Bourses extend losses in noon deals

Indian bourses extended their losses and were trading with cut of over half a percent each in noon session amid concerns about the fate of China Evergrande. Most of the sectoral indices were trading lower and Realty was the top loser on BSE, down by around 4% followed by TECK and IT indices, trading down over 2%. Sentiments were fragile as finance ministry said the government will borrow Rs 5.03 trillion in the second half of the current fiscal to fund the revenue gap for reviving the pandemic-hit economy. Also, traders’ will closely watch Sebi's board meeting scheduled today for the regulator's decision on a few important things. While private equity firms could be allowed to acquire or set up their own asset management companies, a decision on superior voting rights may give founders of new-age companies more flexibility to raise capital before going public.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly lower as investors fretted over China Evergrande Group's debt crisis and a widening power shortage in China. Back home, on the sectoral front, textile stocks were in focus as according to a notification of the textiles ministry only manufacturing companies registered in India will be eligible to participate under the recently approved Rs 10,683-crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for the textiles sector.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59569.22, down by 508.66 points or 0.85% after trading in a range of 59555.93 and 60288.44. There were 9 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.55%, while Small cap index down by 0.50%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 2.28%, Utilities up by 2.21%, Power up by 2.10%, Oil & Gas up by 1.49% and Metal was up by 0.97%, while Realty down by 3.62%, TECK down by 2.23%, IT down by 2.16%, Telecom down by 2.15% and Healthcare was down by 0.81% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid up by 5.82%, NTPC up by 4.61%, Titan Company up by 1.61%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.83% and Maruti Suzuki was up by 0.80%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 3.63%, HCL Tech down by 2.89%, Infosys down by 2.29%, Tech Mahindra down by 2.26% and Bajaj Finance was down by 2.11% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Finance Ministry has set up two committees of state finance ministers which would rework rate slabs, review GST exempt items and identify potential evasion sources. Four years after the rollout of the national Goods and Services Tax (GST), which replaced the complex indirect tax structure, the center and states have started work on moving towards a ''simpler rate structure in GST'' by reviewing the current rate slabs, including special rates and merger of rate slabs.

The Group of Ministers (GoM) on rate rationalization would also review items under inverted duty structure to help minimize refund payout, and review the supply of goods and services exempt under GST to expand the tax base and eliminate breaking of input tax credit (ITC) chain. The GoM on GST system reforms would identify potential sources of evasion and suggest changes in business processes and IT systems to plug revenue leakage.

The panel, which would give its recommendation to the council from time to time, would review IT tools and interface available with taxmen and suggest ways to make them more effective, identify possible use of data analysis towards better tax compliance, and suggest ways of better coordination between central and state tax officers. The decision to set up these two GoMs was taken by the GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on September 17, 2021.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17707.00, down by 148.10 points or 0.83% after trading in a range of 17704.85 and 17912.85. There were 16 stocks advancing against 34 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid up by 5.91%, Coal India up by 4.79%, NTPC up by 4.65%, Indian Oil Corporation up by 3.16% and ONGC was up by 1.82%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 3.69%, HCL Tech down by 2.95%, Divi's Lab down by 2.72%, Tech Mahindra down by 2.35% and Infosys was down by 2.29% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly lower; Jakarta Composite lost 2.60 points or 0.04% to 6,119.90, Nikkei 225 slipped 56.10 points or 0.19% to 30,183.96, Straits Times trembled 13.79 points or 0.44% to 3,086.51, KOSPI fell 33.04 points or 1.05% to 3,100.60 and Taiwan Weighted was down by 132.33 points or 0.76% to 17,181.44.

On the flip side; Hang Seng increased 397.11 points or 1.64% to 24,605.89 and Shanghai Composite was up by 15.88 points or 0.44% to 3,598.71.