Indian markets maintain upward momentum

Indian equity markets maintained their upward momentum in noon session, following gains in FMCG, Capital Goods and Energy stocks. Healthy buying was observed in blue-chip stocks like Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints and Larsen & Toubro. Sentiments remain upbeat with an authoritative seasonal forecast from the South Asian Seasonal Climate Outlook Forum report stated that normal to above normal rainfall is most likely during the 2022 southwest monsoon season (June-September) over most parts of South Asia. In another positive development, a private report stated that as the country recovers from the pandemic, the retail industry has resumed its growth trajectory and is likely to witness 10 per cent annual growth to reach approximately $2 trillion by 2032. On the global front, Asian markets were trading higher broadly by positive lead from Wall Street and Europe and after Chinese officials made further commitments to provide support to the country's economy.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 57287.56, up by 468.17 points or 0.82% after trading in a range of 56936.94 and 57343.96. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.21%, while Small cap index was down by 0.15%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were FMCG up by 1.58%, Capital Goods up by 1.14%, Energy up by 1.01%, Oil & Gas up by 0.86% and Consumer Durables was up by 0.81%, while Telecom down by 0.78%, Realty down by 0.38% and Metal was down by 0.02% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Hindustan Unilever up by 4.06%, Asian Paints up by 2.72%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.34%, Reliance Industries up by 1.91% and Infosys was up by 1.79%. On the flip side, HCL Tech down by 1.06%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.92%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.51%, HDFC Bank down by 0.32% and Bharti Airtel was down by 0.28% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, commerce ministry has said that chemicals exports have touched $29.3 billion in 2021-22 on account of healthy performance in areas like agrochemicals, dyes and speciality chemicals. India is the sixth-largest producer of chemicals in the world, third in Asia and 14th in exports.

It said, currently, India leads in dyes production and contributes 16-18 per cent to the world's dyestuff exports. Indian dye is exported to over 90 countries. The major export destinations are the US, China, Turkey, Russia and North-East Asian Countries (China, Hongkong, Japan, Korea RP, Taiwan, Macao, Mongolia),

It further said this export growth has been achieved in spite of unprecedented logistical challenges like high freight rates, container shortages, etc. The increase in chemical products exports has benefitted small and medium exporters from Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Over the years, the industry has been modernizing through new molecules, innovations in technology, product profile, and focus on quality.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17171.30, up by 132.90 points or 0.78% after trading in a range of 17071.05 and 17189.50. There were 40 stocks advancing against 10 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindustan Unilever up by 3.82%, Asian Paints up by 3.07%, UPL up by 2.56%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.43% and Reliance Industries was up by 2.04%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 1.57%, Bajaj Auto down by 1.42%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.31%, HCL Tech down by 1.01% and Adani Ports was down by 0.64% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading higher; Nikkei 225 surged 461.27 points or 1.75% to 26,847.90, KOSPI rose 28.39 points or 1.08% to 2,667.45, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 116.03 points or 0.71% to 16,419.38, Hang Seng increased 134.03 points or 0.67% to 20,080.39, Jakarta Composite soared 49.49 points or 0.69% to 7,246.25, Straits Times advanced 13.13 points or 0.4% to 3,333.80 and Shanghai Composite was up by 6.56 points or 0.22% to 2,964.84.