Bourses add downward pressure in late afternoon session

Indian equity markets added downward pressure in late afternoon session as investors sold-off their riskier shares. Metal, IT and banking counters mainly pressurized the markets. The broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index traded with limited losses. The overall market breadth was negative as 1992 shares were declining and 1458 were advancing, while 148 shares were unchanged on the BSE. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as investors fretted about the health of U.S. banks and reacted to mixed China data, strong earnings results from Apple and the ECB rate decision. Trading volumes were thin due to holidays in Japan and South Korea. European markets were trading higher as the European Central Bank's smaller rate hike, and market-beating results from Adidas and Apple boosted sentiment.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 61,208.01, down by 541.24 points or 0.88% after trading in a range of 61128.93 and 61585.50. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 0.24%, while Small cap index was down by 0.24%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 1.62%, Auto up by 0.69%, Capital Goods up by 0.49%, FMCG up by 0.46% and Realty was up by 0.38%, while Metal down by 1.31%, Bankex down by 1.11%, TECK down by 0.52%, IT down by 0.50% and Utilities was down by 0.48% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Titan Company up by 2.87%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.71%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.59%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.39% and Asian Paints up by 1.29%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 5.47%, HDFC down by 5.15%, Indusind Bank down by 4.25%, Tata Steel down by 1.85% and NTPC down by 1.25% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, amid robust domestic demand, comfortable profitability and strong balance sheets, credit rating agency, India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) in its latest report has maintained a neutral outlook on the Indian chemicals sector for FY24. Besides, the rating agency maintained a Stable Rating Outlook on its rated chemical portfolio for FY24.

According to the report, chemical sector is likely to witness single digit revenue growth in FY24 in view of a robust demand in domestic markets along with strong fundamentals within end-use industries supporting volumes, even as the export demand faces headwinds and a moderation in prices tempers growth rate. 

Ind-Ra further noted that companies with a higher exposure towards sectors such as pharma, agrochemicals and FMCG are likely to witness a better demand environment, while export-focused organic chemicals and dyes players could witness some softness in demand. 

The rating agency further said that demand in the European Union (EU) is expected to remain weak over FY24, as the region continues to grapple with inflation and slowdown; while demand in the US could also remain subdued, affecting India’s exports.  

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18,112.05, down by 143.75 points or 0.79% after trading in a range of 18085.35 and 18216.95. There were 26 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Titan Company up by 2.87%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.81%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.72%, Adani Enterprises up by 1.68% and Ultratech Cement up by 1.62%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 5.54%, HDFC down by 5.13%, Indusind Bank down by 4.20%, Hindalco down by 2.07% and Tata Steel down by 1.85% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed, Jakarta Composite plunged 85.27 points or 1.26% to 6,758.76, Shanghai Composite weakened 15.96 points or 0.48% to 3,334.50 and Straits Times was down by 7.21 points or 0.22% to 3,261.97. On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted added 17.04 points or 0.11% to 15,626.07 and Hang Seng was up by 100.58 points or 0.5% to 20,049.31.

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 21.64 points or 0.28% to 7,724.28, France’s CAC rose 16.77 points or 0.23% to 7,357.54 and Germany’s DAX was up by 40.01 points or 0.25% to 15,774.25.