Domestic equity markets remain in red in late morning deals

Domestic equity markets continued to trade in red in late morning deals impacted by selling in Metal, IT and TECK stocks. Meanwhile, the broader indices too were trading in-line with benchmarks.  Weak cues from global markets dampened the sentiments. Depreciation in Indian rupee against dollar too weighed down sentiments. Rupee weakened by 41 paise to 82.26 against the dollar at the Inter-bank Foreign Exchange market on account of increased demand for the American currency from importers and banks. However, losses remained capped as traders took some support with a private report stating that India’s central bank will probably start slowing the pace of interest-rate increases on Wednesday, signaling it’s near the end of its aggressive tightening cycle.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red following the broadly negative cues from Wall Street overnight, as traders were concerned about more aggressive monetary policy moves by the US Fed after data showed an unexpected acceleration in U.S. services sector activity in the month of November.

Back home, shares of public sector undertaking (PSU) banks were trading firm, having gained up to 12 per cent on expectation of strong earnings momentum in coming quarters. Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Bank of Maharashtra, UCO Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Union Bank of India and Central Bank of India were up in the range of 1 per cent to 12 per cent. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 62559.72, down by 274.88 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 62390.07 and 62644.54. There were 6 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.45%, while Small cap index down by 0.22%.

The only gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 0.52%, Power up by 0.50% and FMCG up by 0.29%, while Metal down by 1.87%, IT down by 1.41%, TECK down by 1.32%, Telecom down by 0.90% and Realty down by 0.60% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Hindustan Unilever up by 1.20%, Bajaj Finance up by 0.72%, Reliance Industries up by 0.19%, ITC up by 0.15% and Axis Bank up by 0.14%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 2.37%, Infosys down by 1.54%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.50%, TCS down by 1.48% and Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 1.44% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, rating agency ICRA in its latest report has said that the National Logistics Policy (NLP), launched by the government in September 2022, aims to promote the seamless movement of goods, overcome transport-related challenges, encourage digitisation and significantly reduce logistics time and cost. The policy is aimed at reducing India’s logistics cost considerably and bringing its percentage of GDP in line with the developed economies. Reduced logistics costs shall help improve India’s competitiveness, both in the domestic and export markets, by improving efficiency across all sectors.

According to the report, the salient features of the NLP include setting key targets, which include a reduction in the logistics cost in India to be comparable to global benchmarks by 2030 and be among the top 25 countries by 2030 (currently ranked at 44) in the logistics performance index rankings as also creating a data-driven decision support mechanism for an efficient logistics ecosystem. The policy will be implemented through an eight-pronged Comprehensive Logistics Action Plan (CLAP) encompassing the full spectrum of the sector. The NLP also focuses on the Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP), a single-window platform for all transportation services, and a new digital platform, Ease of Logistics Services (E-logs), for a quick resolution of issues raised by the industry, reducing costs, preventing time leakages and ensuring better efficiency.

The report further said the policy will also help in generating employment and better skills, along with making medium and small enterprises more competitive. It will lead to the higher formalisation of the industry and reduce fragmentation in the sector. This is expected to enhance the efficiency of last-mile connectivity and reduce the over-dependence on roads.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18620.85, down by 80.20 points or 0.43% after trading in a range of 18577.90 and 18648.05. There were 13 stocks advancing against 37 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 2.79%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.18%, Britannia up by 0.83%, Bajaj Finance up by 0.75% and Adani Ports & SEZ up by 0.57%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 2.66%, Tata Steel down by 2.42%, JSW Steel down by 1.74%, UPL down by 1.63% and TCS down by 1.56% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Taiwan Weighted dropped 251.86 points or 1.68% to 14,728.88, Straits Times trembled 13.21 points or 0.4% to 3,254.33, Shanghai Composite declined 1.33 points or 0.04% to 3,210.48, KOSPI fell 23.93 points or 0.99% to 2,395.39, Jakarta Composite lost 97.36 points or 1.39% to 6,889.97 and Hang Seng decreased 238.92 points or 1.22% to 19,279.37. However, Nikkei 225 surged 95.19 points or 0.34% to 27,915.59.