Markets trade near day’s high points in afternoon session

Domestic equity indices extended their gains and traded near day’s high points in afternoon session owing to hectic buying by funds and retail investors. Buying in index major Reliance Industries, fresh foreign fund inflows too supported markets to trade higher. Meanwhile, broader indices on the BSE were also trading in green. Mostly positive cues from other Asian markets also supported domestic sentiments. Sentiments got a boost as Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran said that the United States Federal Reserve is not expected to go for further liquidity tightening anytime soon, a signal that the most aggressive actions against inflation might be over for now in the Western economies.

On the global front, Asian markets were mostly trading in green after Wall Street saw tech rally. Back home, on the sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up position in IT, TECK, Consumer Durables, Metal and Auto, while selling was witnessed in Realty, Utilities and Oil & Gas. In the stock specific development, Page Industries dropped after the company reported disappointing set of numbers for the quarter ended March 2023 (Q4FY23). 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 62240.29, up by 367.67 points or 0.59% after trading in a range of 61911.61 and 62250.21. There were 23 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.39%, while Small cap index up by 0.47%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 1.30%, TECK up by 1.06%, Consumer Durables up by 0.98%, Metal up by 0.91% and Auto up by 0.81%, while Realty down by 0.33%, Utilities down by 0.27% and Oil & Gas down by 0.16% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Reliance Industries up by 1.95%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.91%, HCL up by 1.78%, Titan up by 1.63% and Wipro up by 1.47%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 0.78%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.55%, HDFC down by 0.33%, HDFC Bank down by 0.33% and Nestle down by 0.06% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran has said there are signs of private sector investment cycle unfolding and sectors like steel and cement have reached a stage where greenfield investment will take place. He stated ‘We do see signs of corporate sector beginning to make investment. There are some new investment announcement.’

Based on data available for the first six months of the last three years, he said, it was Rs 2.1 lakh crore in 2020-21, it was Rs 2.7 lakh crore in 2021-22 and Rs 3.3 lakh crore in 2022-23. So, he said ‘it has been rising and once we get the full year data, the picture will be clear. We know that internal resource generation of the companies are at very high level. Therefore, they may not necessarily have to tap either the capital market or the banking channel’. Expressing optimism about private sector capital formation cycle in the country, he said 'we have been waiting for it. It's already unfolding...it is unfolding at steady pace.’  He added Capacity utilisation in some sectors like steel and cement has reached a point where greenfield investment have to happen. 

Observing that energy is an important driver of economic growth, he said, it is energy security that is coming under a lot of pressure thanks to geopolitical developments and climate change. He stated ‘If there is a single-most important worry in my mind, for sustaining the growth rate that we have been able to achieve in the last 2-3 years, it is energy security. We cannot completely swear off fossil fuels. We do have a target to balance the proportion of non-fossil fuels and fossil fuels in our energy mix in terms of installed capacity by the year 2030... It is equally important we understand that there are important roles for fossil fuels - if not coal, then for gas, etc.’

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18429.80, up by 108.65 points or 0.59% after trading in a range of 18333.15 and 18434.45. There were 43 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindalco up by 2.42%, Reliance Industries up by 1.98%, HCL up by 1.81%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.81% and Divi's Lab up by 1.79%. On the flip side, ONGC down by 1.75%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.81%, Grasim Industries down by 0.80%, Power Grid down by 0.80% and HDFC Bank down by 0.31% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted added 213.05 points or 1.29% to 16,505.05, Shanghai Composite strengthened 9.02 points or 0.28% to 3,210.28, KOSPI increased 3.7 points or 0.14% to 2,558.39, Straits Times rose 0.13 points or 0% to 3,207.85 and Nikkei 225 surged 115.18 points or 0.37% to 30,916.31. However, Jakarta Composite plunged 0.46 points or 0.01% to 6,703.77.