Bourses trade near neutral line with positive bias

The Indian equity benchmarks traded near neutral line with positive bias in late afternoon session. Traders were seen piling up positions in Auto, Realty and Energy sectors, while selling was witnessed in IT, TECK and Healthcare sectors’ stocks. Traders took support after private report stated that Ratings agency Icra revised up its 2021-22 real GDP growth estimate for India to 9 percent from the earlier 8.5 percent. A ramp-up in COVID-19 vaccination, healthy advance estimates of kharif (summer) crop and faster government spending were the factors which led to the revision. It expects the second half of the fiscal year to have brighter prospects. Besides, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said the net personal income and corporate taxes collection grew 74 per cent to Rs 5.70 lakh crore so far this fiscal, driven mainly by advance tax and TDS payments. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as investors weighed the implications of surging energy prices and risks from the Chinese financial system. European markets cheered surge in crude prices that powered oil stocks.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 60,101.84, up by 53.37 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 59887.19 and 60412.32. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.01%, while Small cap index was up by 0.02%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 3.29%, Realty up by 2.79%, Energy up by 1.49%, Consumer Discretionary up by 1.27% and Oil & Gas was up by 1.08%, while IT down by 2.16%, TECK down by 1.84%, Healthcare down by 1.12%, Capital Goods down by 0.58% and FMCG was down by 0.52% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 6.98%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 4.05%, Bajaj Auto up by 2.69%, NTPC up by 1.93% and Reliance Industries up by 1.65%. On the flip side, HCL Tech down by 3.56%, Tech Mahindra down by 2.87%, Infosys down by 2.28%, Bajaj Finserv down by 1.96% and Bharti Airtel down by 1.79% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in a major step, the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, has approved capital projects of Rs. 2,903.80 crore in 8 States under the scheme entitled ‘Special Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure for 2021-22’. The Ministry has also released an amount of Rs. 1,393.83 crore to these States namely Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Sikkim and Telangana.

In view of a higher multiplier effect of capital expenditure and to provide the much needed resources to the State in the wake of 2nd wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, the scheme ‘Special Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure for 2021-22' was launched on April 29, 2021.

Under the scheme, special assistance is being provided to the State Governments in the form of 50-year interest free loan up to an overall sum not exceeding Rs. 15,000 crore during the financial year 2021-22.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17,858.55, up by 5.35 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 17802.90 and 17943.50. There were 26 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 6.88%, Tata Motors up by 4.73%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 4.24%, Hero MotoCorp up by 3.01% and Bajaj Auto up by 2.73%. On the flip side, HCL Tech down by 3.74%, Wipro down by 3.21%, Divi's Lab down by 3.15%, Tech Mahindra down by 2.91% and Infosys down by 2.36% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 53.58 points or 0.31% to 17,313.77, Straits Times advanced 40.85 points or 1.33% to 3,102.20, Hang Seng increased 16.62 points or 0.07% to 24,208.78 and KOSPI was up by 8.40 points or 0.27% to 3,133.64. On the flip side, Nikkei 225 slipped 8.75 points or 0.03% to 30,240.06, Jakarta Composite lost 22.32 points or 0.36% to 6,122.50 and Shanghai Composite was down by 30.24 points or 0.84% to 3,582.83.

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 19.13 points or 0.27% to 7,070.61, France’s CAC increased 39.98 points or 0.6% to 6,678.44 and Germany’s DAX was up by 137.11 points or 0.88% to 15,668.86.