Markets trade flat with positive bias in volatile session ahead of F&O expiry

Indian equity benchmarks made cautious start on Thursday amid mixed global cues. Markets soon turned volatile and are trading flat with positive bias in early deals ahead of monthly expiry of November futures and options contracts. Sentiments got some support with a private report stating that Official data print on the GDP will show a 7.8 per cent expansion on a year-on-year basis for the September 2021 quarter. Adding some optimism, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that India has set an ambitious target of $400 billion of exports for the year 2021-22. However, gains remained capped as outflow of foreign institutional investors continue to weight on market sentiments. As per the data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 5,123 crore. Also, rising coronavirus cases globally dented sentiments in the domestic markets. India added 9,283 new coronavirus cases and 437 related fatalities in last 24 hours.

On the global front, Asian markets traded mixed as traders remain concerned about the near-term outlook for the markets and economy amid the resurgence in coronavirus cases and fresh lockdown measures in Europe and several other countries. Meanwhile, US markets ended mostly higher overnight on a drop in crude oil prices and a strong U.S. dollar. Back home, aviation stocks were in focus as Civil Aviation Secretary Rajiv Bansal said international passenger flights are expected to regularise possibly by the end of the year. In scrip specific development, Reliance Industries traded higher after its board has decided to implement a Scheme of Arrangement (Scheme) to transfer Gasification Undertaking into a wholly-owned subsidiary (WOS).

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 58364.35, up by 23.36 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 58199.49 and 58439.07. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.03%, while Small cap index was up by 0.30%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 1.32%, Energy up by 1.08%, IT up by 0.62%, TECK up by 0.52%, Healthcare up by 0.27%, while Power down by 0.74%, Utilities down by 0.46%, PSU down by 0.45%, FMCG down by 0.40%, Capital Goods down by 0.37% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Reliance Industries up by 1.60%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.94%, Infosys up by 0.90%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.86% and Sun Pharma up by 0.37%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 1.42%, NTPC down by 1.22%, Indusind Bank down by 0.82%, Bajaj Finserv down by 0.74% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.73% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, industry body -- the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has said that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should continue with an accommodative interest rate stance as long as necessary to sustain and further push the pace of economic growth. It said that while concerns over inflation, especially in the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), need to be addressed, measures other than reversal of the accommodative stance should be encouraged.

It said ‘The RBI and its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) have done a commendable job to retain the present policy rates’. However, central banks in some of the developed economies are moving towards tapering the accommodative policies. The chamber said ‘We are sure and as we have been maintaining that the RBI would not follow this template and continue with the low interest rates’.

It also said the global initiative by the crude oil-importing and major consuming nations, including the US and India, should lead to a rise in global supplies and soften prices. It added ‘It is true that banks are flush with liquidity but the credit demand is yet to pick up especially for private investment. We see this too happening but any reversal of the accommodative interest rate stance may dampen faster revival in investment’.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17419.45, up by 4.40 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 17375.05 and 17454.00. There were 20 stocks advancing against 30 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were UPL up by 2.06%, Reliance Industries up by 1.54%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.97%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.96% and Infosys up by 0.88%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 1.34%, Shree Cement down by 1.22%, NTPC down by 1.03%, IOC down by 0.98% and Coal India down by 0.94% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mixed; Nikkei 225 surged 226.36 points or 0.77% to 29,529.02, Hang Seng rose 38.04 points or 0.15% to 24,723.54, Taiwan Weighted added 16.30 points or 0.09% to 17,658.82 and Jakarta Composite jumped 42.66 points or 0.64% to 6,725.94. On the other hand, Straits Times fell 4.51 points or 0.14% to 3,222.64, KOSPI declined 10.67 points or 0.36% to 2,983.62 and Shanghai Composite was down by 3.52 points or 0.10% to 3,589.18.