Bourses continue to trade in sea of red during late afternoon session

Indian markets continued to trade in sea of red during late afternoon session, pulled lower mainly by banking stocks and jitters ahead of US employment report and India’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data. Globally, traders worried about possible further interest rate hikes. Meanwhile, Labor Department showed initial jobless claims rose by more than expected in the week ended March 4, 2023. The report said initial jobless claims climbed to 211,000, an increase of 21,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 190,000. On the global front, all Asian markets were trading lower following a rout on Wall Street as signs of trouble at a regional US lender sparked concerns about the wider sector as the Federal Reserve ramps up interest rates. European markets were trading lower led by a sell-off in the banking sector.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59069.47, down by 736.81 points or 1.23% after trading in a range of 58884.98 and 59262.47. There were 6 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index, while 1 stock remained unchanged. 

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 0.94%, while Small cap index was down by 0.68%.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 0.93%, Power up by 0.78% and Oil & Gas was up by 0.01%, while Bankex down by 1.97%, Realty down by 1.17%, Capital Goods down by 1.15%, PSU down by 1.00% and Industrials was down by 0.96% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Tata Motors up by 0.65%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.62%, NTPC up by 0.56%, Power Grid up by 0.44% and Sun Pharma Inds. up by 0.13%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 2.79%, HDFC down by 2.44%, SBI down by 2.31%, Axis Bank down by 2.02% and Indusind Bank down by 1.94% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to ensure greater availability of power during the peak demand season, the Government has launched a High Price Day Ahead Market and Surplus Power Portal (PUShP). The surplus power portal is a one-of-its-kind initiative, reflecting the ingenuity of the Ministry of Power and the Regulator. 
Distribution Companies have tied up long term PPAs for power supply. They have to pay fixed charges even when they do not schedule the power.  Now the DISCOMs will be able to indicate their surplus power in block times / days / months on portal. Those DISCOMs who need power will be able to requisition the surplus power.

The new buyer will pay both variable charge (VC) and fixed cost (FC) as determined by Regulators. Once power is reassigned, the original beneficiary shall have no right to recall as entire FC liability is also shifted to the new beneficiary. Financial liability of new buyer shall be limited to quantum of temporary allocated / transferred power.  This will reduce the fixed cost burden on the DISCOMs, and will also enable all the available generation capacity to be utilized.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17386.10, down by 203.50 points or 1.16% after trading in a range of 17324.35 and 17451.50. There were 12 stocks advancing against 38 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 0.62%, Tata Motors up by 0.61%, Britannia up by 0.44%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 0.43% and NTPC up by 0.39%. On the flip side, Adani Enterprises down by 3.21%, HDFC Bank down by 2.72%, HDFC down by 2.41%, SBI down by 2.31% and Apollo Hospital down by 2.26% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading lower, Hang Seng declined 605.82 points or 3.14% to 19,319.92, Nikkei 225 slipped 479.18 points or 1.7% to 28,143.97, Taiwan Weighted lost 244.46 points or 1.57% to 15,526.20, Shanghai Composite weakened 46.01 points or 1.42% to 3,230.08, Straits Times fell 40.28 points or 1.25% to 3,174.23, Jakarta Composite plunged 34.5 points or 0.51% to 6,765.30 and KOSPI was down by 24.5 points or 1.02% to 2,394.59.

European markets were trading lower, UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 140.79 points or 1.79% to 7,739.19, France’s CAC fell 137.63 points or 1.88% to 7,178.25 and Germany’s DAX was down by 275.23 points or 1.76% to 15,357.98.