Markets pare gains to trade slightly in green

Markets wiped out most of their gain to trade tad above their neutral line in afternoon session. Buying in frontline stocks such as Tech Mahindra, Indusind Bank and Tech were aiding sentiment, while selling in ONGC, Reliance Industries and ITC kept the gains in the markets in check. Traders were getting comfort with private report stating that India's economy should come roaring back to life in 2021 after a recession induced by COVID-19 and allow the country to reclaim its status as the fastest-growing major economy if the OECD projection of 12.6 per cent expansion in GDP is realized. However, upside remain capped as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman states that the government has detected GST fraud of Rs 20,124 crore between November 9, 2020, and January 31. A nationwide special drive against unscrupulous entities for availing and passing on Input Tax Credit (ITC) fraudulently on the strength of fake/bogus invoices is being carried out.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly higher as the market sentiments got boosted with the bond yields holding back ahead of auctions in the coming days and greater momentum in vaccination drive. Back home, on the sectoral front, solar stocks were in focus as India will levy a customs duty of 40 percent on solar modules and 25 percent on solar cells from April 2022, as it looks to cut imports and boost local manufacturing.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 51103.14, up by 77.66 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 51083.80 and 51430.43. There were 17 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.29%, while Small cap index was up by 0.48%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 1.15%, IT up by 1.15%, TECK up by 1.02%, Realty up by 0.84% and Auto was up by 0.63%, while Oil & Gas down by 1.09%, Energy down by 0.75%, Utilities down by 0.69%, PSU down by 0.51% and Power was down by 0.43% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Tech Mahindra up by 2.09%, Indusind Bank up by 1.57%, HCL Tech up by 1.52%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.37% and Hindustan Unilever was up by 1.26%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 2.57%, Reliance Industries down by 0.68%, ITC down by 0.65%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.45% and HDFC Bank was down by 0.41% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said monetisation of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSE) assets is based on the principle of value creation for the government and investors and would bring about a paradigm shift in infrastructure augmentation and maintenance. She said India can become a $5 trillion economy, while striking the right balance between fiscal imperatives and socio-economic welfare, through active collaboration between the public and private sector.

The minister has stated that asset monetisation needs to be viewed not just as a funding mechanism, but as an overall strategy for bringing about a paradigm shift in infrastructure augmentation and maintenance. She also underlined the government's resolve for value creation and improvement in the productivity of brownfield infrastructure assets via innovative instruments.

In her 2021-22 Budget speech, Sitharaman had said monetising operating public infrastructure assets is a very important financing option for new infrastructure construction. She also said a National Monetisation Pipeline of potential brownfield infrastructure assets will be launched. An asset monetisation dashboard will also be created for tracking the progress and to provide visibility to investors.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 15104.30, up by 5.90 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 15100.85 and 15218.45. There were 25 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Eicher Motors up by 2.71%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.06%, Tata Motors up by 1.79%, Wipro up by 1.55% and HCL Tech was up by 1.45%. On the flip side, SBI Life Insurance down by 2.55%, ONGC down by 2.53%, UPL down by 1.97%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 1.87% and Indian Oil Corporation was down by 1.74% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly higher; Hang Seng increased 31.86 points or 0.11% to 28,805.09, Jakarta Composite soared 52.13 points or 0.84% to 6,251.78, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 58.58 points or 0.37% to 15,911.67, Shanghai Composite gained 7.56 points or 0.23% to 3,366.85 and Nikkei 225 was up by 8.62 points or 0.03% to 29,036.56.

On the flip side, KOSPI fell 18.00 points or 0.60% to 2,958.12 and Straits Times was down by 29.08 points or 0.94% to 3,079.45.