Benchmarks remain in green in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks remained in green in morning deals, despite weak cues from global markets. Traders took some support with Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal’s statement that there is a huge scope for India to move in the global value chain systems and have high value-addition in global exports. India's share in global exports is less than 2 per cent. So, huge potential is there to boost the shipments despite global headwinds and low trade growth predictions. Some support also came as official data showed that retirement fund body EPFO net added 16.94 lakh new subscribers in August 2022, registering a 14.4 per cent rise as compared to the year-ago period. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers in the markets on Thursday after many days and this also added to the momentum. Meanwhile, Industry body CII has suggested the government a number of measures, including lowering freight and power costs for exporters and setting up a shipping regulator, to promote outbound shipments.

On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in red as the prospect of aggressive interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve and recession risks soured investor sentiment. Back home, telecom industry stocks remained in focus with a private report that telecom companies are expected to witness steady revenue growth in Q2FY23 with slight sequential uptick in average revenue per user albeit softer net additions, while SUC (spectrum usage charges) savings are seen lifting margins.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59428.89, up by 225.99 points or 0.38% after trading in a range of 59342.76 and 59549.66. There were 17 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.18%, while Small cap index was up by 0.33%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Bankex up by 1.73%, Consumer Durables up by 0.85%, PSU up by 0.80%, FMCG up by 0.58% and Healthcare up by 0.51%, while Metal down by 0.43%, IT down by 0.26%, TECK down by 0.26% and Energy down by 0.13% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Axis Bank up by 5.47%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 2.01%, Titan Co up by 1.73%, SBI up by 1.52% and Hindustan Unilever up by 1.50%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 1.36%, Indusind Bank down by 1.06%, Asian Paints down by 1.01%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.88% and TCS down by 0.76% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, terming exports as a key pillar for long-term sustainability of the domestic defence industry, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said the government has set itself a target of achieving defence exports of USD 5 billion by 2025. 

He also said the government was eyeing overall turnover of USD 22 billion in defence production in the same timeframe. Moreover, he stated domestic demand alone may not always provide economies of scale to make profitable investments and sustain them.

Further, the Minister said he invited US defence companies to set up manufacturing units in India and develop technological collaboration with Indian industries to create a 'global supply chain free from vulnerabilities and uncertainties.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17634.20, up by 70.25 points or 0.40% after trading in a range of 17603.70 and 17657.65. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Axis Bank up by 5.73%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 2.08%, Titan Co up by 1.73%, SBI up by 1.58% and Apollo Hospital up by 1.54%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 1.33%, Eicher Motors down by 1.24%, Asian Paints down by 1.14%, Indusind Bank down by 0.85% and TCS down by 0.78% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; KOSPI fell 5.59 points or 0.25% to 2,212.50, Hang Seng decreased 28.06 points or 0.17% to 16,252.16, Straits Times trembled 32.42 points or 1.07% to 2,990.28, Nikkei 225 slipped 87.02 points or 0.32% to 26,919.94 and Taiwan Weighted dropped 95.83 points or 0.74% to 12,850.27.

On the flip side, Jakarta Composite soared 66.55 points or 0.95% to 7,047.20 and Shanghai Composite gained 15.13 points or 0.5% to 3,050.18.