Benchmarks trade flat with negative bias in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks were trading flat with a negative bias in morning deals, as traders remained on sidelines ahead of macro-economic data -- industrial production and retail inflation -- to be release on June 12. Traders were cautious with private report stating that hiring activities have slowed down by 7 per cent in May compared to the same month last year mainly due to companies adopting cautious approach to cut expenses on the back of economic slowdown. However, losses remain capped as some support came with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das’ statement that the RBI has decided to widen the scope of the framework for resolution of stressed assets, under which all the regulated entities including cooperative lenders will now be able to execute ‘compromise settlements and technical write-offs’ to resolve non-performing assets (NPAs). On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in green following the positive cues from Wall Street overnight, on easing concerns over the outlook for interest rates after report showing initial jobless claims in the U.S. increased by much more than expected last week.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 62820.59, down by 28.05 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 62760.41 and 62992.16. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.36%, while Small cap index was up by 0.25%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 1.10%, Realty up by 0.89%, Capital Goods up by 0.55%, Industrials up by 0.46% and Bankex up by 0.32%, while TECK down by 0.50%, IT down by 0.47%, FMCG down by 0.25%, Metal down by 0.18% and PSU down by 0.09% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Indusind Bank up by 2.14%, Axis Bank up by 1.37%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.19%, Tata Motors up by 0.95% and Larsen & Toubro up by 0.87%. On the flip side, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.21%, Tata Steel down by 1.13%, Infosys down by 1.06%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.98% and Tech Mahindra down by 0.87% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to fast-track clearances of shipments, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) said that it would introduce additional disclosures for the export and import of medicinal products from July 1. These additional disclosures will reduce queries of Customs officials, which are frequently posed to EXIM traders dealing in medicinal plants and chemicals.

The CBIC said in consultation with the Ministry of AYUSH and DGFT it has been decided that additional qualifiers like declaration of the name of the medicinal plant for exports of parts of plants has been made mandatory. It stated ‘These additional qualifiers shall be mandatory for exports under the specific CTHs of the said chapters for all Shipping bills filed on or after July 1, 2023...These...shall be in addition to the existing declaration being made by exporters.’

The CBIC had last month invited stakeholder views on the proposed introduction of additional disclosures for export-import trade in medicinal products. It future said the information currently provided by the importers/exporters of these products is inadequate and does not provide the complete details of the product, thus, leading to insufficient inputs for devising policies, multiple queries during assessment and examinations, certifications from technical agencies etc, with a resultant delay in assessment and clearance.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 18619.65, down by 14.90 points or 0.08% after trading in a range of 18609.65 and 18676.65. There were 26 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Indusind Bank up by 2.01%, Axis Bank up by 1.33%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.31%, Grasim Industries up by 0.95% and SBI Life Insurance up by 0.78%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 1.26%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.25%, Infosys down by 1.13%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.05% and HDFC Life Insurance down by 0.80% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted added 137.84 points or 0.82% to 16,871.53, Hang Seng advanced 53.41 points or 0.28% to 19,352.59, Shanghai Composite strengthened 0.82 points or 0.03% to 3,214.41, KOSPI increased 28.96 points or 1.11% to 2,639.81, Straits Times rose 0.86 points or 0.03% to 3,187.47 and Nikkei 225 surged 544.85 points or 1.72% to 32,186.12.

On the flip side, Jakarta Composite plunged 0.41 points or 0.01% to 6,665.92.