Sensex, Nifty hold gains in late morning session

Indian equity benchmarks hold gains in late morning session, with both Sensex and Nifty trading higher. Positive cues from other Asian markets helped key indices to remain in green. Traders remained positive, after SBI research report Ecowrap said that the country's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow at around 18.5 per cent with an upward bias in the first quarter of the current financial year. Adding more optimism, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said foreign direct investments into the country is on the rise, jumping to $12.1 billion in May this year. He said ‘India has received the highest ever foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow in 2020-21. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, even after consumer confidence in South Korea dipped slightly in August, according to the latest survey from the Bank of Korea's sentiment index, which came in with a score of 102.5 down from 103.2 in July. Consumer sentiment regarding current living standards and their future outlook were unchanged at 91 and 96, respectively.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 55708.05, up by 152.26 points or 0.27% after trading in a range of 55536.84 and 55816.70. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.73%, while Small cap index was up by 0.78%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 1.67%, Metal up by 1.65%, PSU up by 1.55%, Power up by 1.45% and Utilities up by 1.44%, while IT down by 0.62%, TECK down by 0.57%, FMCG down by 0.56% and Consumer Durables down by 0.52% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finserv up by 5.08%, Tata Steel up by 2.30%, SBI up by 2.03%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.91% and Bajaj Finance up by 1.73%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 1.51%, TCS down by 0.98%, Asian Paints down by 0.87%, HDFC down by 0.81% and Infosys down by 0.80% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced a Rs 6 lakh crore National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) that will look to unlock value in infrastructure assets across sectors ranging from power to road and railways. She also said the asset monetisation does not involve selling of land and it is about monetising brownfield assets. Projects have been identified across sectors, with roads, railways and power being the top segments.

She said ‘NMP estimates aggregate monetisation potential of Rs 6 lakh crores through core assets of central government over the four-year period from FY 2022 to FY 2025’. She added ‘Ownership of assets will remain with the government and there will be a mandatory hand-back’. Asset monetisation will unlock resources and lead to value unlocking, she said. Union Budget 2021-22 had identified monetisation of operating public infrastructure assets as a key means for sustainable infrastructure financing. Towards this, the Budget provided for preparation of a ‘National Monetisation Pipeline’ of potential brownfield infrastructure assets. NITI Aayog in consultation with infra line ministries has prepared the report on NMP.

The aggregate asset pipeline under NMP over the four-year period is indicatively valued at Rs 6 lakh crore. The estimated value corresponds to 14 per cent of the proposed outlay for Centre under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (Rs 43 lakh crore). She added that the end objective of this initiative is to enable ‘infrastructure creation through monetisation’ wherein the public and private sector collaborate, each excelling in their core areas of competence, so as to deliver socio-economic growth and quality of life to the country’s citizens.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 16540.95, up by 44.50 points or 0.27% after trading in a range of 16495.30 and 16585.25. There were 31 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finserv up by 4.91%, Hindalco up by 2.91%, Tata Steel up by 2.19%, Indian Oil Corp. up by 2.14% and Tech Mahindra up by 2.05%. On the flip side, Tata Motors down by 2.17%, Nestle down by 1.68%, Asian Paints down by 1.05%, TCS down by 0.96% and HDFC down by 0.92% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng increased 392.16 points or 1.56% to 25,501.75, Nikkei 225 surged 260.68 points or 0.95% to 27,754.92, Shanghai Composite gained 34.84 points or 1% to 3,511.97, KOSPI rose 36.30 points or 1.17% to 3,126.51, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 96.80 points or 0.58% to 16,838.64 and Straits Times advanced 20.78 points or 0.67% to 3,108.34. On the flip side, Jakarta Composite lost 32.20 points or 0.53% to 6,077.63.