Equity markets add gains in late afternoon session

Indian equity markets added gains to continue firm trade in the late afternoon session on account of buying in front line counters. The broader indices, BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index are also trading green. Traders remain energized after revenue Secretary Tarun Bajaj has said that Indian economy has not suffered as much this year amid the second wave of COVID-19 as compared to last year when there was complete lockdown. Giving two scenarios, he said if Rs 1.10 lakh crore GST is collected per month, the deficit in states’ revenue would be Rs 1.50 lakh crore. If Rs 1.15 lakh crore GST is collected monthly, then that deficit would be Rs 1.25 lakh crore. Sector wise, banking sector remained in focus, as Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its latest report has said that bank credit growth decelerated to 5.6 percent in March 2021 from 6.4 percent a year ago. On the other hand, it said aggregate deposits growth accelerated to 12.3 per cent in March 2021 from 9.5 per cent in the same month of the previous year.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green despite Japan reported weaker-than-expected growth in factory output and Chinese manufacturing growth was flat. European markets were trading mixed, ahead of inflation data for some of the region’s biggest economies.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 51905.81, up by 482.93 points or 0.94% after trading in a range of 51179.94 and 51931.58. There were 19 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.30%, while Small cap index was up by 0.54%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Energy up by 2.72%, Telecom up by 1.55%, Oil & Gas up by 1.44%, Metal up by 1.33% and Realty was up by 1.31%, while Auto down by 0.26%, IT down by 0.26%, TECK down by 0.10% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were ITC up by 2.09%, Reliance Industries up by 1.63%, ICICI Bank up by 1.62%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.40% and Asian Paints up by 1.37%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 5.68%, Sun Pharma down by 0.71%, Infosys down by 0.70%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.56% and HCL Tech down by 0.49% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, with an aim to provide relief to small taxpayers, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that compliance burden of small taxpayers and medium-sized taxpayers has been reduced and an amnesty scheme has been recommended for reducing late fee payable.

According to the Union Finance Minster, taxpayers can now file their pending returns and avail the benefits of this amnesty scheme with reduced late fees. Late fees have also been rationalised. The rationalised late fee and the decision to reduce the maximum amount of late fee for small taxpayers will come into effect for future tax periods. This will provide a long-term relief to small taxpayers.

Finance Minister noted that due to rising cases of black fungus, Amphotericin B has also been included in the exemptions list. She also stated that issue of COVID-related equipment was one of the items on the agenda that was discussed.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 15569.05, up by 133.40 points or 0.86% after trading in a range of 15374.00 and 15573.50. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Reliance Industries up by 3.54%, ICICI Bank up by 2.59%, ITC up by 2.21%, Bharti Airtel up by 2.06% and JSW Steel up by 1.95%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 4.44%, Adani Ports down by 1.07%, Infosys down by 0.94%, Sun Pharma down by 0.91% and Larsen & Toubro down by 0.91% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted strengthened 197.57 points or 1.17% to 17,068.43, Jakarta Composite soared 98.84 points or 1.69% to 5,947.46, Hang Seng increased 27.39 points or 0.09% to 29,151.80, KOSPI rose 15.19 points or 0.48% to 3,203.92 and Shanghai Composite gained 14.70 points or 0.41% to 3,615.48. On the flip side, Straits Times trembled 10.05 points or  0.32% to 3,168.45 and Nikkei 225 was up by 289.33 points or 0.99% to 28,860.08.

European markets were trading mixed, France’s CAC increased 7.33 points or 0.11% to 6,491.44 and Germany’s DAX was down by 27.78 points or 0.18% to 15,492.20.