Markets trade flat in early deals

Indian equity benchmarks made positive start on Friday amid mixed global cues. But, soon markets turned volatile and are trading flat in early deals. Initially, some support came in as the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) urged the government to provide a fiscal stimulus worth Rs 3 trillion along with direct cash transfers to perk up domestic demand. The industry body also sought expansion in the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) balance sheet to meet the demand exigencies of the pandemic. Also, India maintained 43rd rank on an annual World Competitiveness Index compiled by the Institute for Management Development (IMD) that examined the impact of COVID-19 on economies around the world this year. However, upside remained capped with a private report that lockdowns in April and May to contain Covid-19 have likely led to India’s economy contracting 12 per cent in the June quarter as against 23.9 per cent contraction in the same quarter in 2020. India reported 67,208 new Covid-19 infections over the past 24 hours, data from the health ministry showed.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed following the mixed cues overnight from Wall Street, with support from technology stocks which mirroring their peers on the tech-heavy Nasdaq. The markets were also dragged after crude oil and bullion prices tumbled on the US dollar's surge. The markets also remain tense amid the continuing high number of infections in most markets. Back home, Information and broadcasting industry stocks were in focus as the Centre amended the Cable Television Network Rules to provide for a three-layer statutory mechanism for the redressal of complaints relating to content broadcast by television channels. In scrip specific development, Natco Pharma traded lower as its Q4FY21 net profit fell 43.1 percent to Rs 53 crore from Rs 93.2 crore, while revenue declined 27.2 percent to Rs 331.3 crore from Rs 454.8 crore, YoY.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 52504.81, up by 181.48 points or 0.35% after trading in a range of 52342.35 and 52586.41. There were 17 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining, while 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index lost 0.14%, while Small cap index was up by 0.35%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 0.74%, TECK up by 0.67%, Healthcare up by 0.58%, Consumer discretionary up by 0.33%, Telecom up by 0.29%, while Power down by 1.43%, Metal down by 1.28%, Utilities down by 0.97%, Oil & Gas down by 0.49%, Basic Materials down by 0.32% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finserv up by 0.85%, Infosys up by 0.75%, Sun Pharma up by 0.68%, HCL Technologies up by 0.65% and Tech Mahindra up by 0.49%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 2.36%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.91%, Power Grid down by 0.77%, Larsen & Toubro down by 0.65% and Ultratech Cement down by 0.62% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the government has amended the Cable Television Network Rules to provide for a three-layer statutory mechanism for the redressal of complaints relating to content broadcast by television channels. The Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry notified the Cable Television Networks (Amendment) Rules, 2021 in an official gazette.

The ministry said the Cable Television Network Rules have been amended to provide for a transparent statutory mechanism that would benefit the citizens. It said at the same time, self-regulating bodies of broadcasters would be registered with the central government. The amended rules stipulate a three-layer grievance redressal mechanism -- self-regulation by broadcasters, self-regulation by the self-regulating bodies of broadcasters and an oversight mechanism by the central government.

Any person aggrieved by the content of a programme of a channel may file his/her complaint in writing to the broadcaster first. The rules stated the broadcaster shall, within 24 hours of a complaint being filed, generate and issue an acknowledgement to the complainant for his information and record. The broadcaster shall dispose of the complaint and inform the complainant of its decision within 15 days of receipt of such complaint. For this, each broadcaster is required to establish a grievance or complaint redressal mechanism, appoint an officer to deal with the complaints, display the contact details of their grievance officer on their website or interface and be a member of a self-regulating body.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 15666.70, down by 24.70 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 15662.00 and 15761.50. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Ports & SEZ up by 1.22%, Divi's Lab up by 1.04%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 0.82%, Infosys up by 0.78% and Bajaj Finserv up by 0.69%. On the flip side, JSW Steel down by 2.53%, ONGC down by 2.40%, Tata Motors down by 2.07%, Tata Steel down by 2.04% and Hindalco down by 1.81% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Straits Times slipped 7.26 points or 0.23% to 3,131.05, Taiwan Weighted declined 15.69 points or 0.09% to 17,374.92, Jakarta Composite lost 97.17 points or 1.60% to 5,971.28 and Shanghai Composite was down by 17.31 points or 0.49% to 3,508.29. On the other hand, Nikkei 225 rose 20.89 points or 0.07% to 29,039.22, Hang Seng advanced 166.85 points or 0.58% to 28,725.44 and KOSPI gained 4.20 points or 0.13% to 3,269.16.