Benchmarks trade in fine fettle despite weak cues from global markets

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade in fine fettle in late morning deals due to buying by fund and retail investors. Sentiments remained upbeat as the gross direct tax collections have grown 26 per cent to over Rs 13.63 lakh crore so far this fiscal, aided by TDS deductions and healthy corporate advance tax mop-up. Sentiments were further supported by Indian rupee appreciating 8 paise to 82.67 against the dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on increased selling of the US currency by exporters and banks. Besides, traders were also getting some encouragement as Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of 8 National Highway projects of 226 kms worth Rs 1,800 crore at Igatpuri, Nashik, Maharashtra. On the BSE sectoral front, FMCG, Auto, Telecom, Realty and Metal stocks witnessed the maximum gains in trade, while IT, TECK and Healthcare remained the only losers.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red following the negative cues from US on Friday, as ongoing concerns about rising interest rates and fears of a global economic recession continued to weigh on sentiment. Back home, in stock specific development, Speciality Restaurants surged after the company said its board will meet on December 21 to consider a proposal to raise funds.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 61592.00, up by 254.19 points or 0.41% after trading in a range of 61265.31 and 61658.32. There were 20 stocks advancing against 10 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.15%, while Small cap index up by 0.34%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were FMCG up by 0.97%, Auto up by 0.96%, Telecom up by 0.62%, Realty up by 0.43% and Metal up by 0.42%, while IT down by 0.58%, TECK down by 0.27% and Healthcare down by 0.09% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 2.06%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.93%, Power Grid Corp up by 1.69%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.62% and Bajaj Finance up by 1.31%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 0.91%, Tata Motors down by 0.77%, Wipro down by 0.56%, TCS down by 0.54% and Sun Pharma down by 0.47% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is working closely with 24 sectors in order to boost domestic manufacturing, increase exports and cut down imports. It said efforts are on to boost the growth of these sectors in a holistic and coordinated manner. These sectors include furniture, air-conditioners, footwear, auto components, aluminium, electronics, agrochemicals, steel, textiles, EV components and integrated circuits, ethanol, ceramics, set top boxes, robotics, televisions, close circuit cameras, toys, drones, sporting goods and gym equipment. It added that the second phase of the Make in India campaign is focusing on 27 sectors.

The DPIIT is coordinating action plans for 15 manufacturing sectors, while the Department of Commerce is coordinating for 12 service sectors. On Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, the DPIIT said so far 650 applications have been approved under 13 schemes for sectors including air-conditioners, LED lights, telecom and pharma. As per recent reporting from implementing Ministries/ Departments, around Rs 47,000 crore ($5.6 billion) of actual investment has been made; production/ sales of Rs 3.75 lakh crore ($45 billion) of eligible products and employment generation of around 2.5 lakh has been reported.

On promoting ease of doing business, it said that the department has proposed decriminalisation across six laws -- The Boilers Act, 1923; The Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951; The Patents Act, 1970; The Trade Marks Act, 1999; The Geographical Indications of Goods Act, 1999; and The Copyright Act, 1957. Imprisonment and fine is proposed to be removed for offences such as making false statements/entries in the register (Copyright Act, 1957/Geographical Indications of Goods Act, 1999), improperly describing a place of business (Geographical Indications of Goods Act, 1999 and Trade Marks Act, 1999). Further, it said foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow has contracted by 9 per cent to $39.10 billion during April-September this fiscal.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18348.65, up by 79.65 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 18244.55 and 18358.85. There were 36 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.03%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.98%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.92%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.88% and Power Grid Corp up by 1.78%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 1.09%, BPCL down by 1.07%, Infosys down by 0.96%, Tata Motors down by 0.88% and Apollo Hospital down by 0.84% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 279.20 points or 1.01% to 27,247.92, Taiwan Weighted dropped 95.23 points or 0.66% to 14,433.32, Shanghai Composite declined 51.22 points or 1.62% to 3,116.64, KOSPI fell 10.38 points or 0.44% to 2,349.64, Jakarta Composite lost 25.20 points or 0.37% to 6,786.99 and Hang Seng decreased 144.38 points or 0.74% to 19,306.29. However, Straits Times advanced 19.17 points or 0.59% to 3,259.98.