Markets trade marginally in red in late morning deals

Indian equity markets traded marginally lower in late morning deals on profit booking after recent string of gains. Weak cues from other Asian markets also dampened sentiments. Sentiments remained downbeat as Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said the ongoing global uncertainty and recessionary trends could have some implications on India's exports. However, downside remained capped as the sentiments were supported by Indian rupee appreciating 15 paise to 81.54 against the dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on increased selling of the US currency by exporters and banks.

On the global front, Asian markets were mostly trading in red as traders largely refrained from making significant moves amid a lack of fresh triggers with the U.S. market remaining closed for Thanksgiving Day. Back home, in stock specific developments, Punjab National Bank surged after the state-owned lender received the government’s approval to divest its entire stake in UTI Asset Management Company (AMC). Veranda Learning Solutions jumped after partnering with IIM Raipur & SHRM to launch online MBA.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 62178.45, down by 94.23 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 62123.84 and 62447.73. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.71%, while Small cap index up by 0.68%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 0.98%, PSU up by 0.90%, Auto up by 0.82%, Capital Goods up by 0.76% and Industrials up by 0.75%, while FMCG down by 0.50%, Power down by 0.44%, TECK down by 0.33%, Utilities down by 0.31% and IT down by 0.22% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Larsen & Toubro up by 1.20%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.19%, Indusind Bank up by 1.00%, NTPC up by 0.83% and Tata Steel up by 0.71%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 1.50%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.08%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.83%, Asian Paints down by 0.83% and HDFC down by 0.75% were the top losers.

While, the National Statistical Office (NSO) has said that unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and above in urban areas declined to 7.2 per cent during July-September 2022 from 9.8 per cent a year ago. Joblessness or unemployment rate is defined as the percentage of unemployed persons among the labour force. Joblessness was high in July-September 2021 mainly due to the staggering impact of Covid-related restrictions in the country.

The latest data based on a periodic labour force survey, underlining a decline in the unemployment rate amid an improved labour force participation ratio, point towards a sustained economic recovery from the shadow of the pandemic. The unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and above in April-June 2022 was 7.6 per cent in urban areas. It also showed that the unemployment rate among females (aged 15 years and above) in urban areas declined to 9.4 per cent in July-September, 2022 from 11.6 per cent a year ago. It was 9.5 per cent in April-June, 2022.

Among males, the unemployment rate in urban areas dipped to 6.6 per cent in July-September 2022 compared to 9.3 per cent a year ago. It was 7.1 per cent in April-June 2022. Labour force participation rate in CWS (Current Weekly Status) in urban areas for persons aged 15 years and above increased to 47.9 per cent in the July-September quarter of 2022, from 46.9 per cent in the same period a year ago. It was 47.5 per cent in April-June 2022. Labour force refers to the part of the population which supplies or offers to supply labour for pursuing economic activities for the production of goods and services and, therefore, includes both employed and unemployed persons.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18470.15, down by 13.95 points or 0.08% after trading in a range of 18445.10 and 18533.15. There were 26 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 1.95%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.35%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.30%, Tata Motors up by 1.13% and Maruti Suzuki up by 1.05%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 1.30%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.14%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.87%, Asian Paints down by 0.85% and Tata Consumer Products down by 0.77% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 94.48 points or 0.33% to 28,288.61, Taiwan Weighted dropped 5.49 points or 0.04% to 14,778.51, Straits Times trembled 16.62 points or 0.51% to 3,236.26, KOSPI fell 1.74 points or 0.07% to 2,439.59, Jakarta Composite lost 45.92 points or 0.65% to 7,034.60 and Hang Seng decreased 96.85 points or 0.55% to 17,564.05, while Shanghai Composite gained 19.88 points or 0.64% to 3,109.19.