Positive trade continues over Dalal Street

Positive trade continued over the Dalal Street in early noon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading around 0.20% higher, aided by positive cues from other Asian markets along with buying at Realty and Telecom counters. Sentiments were positive, after Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das said the Indian banking system has remained resilient and not adversely impacted by recent events in the global financial ecosystem. Some support came amid reports that India and the four-nation bloc EFTA discussed ways to resume negotiations for a free trade agreement with a view to strengthening economic ties between the two regions.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, even after China's industrial profits continued to decline in January to March period as falling prices and weaker demand dragged profit margins. The National Bureau of Statistics reported that industrial profits decreased 21.4 percent in the first quarter from the last year.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 60419.12, up by 118.54 points or 0.20% after trading in a range of 60271.49 and 60465.85. There were 21 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose by 0.46%, while Small cap index was up by 0.58%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 2.05%, Telecom up by 0.81%, IT up by 0.79%, Auto up by 0.62% and Metal up by 0.60%, while Power down by 0.41%, Utilities down by 0.26%, PSU down by 0.12%, FMCG down by 0.07% and Consumer Durables down by 0.00% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finance up by 2.50%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.17%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.19%, Larsen & Toubro up by 0.79% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.79%. On the flip side, Power Grid Corporation of India down by 1.76%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.40%, Axis Bank down by 0.61%, SBI down by 0.58% and Sun Pharma down by 0.58% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the commerce and industry ministry has said that various initiatives taken by the government to improve its logistics efficiency has helped India climb six places on the recently released World Bank's Logistics Performance Index (LPI) 2023. India has climbed six places on the LPI, now ranking 38th in the 139 countries index, as a result of significant investments in both soft and hard infrastructure as well as technology. India was ranked 44th on the index in 2018 and has now climbed to 38th in the 2023 listing. India's performance has drastically improved from 2014, when it was ranked 54th on the LPI.

The ministry said India has been taking numerous initiatives since 2015 to improve its logistics efficiency. The World Bank has acknowledged India's efforts towards increasing logistics efficiency. On four out of six LPI indicators, India has seen a remarkable improvement on the back of various initiatives being implemented over the past few years. This is a strong indicator of India's global positioning, with this development being powered by the government's laser focus on reforms for improving logistics infrastructure.

It pointed out that in October 2021, the Centre launched the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan towards a coordinated approach, leveraging technology, for infrastructure planning and development. Similarly, in September 2022, a National Logistics Policy was announced. It is centred around upgradation and digitisation of logistics infrastructure and services. Further, other initiatives like Sagarmala which aims to improve connectivity to ports and reduce cargo dwell time, and Bharatmala which focused on improving road connectivity of major corridors, have played a pivotal role in improving India's logistics efficiency.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17843.70, up by 30.10 points or 0.17% after trading in a range of 17797.90 and 17859.00. There were 32 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finance up by 2.43%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.05%, UPL up by 1.73%, SBI Life Insurance Company up by 1.54% and BPCL up by 1.23%. On the flip side, HDFC Life Insurance down by 2.59%, Power Grid Corporation of India down by 1.57%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.39%, Grasim Industries down by 0.66% and Axis Bank down by 0.60% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng advanced 70.36 points or 0.36% to 19,827.63, Jakarta Composite gained 41.26 points or 0.6% to 6,951.41, Nikkei 225 surged 41.21 points or 0.14% to 28,457.68, Taiwan Weighted added 36.86 points or 0.24% to 15,411.49, Shanghai Composite strengthened 18.66 points or 0.57% to 3,282.76 and KOSPI increased 10.98 points or 0.44% to 2,495.81, while Straits Times fell 11.96 points or 0.36% to 3,281.95.