Sensex, Nifty hold heads in green during early noon deals

Indian equity benchmarks were holding their heads in green terrain during early noon deals, aided by positive cues from other Asian markets along with heavy buying at Telecom and Utilities counters. Sentiments were positive, as the global industry body WFDSA in a report said that India has moved up to 11th position in the ranking of top markets of direct sellers, with retail sales of USD 3.23 billion (around Rs 26,852 crore) in 2022. Besides, India and the 10-nation bloc Asean said they have directed their officials to intensify their efforts to conclude the review of the existing free trade agreement in goods between the two regions by 2025.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading higher, after Hong Kong's consumer price inflation eased unexpectedly in July to the lowest level in four months. The data released by the Census and Statistics Department showed that the consumer price index, or CPI, climbed 1.8 percent year-over-year in July, slightly slower than the 1.9 percent increase in June. Utility costs alone grew 9.9 percent annually in July, but this was weaker than the 13.3 percent surge in the prior month.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 65314.37, up by 98.28 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 65165.45 and 65362.91. There were 22 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.76%, while Small cap index was up by 0.84%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 1.80%, Utilities up by 1.12%, Industrials up by 1.05%, Capital Goods up by 1.00% and Power up by 0.90%, while IT down by 0.05% was the only losing index on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 1.49%, ITC up by 1.17%, Bajaj Finance up by 0.93%, Larsen & Toubro up by 0.74% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.66%. On the flip side, Jio Financial Services down by 4.99%, TCS down by 0.64%, SBI down by 0.43%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.31% and Infosys down by 0.27% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the finance ministry, in its Monthly Economic Review for July, has said that the inflation in food items is likely to be transitory as preemptive measures by the government and arrival of fresh crops will cool prices, even though global uncertainty and domestic disruptions may keep inflationary pressures elevated for the coming months. It said going forward, while domestic consumption and investment demand are expected to continue driving growth, enhanced provision for capital expenditure by the government in the current fiscal (FY24) is now leading to crowding in of private investment. The consumer price index based retail inflation spiked to a 15-month high of 7.44 per cent in July 2023, with specific food commodities mainly driving the increase. Core inflation, however, stayed at a 39-month low of 4.9 per cent.

The report said the government has already taken preemptive measures to restrain food inflation which, along with the arrival of fresh stock, is likely to subside price pressure in the market soon. Though food inflation in July is perhaps the third highest since the new CPI series began in 2014, only 48 per cent of food items have inflation of above 6 per cent, and this includes 14 food items with inflation in double digits. Items like tomato, green chilli, ginger and garlic witnessed inflation of more than 50 per cent. Hence, the abnormal increase in prices of certain specific items led to high food inflation in July 2023.

It further said that the agricultural sector is picking up momentum with significant advancement in monsoon and kharif sowing. The procurement of wheat and rice has been progressing well, increasing the buffer stock levels of food grains to ensure food security in the country. With regard to investment, it said the government's continued emphasis on capital expenditure is expected to drive growth in the coming years. The Union government in FY24 budget increased the capital outlay by 33.3 per cent, raising the share of capital expenditure in total expenditure from 12.3 per cent in 2017-18 to 22.4 per cent in 2023-24 (BE).

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19423.75, up by 30.15 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 19381.45 and 19443.50. There were 31 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were HDFC Life Insurance Company up by 3.17%, Adani Enterprises up by 1.84%, NTPC up by 1.46%, SBI Life Insurance Company up by 1.43% and ITC up by 1.19%. On the flip side, Jio Financial Services down by 5.00%, Cipla down by 0.99%, TCS down by 0.64%, BPCL down by 0.58% and SBI down by 0.49% were the top losers. 

All Asian markets were trading higher; Hang Seng advanced 255.33 points or 1.45% to 17,878.62, Nikkei 225 surged 291.07 points or 0.91% to 31,856.71, Shanghai Composite strengthened 27.81 points or 0.9% to 3,120.79, Jakarta Composite gained 49.51 points or 0.72% to 6,915.54, Taiwan Weighted added 56.12 points or 0.34% to 16,437.61, KOSPI increased 6.94 points or 0.28% to 2,515.74 and Straits Times rose 3.24 points or 0.1% to 3,157.27.