Markets trim losses in late afternoon session

Local equity trimmed some of their losses in late afternoon session led by good buying support in metal and pharma stocks. Currently, markets traded near neutral lines with negative bias. Investors constantly monitored oil prices. In stock specific, Ruchi Soya Industries remained in focused with raising Rs 1,290 crore from anchor investors ahead of its follow-on public offering (FPO). Sector wise, Cement industry remained in limelight, as credit rating agency ICRA in its latest report has said that the cement industry is expected to record an 18-20 per cent volume-based growth to around 355 million metric tonnes and even to surpass pre-COVID levels by 6 per cent in the current fiscal (FY22), driven by continued strong rural housing demand and pick-up in infrastructure activity. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine showed no signs of abating and more hawkish comments by Federal Reserve officials on rate hikes dented sentiment. European markets were trading higher helped by gains in defensive sectors.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 57,622.76, down by 62.06 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 57138.51 and 57827.99. 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 0.34%, while Small cap index was up by 0.13%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.69%, Healthcare up by 0.91%, Basic Materials up by 0.89%, TECK up by 0.88% and Energy was up by 0.77%, while Bankex down by 1.56%, Consumer Durables down by 1.22%, Auto down by 0.36%, Consumer Discretionary down by 0.02% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 4.83%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.84%, Tata Steel up by 1.54%, NTPC up by 1.39% and Reliance Industries up by 1.07%. On the flip side, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 2.79%, HDFC Bank down by 2.28%, Titan Company down by 2.23%, ICICI Bank down by 1.89% and HDFC down by 1.22% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, NITI Aayog, in collaboration with the Institute of Competitiveness, is all set to release the second edition of the Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2021 on March 25, which can be used by States and UTs to benchmark their performance against their peers and analyze the potential challenges to develop better policy mechanisms to foster export-led growth at the subnational level.

The release of the second edition of the index - the first was launched in August 2020 - demonstrates the Government’s continued commitment towards promoting competitive federalism wherein each state can identify their export opportunities and challenges and subsequently establish context-specific strategies for ensuring a conducive export ecosystem.

The Export Preparedness Index ranks all States and Union Territories (UTs) on the basis of their export readiness and performance. EPI 2021 is based on four main pillars: policy; business ecosystem; export ecosystem; and export performance.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17,233.80, down by 11.85 points or 0.06% after trading in a range of 17091.15 and 17291.75. There were 23 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 4.79%, Coal India up by 2.46%, Hindalco up by 2.38%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.86% and Tata Steel up by 1.58%. On the flip side, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 2.99%, HDFC Bank down by 2.63%, Titan Company down by 2.45%, ICICI Bank down by 2.08% and HDFC down by 1.32% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed, Hang Seng decreased 208.13 points or 0.94% to 21,945.95, Taiwan Weighted dropped 32.31 points or 0.18% to 17,699.06, Shanghai Composite declined 20.77 points or 0.63% to 3,250.26 and KOSPI was down by 5.39 points or 0.2% to 2,729.66. On the flip side, Straits Times advanced 31.93 points or 0.95% to 3,396.19, Jakarta Composite soared 53.56 points or 0.77% to 7,049.68 and Nikkei 225 was up by 70.23 points or 0.25% to 28,110.39.

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 17.23 points or 0.23% to 7,477.86, France’s CAC increased 44.26 points or 0.67% to 6,625.69 and Germany’s DAX was up by 51.17 points or 0.36% to 14,334.82.