Markets trade in red in late morning deals

Key equity indices traded lower in late morning deals owing to selling in Power Grid, Bajaj Finserv and Reliance Industries stocks. Meanwhile, broader indices on the BSE were trading mixed. There was cautiousness in the markets as India's manufacturing sector displayed resilience even as activity moderated in July for second straight month owing to moderation in output and new orders. The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, compiled by S&P Global, dipped to 57.7 last month from June's 57.8. While new orders remained robust, output growth moderated to a three-month low. On the sectoral front, information technology (IT) stocks advanced on signs of moderation in U.S. inflation. IT firms earn a significant share of their revenue from the United States.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly higher amid China stimulus hopes and optimism that most global central banks may be either close to a peak or already done with interest-rate hiking. Back home, in the stock specific development, Tata Power advanced after launching the EZ Charge card, an advanced radio-frequency identification card (RFID) for electric vehicle owners. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 66473.27, down by 54.40 points or 0.08% after trading in a range of 66413.03 and 66658.12. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.07%, while Small cap index up by 0.54%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 0.80%, Metal up by 0.71%, TECK up by 0.58%, Auto up by 0.47% and Telecom up by 0.41%, while Realty down by 1.82%, Power down by 0.34%, Capital Goods down by 0.22%, Bankex down by 0.20% and Utilities down by 0.15% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 3.00%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.91%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.77%, TCS up by 0.65% and Infosys up by 0.63%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 5.24%, Bajaj Finserv down by 1.08%, Indusind Bank down by 0.92%, Reliance Industries down by 0.91% and Larsen & Toubro down by 0.78% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the output of eight core industries expanded at a five-month high of 8.2 per cent in June 2023 on healthy performance by sectors such as natural gas and steel. However, production growth was slower than 13.1 per cent recorded in June 2022. Core sector growth in June is the highest since January 2023 when the key sectors expanded at 9.7 per cent. In May 2023, the growth rate was 5 per cent. The Eight Core Industries - coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilizers, steel, cement and electricity - comprise 40.27 percent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

Coal production, having 10.33 per cent weight increased by 9.8 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 8.7 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over corresponding period of the previous year. Natural Gas production, having 6.88 per cent weight increased by 3.6 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 0.1 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year. Petroleum Refinery production, having 28.04 per cent weight increased by 4.6 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 1.9 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year. 

Fertilizers production, having 2.63 per cent weight increased by 3.4 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 11.3 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year.  Steel production, having 17.92 per cent weight increased by 21.9 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 15.9 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year. Cement production, having 5.37 per cent weight increased by 9.4 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 12.2 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year. 

Electricity generation having 19.85 per cent weight increased by 3.3 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index increased by 1.0 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year. However, Crude Oil production, having 8.98 per cent weight declined by 0.6 per cent in June, 2023 over June, 2022 and its cumulative index declined by 2.0 per cent during the quarter April to June, 2023-24 over the corresponding period of previous year.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19735.85, down by 17.95 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 19714.45 and 19795.60. There were 25 stocks advancing against 25 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 3.40%, NTPC up by 3.11%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.01%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.87% and Eicher Motors up by 1.68%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 5.19%, Apollo Hospital down by 2.13%, Adani Ports down by 1.59%, Adani Enterprises down by 1.13% and SBI Life down by 1.13% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted added 63.26 points or 0.37% to 17,208.69, KOSPI increased 29.05 points or 1.09% to 2,661.63, Straits Times rose 3.66 points or 0.11% to 3,377.64 and Nikkei 225 surged 297.51 points or 0.89% to 33,469.73. However, Shanghai Composite weakened 2.72 points or 0.08% to 3,288.32, Hang Seng declined 33.11 points or 0.17% to 20,045.83 and Jakarta Composite plunged 36.53 points or 0.53% to 6,894.83.