Weak trade persists over Dalal Street

Weak trade continued over the Dalal Street in early afternoon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty extending their losses to trade near their intraday low points, amid negative cues from other Asian markets along with heavy selling at IT, TECK and Realty counters. Domestic sentiments were pessimistic, amid a private report stating that foreign investors continue to desert Indian stock markets as they pulled out over Rs 9,600 crore this month so far on costlier valuation of domestic equities compared to other emerging markets. The outflow comes following a net withdrawal of Rs 28,852 crore by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) in January.

Adding more worries among traders, the FICCI Committee Against Smuggling and Counterfeiting Destroying the Economy (CASCADE) said in a report that the magnitude of smuggling and the consequent loss to the country's economy might become a roadblock in India's march towards a $40-trillion economy under the government's vision of Amrit Kaal. It said the tax loss to the Centre because of the illicit trade jumped by 163 per cent to reach Rs 58,521 crore for five key industries in over 10 years till 2020.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, after Singapore's gross domestic product expanded a seasonally adjusted 0.1 percent on quarter in the fourth quarter of 2022. That missed expectations for an increase of 0.3 percent following the 0.8 percent gain in the third quarter. On a yearly basis, GDP was up 2.1 percent - again shy of expectations for 2.3 percent following the upwardly revised 4.0 percent increase in the three months prior (originally 2.2 percent.)

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 60250.03, down by 432.67 points or 0.71% after trading in a range of 60245.05 and 60740.95. There were 7 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 1.08%, while Small cap index was down by 0.96%.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Capital Goods up by 0.63%, Industrials up by 0.29% and Metal up by 0.11%, while IT down by 1.80%, TECK down by 1.51%, Realty down by 1.14%, PSU down by 1.02% and Bankex down by 0.95% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Titan Company up by 1.79%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.67%, NTPC up by 1.03%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.84% and Power Grid up by 0.54%. On the flip side, SBI down by 3.16%, Infosys down by 2.48%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.85%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.84% and TCS down by 1.49% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, with an aim to give focused attention to 12 identified Champion Services Sectors, the Centre has formulated ‘Action Plan for Champion Sectors in Services’ which are namely, Information Technology & Information Technology enabled Services, Tourism & Hospitality Services, Medical Value Travel, Transport & Logistics Services, Accounting and Finance Services, Audio Visual Services, Legal Services, Communication Services, Construction and Related Engineering Services, Environmental Services, Financial Services and Education Services. Rs 5000 crore has been earmarked to support sectoral initiatives of the Nodal Ministries/Departments identified for these sectors.

Besides, the Government of India follows a multipronged strategy in order to promote trade in services such as negotiating meaningful market access through multilateral, regional and bilateral trade agreements; and addressing domestic sectoral challenges and difficulties which are identified through periodic consultations with the stakeholders. Moreover, efforts are made to engage with the concerned Ministries/Departments to pursue a domestic reform agenda to make the services sector competitive globally.

Besides, Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has set up a dedicated Services Sector Division Council (SSDC) to formulate Indian Standards in various Services Sectors, especially Champion Services Sectors. Wherever possible, the Indian Standards are harmonized with international standards for ensuring that quality of services match global expectations. BIS has already published 143 standards on services till January 2023.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17725.10, down by 131.40 points or 0.74% after trading in a range of 17719.75 and 17880.70. There were 13 stocks advancing against 37 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Titan Company up by 1.88%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.71%, Bajaj Auto up by 1.50%, Eicher Motors up by 1.18% and NTPC up by 1.03%. On the flip side, Adani Enterprises down by 7.32%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone down by 5.52%, SBI down by 3.02%, Infosys down by 2.51% and Bajaj Finance down by 2.06% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 243.66 points or 0.89% to 27,427.32, Hang Seng declined 117.63 points or 0.56% to 21,072.79, Taiwan Weighted lost 42.37 points or 0.27% to 15,544.28, Straits Times fell 28.94 points or 0.86% to 3,331.75 and KOSPI dropped 17.03 points or 0.69% to 2,452.70, while Shanghai Composite strengthened 21.36 points or 0.66% to 3,282.03 and Jakarta Composite gained 22.93 points or 0.33% to 6,903.26.