Bulls hold grip over Dalal Street

Bulls were holding a tight grip over the Dalal Street in early afternoon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading with strong gains, aided by positive cues from other Asian markets. Domestic sentiments remained optimistic, as India’s services sector expanded at the strongest rate in 12 years in the month of February amid improvement in new business intakes and favourable demand conditions. As per the survey report, the seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Services PMI Business Activity Index surged to 59.4 in February from 57.2 in January. Further, the S&P Global India Composite PMI Output Index -- which measures both manufacturing and services -- jumped to 59.0 in February from 57.5 in January. Some support came with a report stating that the Centre has taken steps to enhance exports by micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector by setting up facilitation centers across the country.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, as China's service sector activity gained strength in February with strong support from new business and employment after the easing of pandemic-related restrictions. The survey results published by S&P Global showed that the Caixin services Purchasing Managers' Index picked up to 55.0 in February from 52.9 in January.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59674.40, up by 765.05 points or 1.30% after trading in a range of 59231.58 and 59764.13. There were 26 stocks advancing against 4 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose by 0.56%, while Small cap index was up by 0.77%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 2.18%, Utilities up by 2.07%, Bankex up by 2.05%, Power up by 1.73% and Telecom up by 1.06%, while there were no losing sectoral indices on the BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were SBI up by 4.95%, Bharti Airtel up by 2.43%, ICICI Bank up by 1.88%, HDFC Bank up by 1.78% and HDFC up by 1.77%. On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 0.89%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.70%, Asian Paints down by 0.67% and Nestle down by 0.27% were the few losers.

Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its latest data has showed that listed manufacturing companies recorded lower sales growth of 10.6 per cent in the December quarter of the current fiscal (Q3FY23) as compared to 20.9 per cent in the previous quarter. The moderation in the manufacturing companies was broad-based across the industries, except for cement.

The RBI said overall sales growth of listed private non-financial companies moderated to 12.7 per cent in third quarter of 2022-23 from 22.6 per cent in the previous July-September period. However, it said Information technology (IT) companies remained on high growth trajectory and recorded 19.4 per cent rise in sales. Also, revenue growth for non-IT services companies was supported by steady performance in trade, transport and telecommunication sectors.

Further, the central bank said manufacturing companies' expenses on raw materials moderated marginally in line with lower sales growth and tempered prices for some inputs. It also said operating profit of manufacturing companies contracted on an annual basis for the second consecutive quarter in the December. It, however, expanded for both IT and non-IT services companies.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17548.00, up by 226.10 points or 1.31% after trading in a range of 17427.70 and 17579.00. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 12.60%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 8.28%, SBI up by 4.89%, Bharti Airtel up by 2.45% and SBI Life Insurance up by 2.27%. On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 1.02%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.90%, Asian Paints down by 0.55%, Cipla down by 0.38% and Nestle down by 0.37% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 428.60 points or 1.53% to 27,927.47, Hang Seng advanced 196.79 points or 0.96% to 20,626.25, Shanghai Composite strengthened 11.41 points or 0.34% to 3,322.06, KOSPI increased 4.22 points or 0.17% to 2,432.07, Taiwan Weighted added 9.7 points or 0.06% to 15,608.42 and Straits Times rose 2.67 points or 0.08% to 3,237.57. However, Jakarta Composite plunged 43.80 points or 0.64% to 6,813.62.