Sensex, Nifty stage some recovery in early noon

Indian equity benchmarks staged some recovery but remained in red terrain in early noon deals, backed by buying at IT and Realty stocks, amid negative cues from other Asian markets. Traders were cautious, amid a private report stating that Indian state retailers' gasoline and diesel sales fell in the first half of August from the previous month and a year ago, as industrial activity and mobility was hit due to monsoon rains. Meanwhile, the government is planning to open 25000 Jan Aushadhi Kendras to make medicines available at affordable prices. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading in red, after the People's Bank of China slashed major policy rates as economic data suggested that the second-largest economy is still struggling to regain strength amid fears of another slump in the real estate sector. The Chinese central bank reduced the one-year medium-term lending facility, or MLF, to 2.50 percent from 2.65 percent. The bank had lowered the MLF by 10 basis points in June.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 65334.40, down by 67.52 points or 0.10% after trading in a range of 65032.89 and 65370.95. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose by 0.13%, while Small cap index was up by 0.47%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 0.94%, Realty up by 0.67%, Industrials up by 0.65%, Healthcare up by 0.60% and TECK up by 0.53%, while Metal down by 1.03%, Consumer Durables down by 0.75%, Telecom down by 0.74%, Bankex down by 0.38% and Auto down by 0.23% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 1.53%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.14%, NTPC up by 1.13%, Wipro up by 1.05% and Ultratech Cement up by 0.92%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 1.82%, Indusind Bank down by 1.07%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.02%, Bajaj Finserv down by 0.95% and HDFC Bank down by 0.93% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said that India is looking at Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) not only from the trade point of view but also keeping in mind the country's strategic needs, especially with regard to the smooth supply of critical minerals. 

Barthwal said for instance, batteries in electric vehicles require critical minerals. India is in talks with Australia for its smooth supplies. South American nations of Peru and Chile also have huge reserves of the critical minerals. India is looking at commencing negotiations for an FTA with Peru and Chile also has expressed interest for a trade pact.

He said ‘so, in addition to trade, now, we are looking at FTAs from the point of view of our strategic considerations. So, that is the fresh approach that we are taking in our FTAs.’ He said normally in a trade agreement, two or more countries either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on a maximum number of goods traded between them. He also said norms are also eased for facilitating trade in services and boost investments. Securing a smooth supply of the critical minerals will help India in its energy transition.  

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19404.95, down by 29.60 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 19317.20 and 19407.85. There were 20 stocks advancing against 30 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Apollo Hospitals Enterprise up by 1.95%, Infosys up by 1.55%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.14%, NTPC up by 1.06% and Wipro up by 0.98%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 1.90%, Hindalco down by 1.75%, Hero MotoCorp down by 1.68%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 1.60% and Adani Ports & SEZ down by 1.54% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading in red; Jakarta Composite plunged 47.16 points or 0.68% to 6,867.94, Shanghai Composite weakened 26.05 points or 0.82% to 3,150.13, Straits Times fell 23.33 points or 0.72% to 3,209.41, KOSPI dropped 45.23 points or 1.79% to 2,525.64, Taiwan Weighted lost 8.02 points or 0.05% to 16,446.78, Nikkei 225 slipped 472.07 points or 1.49% to 31,766.82 and Hang Seng declined 273.18 points or 1.47% to 18,307.93.