Gaining momentum lift markets to record highs

Gaining momentum lifted Indian equity benchmarks to trade at record high points in early afternoon session, as bulls held a tight grip over the Dalal Street, despite negative cues from other Asian markets. Sentiments were upbeat, as Credit rating agency, S&P Global Ratings in its latest report has said that the global slowdown will have less impact on domestic demand-led economies such as India, Indonesia and the Philippines. It further said that in some countries the domestic demand recovery from COVID has further to go. This should support growth next year in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.

Adding more optimism among traders, Fitch Ratings said India's bank credit will see strong growth in current financial year despite effects of higher interest rates. It said the strong loan growth should benefit net revenue, particularly as it will be coupled with wider net interest margins.

On the global front, All Asian markets were trading lower, as Singapore's industrial production declined in October, albeit at a slightly slower than expected pace. The data from the Economic Development Board revealed that industrial production declined 0.8 percent year-on-year in October, after a 1.6 percent growth in September.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 62619.08, up by 325.44 points or 0.52% after trading in a range of 61959.74 and 62640.29. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

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

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 2.04%, Energy up by 1.90%, IT up by 0.92%, TECK up by 0.67% and Auto up by 0.57%, while Metal down by 1.54%, Consumer Durables down by 0.06%, Healthcare down by 0.06% and Realty down by 0.04% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Reliance Industries up by 3.05%, Wipro up by 1.49%, Asian Paints up by 1.37%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.23% and ICICI Bank up by 1.06%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 1.32%, HDFC Bank down by 0.93%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.92%, HDFC down by 0.77% and Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 0.59% were the top losers on the Sensex.

Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry has said that the central government released an amount of Rs 17,000 crore to states/UTs on November 24, 2022, towards the balance Goods and Services Tax (GST) compensation for the period April to June 2022. The total amount of compensation released to the states/UTs so far, including the aforesaid amount, during the year 2022-23 is Rs 1,15,662 crore. This is despite the fact that total Cess collection till October 2022 is only Rs 72,147 crore and the balance of Rs 43,515 crore is being released by the Centre from its own resources.

With this release, the Centre has released, in advance, the entire amount of Cess estimated to be collected this year till March-end available for payment of compensation to States. This decision was taken to assist the states in managing their resources and ensuring that their programmes, especially the expenditure on capital are carried out successfully during the financial year.

GST was introduced in the country with effect from July 1, 2017, and states were assured of compensation for the loss of any revenue arising on account of the implementation of GST for a period of five years. For providing compensation to states, a cess is levied on certain goods and the amount of cess collected is credited to the compensation fund.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18589.30, up by 76.55 points or 0.41% after trading in a range of 18365.60 and 18597.55. There were 28 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were BPCL up by 3.45%, Reliance Industries up by 2.88%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.99%, Asian Paints up by 1.44% and Wipro up by 1.30%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 1.99%, JSW Steel down by 1.95%, Apollo Hospital down by 1.33%, Tata Steel down by 1.32% and Coal India down by 0.97% were the top losers on Nifty.

All Asian markets were trading lower; Nikkei 225 slipped 120.20 points or 0.42% to 28,162.83, Hang Seng decreased 304.27 points or 1.73% to 17,269.31, Jakarta Composite lost 31.99 points or 0.45% to 7,021.16, Straits Times trembled 11.23 points or 0.35% to 3,233.32, Taiwan Weighted dropped 221.64 points or 1.5% to 14,556.87, KOSPI fell 29.59 points or 1.21% to 2,408.27 and Shanghai Composite declined 23.61 points or 0.76% to 3,078.08.