while selling was witnessed in Bajaj Finance, Ultratech Cement stocks. Traders took support, as finance ministry has said positive GDP growth in Q3 of FY21 – for the first time since the onset of the pandemic – adds to the positive sentiment as the economy is set to close the year with activity levels higher than measured in the second advance estimates of GDP. However, upside remain capped after foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) pulled out Rs 5,156 crore from Indian markets in the first week of March amid profit booking and rising bond yields in the US. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, as persistent inflation fears overshadowed a forecast-busting US jobs report and Senate approval of Joe Biden’s huge stimulus package, while Brent crude broke past $70 (RM286) for the first time in almost two years after an attack on energy facilities in Saudi Arabia. However, European markets were trading higher as UK business confidence hit a 12-month high on hopes of economic recovery.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 50526.06, up by 120.74 points or 0.24% after trading in a range of 50370.29 and 50985.77. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.40%, while Small cap index was up by 0.88%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 2.02%, Oil & Gas up by 2.01%, Capital Goods up by 1.95%, Utilities up by 1.72% and Metal was up by 1.59%, while Realty down by 0.74% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were ONGC up by 3.70%, Larsen & Toubro up by 3.58%, NTPC up by 2.90%, HCL Tech up by 2.64% and Infosys up by 1.82%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 2.16%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.88%, Indusind Bank down by 1.30%, HDFC down by 1.22% and Bajaj Auto down by 1.08% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, credit rating agency, India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) in its latest report has maintained a negative outlook on the power sector for FY22, on account of a further weakening in the financial position of distribution companies (discoms) due to COVID-19 led business disruptions.

As per the report, the power demand however has started improving post opening-up of the economy from September 2020 which is expected to lower the build-up of current dues by discoms in FY22. The rating agency expects the power demand to grow at 9%-10% yoy in FY22, and hence the thermal plant load factors would recover. However, the recovery to above 60% would be beyond FY23, given the continued thermal capacity additions of 6-8GW.

The report further noted that the share of renewable and nuclear power in the overall generation is expected to increase with planned capacity additions, further impacting the thermal plant load factors. The renewable capacity additions are also driven by growing priority of ESG (environmental, social and governance) investments among global investors.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14985.25, up by 47.15 points or 0.32% after trading in a range of 14935.75 and 15111.15. There were 32 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were UPL up by 5.34%, GAIL India up by 5.23%, Larsen & Toubro up by 3.55%, ONGC up by 3.52% and HCL Tech up by 3.02%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 2.26%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.93%, Indusind Bank down by 1.37%, HDFC down by 1.33% and Bajaj Auto down by 1.19% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red, Hang Seng decreased 557.46 points or 1.92% to 28,540.83, Nikkei 225 slipped 121.07 points or 0.42% to 28,743.25, Shanghai Composite declined 80.58 points or 2.3% to 3,421.41, Taiwan Weighted dropped 35.12 points or 0.22% to 15,820.11, KOSPI fell 30.15 points or 1% to 2,996.11 and Jakarta Composite was down by 10.29 points or 0.16% to 6,248.46. On the flip side, Straits Times was up by 60.50 points or 2.01% to 3,074.35.

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 20.88 points or 0.31% to 6,651.40, France’s CAC increased 23.02 points or 0.4% to 5,805.67 and Germany’s DAX was up by 71.70 points or 0.52% to 13,992.39.