Local equities continue fine fettle trade in late afternoon session

Local equities continued their fine fettle trade in late afternoon session, propped up by Telecom, TECK and IT stocks. The broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index were also trading higher. Traders remained optimistic as retail inflation dipped below the RBI's upper tolerance level of 6 per cent for the first time in 11 months in November. Traders took note of report that the first Finance & Central Bank Deputies meeting under India's G20 presidency commenced in Bengaluru. Issues related to global economy, international financial architecture, infrastructure and sustainable finance would be taken up during the meeting. Their counterparts from G20 member countries and from several other countries and international organisations invited by India, will participate in the three-day meeting.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as a fears of a surge in COVID-19 infections following the dismantling of key parts of government's zero-COVID policy clouded the outlook for the world's second biggest economy. European markets were trading higher as investors hope inflation data from the United States later in the day could allow the Federal Reserve to dial down its aggressive approach to interest rate hikes.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 62432.68, up by 302.11 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 62129.57 and 62540.88. There were 24 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.17%, while Small cap index was up by 0.30%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 1.26%, TECK up by 0.97%, IT up by 0.84%, PSU up by 0.53% and Bankex was up by 0.34%, while Realty down by 0.90%, Consumer Durables down by 0.31%, Oil & Gas down by 0.20%, Healthcare down by 0.12%, Metal down by 0.11% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Indusind Bank up by 1.51%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.39%, Infosys up by 1.38%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.25% and HCL Tech up by 1.17%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 0.55%, Tata Steel down by 0.49%, Titan Company down by 0.46%, Maruti Suzuki down by 0.36% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.20% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, expressing confidence that prices of cereals, pulses and edible oils will soften further in the coming months, the Finance Ministry has said that steps taken by the government have helped in bringing down the inflation to the RBI's tolerance level of below 6 per cent.

The Finance Ministry noted that THE headline inflation rate based on the retail Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded a drop from 6.77 per cent in October to 5.88 per cent in November, which is an 11-month low, adding that the drastic decline in retail inflation is mainly due to a sharp decrease in food price inflation.

As per the Finance Ministry, the absolute decline in prices of vegetables, oils & fats, and sugar and confectionery contributed significantly to the reduction in food price inflation. Meanwhile, the retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) has remained above 6 per cent since January 2022.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18576.35, up by 79.20 points or 0.43% after trading in a range of 18490.20 and 18608.90. There were 35 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finance up by 1.53%, Indusind Bank up by 1.50%, Adani Ports &Special up by 1.35%, Infosys up by 1.34% and Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.31%. On the flip side, UPL down by 1.09%, Apollo Hospital down by 1.08%, Hindalco down by 0.78%, BPCL down by 0.70% and Nestle down by 0.62% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed, Hang Seng increased 132.57 points or 0.68% to 19,596.20, Nikkei 225 surged 112.52 points or 0.4% to 27,954.85, Jakarta Composite soared 75.87 points or 1.13% to 6,810.32 and Straits Times was up by 27.79 points or 0.86% to 3,267.45. On the flip side, KOSPI fell 0.62 points or 0.03% to 2,372.40, Shanghai Composite declined 2.71 points or 0.09% to 3,176.33 and Taiwan Weighted was down by 89.63 points or 0.61% to 14,522.96.

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 5.24 points or 0.07% to 7,451.21, France’s CAC increased 0.55 points or 0.01% to 6,651.10 and Germany’s DAX was up by 11.13 points or 0.08% to 14,317.76.