Sensex, Nifty turn volatile in late morning session

Indian equity benchmarks were trading volatile in late morning session, with Sensex trading higher, while Nifty witnessing marginal losses, on the back of mixed cues from other Asian markets. Traders got cautious, amid reports that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council’s two-day meeting concluded without any decision on extending compensation to states - for revenue loss on account of the regime’s implementation five years ago - beyond June 30. This was despite at least two dozen states raising the issue. On the sectoral front, oil industry stocks were in focus, after Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur has said that the government has decided to give marketing freedom to domestic crude oil producers, allowing them to sell oil to whosoever they want.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed, even after China's manufacturing sector returned to the expansion zone in June. The survey results from the National Bureau of Statistics showed that the official manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 50.2 from 49.6 in May. A score above 50.0 indicates expansion in the sector.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 53072.32, up by 45.35 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 52897.16 and 53377.54. There were 12 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.51%, while Small cap index was down by 0.39%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 0.94%, Utilities up by 0.74%, Bankex up by 0.70%, Energy up by 0.22% and Oil & Gas up by 0.21%, while Metal down by 1.98%, Realty down by 1.95%, Basic Materials down by 0.98%, IT down by 0.65% and TECK down by 0.55% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.86%, Axis Bank up by 1.70%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.35%, SBI up by 1.25% and Power Grid up by 0.80%. On the flip side, Tech Mahindra down by 1.42%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.30%, Tata Steel down by 1.22%, HCL Tech. down by 0.97% and Indusind Bank down by 0.95% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das has emphasised the need for proper interpretation of data to facilitate more informed decision making as it will bring clarity in communication from decision makers as well as formation of rational expectations from market participants. He said the importance of statistics in public policy is well understood. In the face of high uncertainty brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the discipline of statistics found itself in greater spotlight. This unprecedented global phenomenon has tested human endeavour in multiple facets and magnitude.

Das mentioned that lockdowns in various countries, including India, posed severe challenges to the compilation and availability of data relating to the spread of the pandemic, and its impact on various economies and the world urgently needed solutions to a problem it had never seen before. Recalling India's experience in data gathering, he said the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation was compelled to publish imputed figures for Consumer Price Index (CPI) for two consecutive months during the first wave of the pandemic in 2020 due to immense difficulty in collection of prices for many items.

RBI Governor said statistical innovations arising out of the pandemic disruption will have long-lasting benefits and added that the upheaval also posed challenges to statistical agencies to build more public trust in the resulting statistics. While new data sources open up opportunities for official statistics, he said it also raises issues for the discipline.  He also stated that statistics should focus on laying down the pathway towards proper interpretation in the present world of data abundance. This would facilitate more informed decision making, clarity in communication from decision makers and formation of rational expectations from market participants. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 15794.60, down by 4.50 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 15765.95 and 15890.00. There were 17 stocks advancing against 33 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were HDFC Life Insurance up by 2.24%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.79%, Axis Bank up by 1.70%, SBI up by 1.35% and SBI Life Insurance up by 1.34%. On the flip side, Bajaj Auto down by 3.59%, JSW Steel down by 2.73%, Cipla down by 2.71%, ONGC down by 2.37% and Coal India down by 1.70% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Shanghai Composite gained 44.12 points or 1.31% to 3,405.64, Jakarta Composite soared 25.75 points or 0.37% to 6,968.10 and Hang Seng increased 5.69 points or 0.03% to 22,002.58. On the flip side, Straits Times trembled 8.72 points or 0.28% to 3,126.15, KOSPI fell 29.05 points or 1.22% to 2,348.94, Taiwan Weighted dropped 348.05 points or 2.28% to 14,892.08 and Nikkei 225 slipped 370.65 points or 1.38% to 26,433.95.