Markets magnify losses in late morning deals

Indian equity markets magnified their losses and traded with cut of over half a percent in late morning deals on account of selling by fund and retail investors. Meanwhile, broader indices were also trading in red with cut in the range of 0.55-0.80%. Weak cues from global markets dampened domestic sentiments. Market participants awaited a slew of U.S. data and the latest FOMC meeting minutes this week for additional clues on when and where interest rates might peak. Traders also shifted focus towards the upcoming quarterly earnings season, with IT giant TCS likely to unveil its earnings on January 9. All the sectoral indices on the BSE were trading in red led by Metal, Realty, Utilities, PSU and IT.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, following negative cues from Wall Street overnight as traders remain concerned about interest rate hikes and recessionary fears. Back home, in the stock specific development, Equitas Small Finance Bank (SFB) surged after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved SBI Funds Management (SBIFML) plan to acquire up to 9.99 per cent of the paid-up equity capital of the bank through the schemes of SBI Mutual Fund (SBIMF).

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 60870.70, down by 423.50 points or 0.69% after trading in a range of 60822.73 and 61327.21. There were 4 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.79%, while Small cap index down by 0.58%.

The top losing sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal down by 2.16%, Realty down by 1.35%, Utilities down by 1.20%, PSU down by 1.19% and IT down by 1.00%, while there were no gaining indices on BSE.

The only gainers on the Sensex were Ultratech Cement up by 0.86%, Asian Paints up by 0.19%, Axis Bank up by 0.11% and Sun Pharma up by 0.10%. On the flip side, Indusind Bank down by 1.81%, Tata Motors down by 1.68%, Tata Steel down by 1.48%, Infosys down by 1.46% and Power Grid Corp down by 1.46% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said that the government is considering a new scheme to support domestic manufacturing of machinery and accessories used in the leather industry. He also expressed hope that the country's exports during the current fiscal (FY23) would register a high growth rate in both goods and services compared to 2021-22. In 2021-22, exports of goods and services touched an all-time high of $676 billion.

On the council's demand for the reinstatement of basic customs duty exemption on the wet blue crust and finished leather, Goyal assured them to take up the matter with the concerned ministry. According to Council for Leather Exports (CLE), such leathers are mainly imported by domestic exporters for making value-added products, such as handbags and garments, and duty-free import of finished leather helps manufacturers to become more competitive. Goyal suggested the industry to utilise the benefits of the Manufacture and Other Operations in Customs Warehouse (MOOWR) scheme of the finance ministry that allows the import of any goods duty-free.

The minister said regions like Europe are in a stressful situation and most of the developed world is facing high inflation. He suggested the sector to explore new export destinations and focus on innovation and quality. He also said that leather and footwear exports to UAE jumped by 64 per cent in November. India has implemented a trade pact with the UAE in May last year.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18105.65, down by 126.90 points or 0.70% after trading in a range of 18088.00 and 18243.00. There were 10 stocks advancing against 40 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Divi's Lab up by 1.18%, Ultratech Cement up by 0.83%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 0.63%, SBI Life up by 0.35% and Asian Paints up by 0.22%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 3.38%, JSW Steel down by 2.98%, Coal India down by 2.61%, ONGC down by 2.34% and Indusind Bank down by 1.83% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 359.76 points or 1.38% to 25,734.74, Taiwan Weighted dropped 6.22 points or 0.04% to 14,217.90, Straits Times trembled 0.50 points or 0.02% to 3,245.30, Shanghai Composite declined 5.74 points or 0.18% to 3,110.77 and Jakarta Composite lost 16.24 points or 0.24% to 6,872.52. However, KOSPI rose 38.90 points or 1.75% to 2,257.58 and Hang Seng increased 380.02 points or 1.89% to 20,525.31.