Equity markets trade near lowest points of the day

Local equity markets have magnified their losses in late afternoon session, hovering near the lowest points of the day on account of selling in frontline counters. Traders overlooked domestic rating agency Crisil Ratings in its latest report has said that the monthly collection ratios of its rated securitised pools has seen improvement due to the gradual easing of COVID-19 related restrictions. The ratios had declined between April and June 2021 following the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Traders took note of report that underlining that the ‘Rules of Business’ have to be the same for all stakeholders, the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Piyush Goyal has said “Irrespective of whether they are big or small business houses, or where they are from or any other differentiating factor, we would like everybody to have equal opportunity to do their businesses honestly, and grow their businesses.”

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red with worries about the potential impact of a widening power shortage in China and Fed tapering signals denting sentiment. European markets were trading lower with high-growth tech stocks pressured by rising bond yields, while investors digest the inconclusive German election and Chinese property group Evergrande’s ongoing debt crisis.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59077.14, down by 1000.74 points or 1.67% after trading in a range of 59045.53 and 60288.44. There were 6 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 1.39%, while Small cap index was down by 1.17%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 1.72%, PSU up by 1.62%, Power up by 1.57%, Oil & Gas up by 1.32% and Metal was up by 0.61%, while Realty down by 4.64%, Telecom down by 3.54%, TECK down by 2.78%, IT down by 2.62% and Bankex was down by 2.03% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid up by 4.60%, NTPC up by 4.45%, Titan Company up by 1.08%, Tata Steel up by 0.41% and Hindustan Unilever up by 0.34%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 4.84%, Bajaj Finance down by 3.87%, Tech Mahindra down by 3.74%, Bajaj Finserv down by 2.99% and ICICI Bank down by 2.94% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, underlining that the ‘Rules of Business’ have to be the same for all stakeholders, the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Piyush Goyal has said “Irrespective of whether they are big or small business houses, or where they are from or any other differentiating factor, we would like everybody to have equal opportunity to do their businesses honestly, and grow their businesses.”

The Commerce Minister also said that accountability and stipulated timelines should be there and Best Practices of various States or Ministries in Exports Development must be shared. Without setting a timeline, Piyush Goyal said the Government plans to scale $1 trillion exports in both Merchandise and Services. He said “We must position India as a global player by becoming competitive”.

While launching the ‘Ease of Logistics’ portal, the Minister said that it will bring in transparency. Besides, Goyal said that the world is looking at India as the Favoured Investment Destination. He also said that Innovation, Quality and Competition by Exporters is going to define the Brand India.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17593.35, down by 261.75 points or 1.47% after trading in a range of 17576.10 and 17912.85. There were 13 stocks advancing against 37 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Power Grid Corp up by 4.60%, NTPC up by 4.53%, Coal India up by 4.43%, Indian Oil up by 3.46% and ONGC up by 2.21%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 4.91%, Divi's Lab down by 4.31%, Bajaj Finance down by 3.76%, Tech Mahindra down by 3.73% and ICICI Bank down by 2.94% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red, Taiwan Weighted dropped 132.33 points or 0.76% to 17,181.44, Nikkei 225 slipped 56.10 points or 0.19% to 30,183.96, KOSPI fell 35.72 points or 1.14% to 3,097.92, Straits Times trembled 20.64 points or 0.67% to 3,079.66 and Jakarta Composite was down by 9.39 points or 0.15% to 6,113.11. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite gained 19.39 points or 0.54% to 3,602.22 and Hang Seng was up by 291.61 points or 1.2% to 24,500.39.

European markets were trading lower, UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 31.09 points or 0.44% to 7,032.31, France’s CAC decreased 91.59 points or 1.38% to 6,559.32 and Germany’s DAX was down by 133.40 points or 0.86% to 15,440.48.