Negative trade continues over Dalal Street

Negative trade continued over the Dalal Street in late morning session, with both Sensex and Nifty trading in red terrain, despite positive cues from other Asian markets. Traders got cautious, amid reports that even though the retail inflation rate fell to a five-month low of 4.35 per cent in September, there was concern on the part of reputed agencies, from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to Nomura, and companies over inflationary pressure. The wholesale price inflation (WPI) rate came down in September to the level seen in April, but remained elevated at 10.7 per cent.

Besides, another private report stated that rapid strides in digital payments notwithstanding, the Indian economy will likely remain cash-dependent for many years to come, at least that’s what the automated teller machine makers and cash logistics companies are betting on.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, after Taiwan's consumer price inflation eased in October, mainly due to indices for vegetables and fruits. The data released by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting & Statistics revealed that consumer prices rose 2.58 percent year-on-year in October, following 2.63 percent increase in September.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59986.57, down by 81.05 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 59779.19 and 60434.38. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.69%, while Small cap index was up by 0.36%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 1.66%, Capital Goods up by 0.99%, Telecom up by 0.86%, Oil & Gas up by 0.83% and Basic Materials up by 0.83%, while Bankex down by 1.05%, Healthcare down by 0.96%, Energy down by 0.67%, FMCG down by 0.36% and Metal down by 0.07% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Ultratech Cement up by 4.30%, Titan Co up by 3.13%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.83%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.82% and Bajaj Finance up by 1.70%. On the flip side, Indusind Bank down by 10.52%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.99%, SBI down by 1.93%, Reliance Industries down by 1.43% and Asian Paints down by 1.33% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Piyush Goyal has said that it is time to target a five times increase in the export of technical textiles in three years, from the present $2 billion to $10 billion. He said the government will support production-linked incentives (PLIs) for the textile sector in states supporting the development and offering affordable infrastructure for textile manufacturing like cheap land and power.

Goyal said there should be no difference in the quality of textiles meant for international and domestic consumers. He suggested public-private participation for use of government funds in research and development in technical textiles. He noted that the growth of technical textiles in India has gained momentum in the past five years, currently growing at an eight per cent per annum rate.

The minister said that in addition to the growth in statistical terms, the government will direct the growth towards high technology and indigenously innovated products. He further mentioned that with these objectives in mind, the government has launched the National Technical Textiles Mission in February 2020, with a view to make India a self-reliant, vibrant, export-oriented economy in the world. He said ‘our aim is to transform India into a major player in innovations, technology development, applications in key areas (agriculture, roads & railways, water resources, hygiene and healthcare, personal protection) with emphasis on higher education and skilled workforce.’

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17910.00, down by 6.80 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 17836.10 and 18040.20. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Ultratech Cement up by 4.31%, Indian Oil Corp. up by 3.34%, Titan Co up by 3.30%, Grasim Industries up by 2.30% and Bajaj Finserv up by 2.14%. On the flip side, Indusind Bank down by 10.10%, Divi's Lab down by 6.99%, Hindalco down by 2.55%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.96% and SBI down by 1.81% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Shanghai Composite gained 3.47 points or 0.1% to 3,495.04, Straits Times advanced 14.67 points or 0.45% to 3,257.01, Jakarta Composite soared 45.79 points or 0.7% to 6,627.58 and Taiwan Weighted strengthened 65.71 points or 0.38% to 17,362.61. On the flip side, Hang Seng decreased 141.88 points or 0.57% to 24,728.63, Nikkei 225 slipped 79.70 points or 0.27% to 29,531.87 and KOSPI fell 20.01 points or 0.67% to 2,949.26.