Sensex, Nifty remain higher in early noon deals

Firm trade persisted over the Dalal Street in early afternoon deals, aided by positive cues from other Asian markets along with heavy buying at Metal and Capital Goods stocks. Sentiments were positive, amid reports that mutual cooperation and trust are the key pillars that will thrust the BRICS group of countries as well as the global south towards development and economic growth. However, gains were limited, as India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) in its latest analysis report based on ‘the Q1FY24 results of 3,323 listed companies’ has showed a continued year on year (YoY) fall in revenue growth, a declining trend in coverage indicators and steady operating margins across most sectors.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, as the manufacturing sector in Australia continued to contract in August, albeit at a slower rate, with a manufacturing PMI score of 49.7. That's up from 49.6 in July, although it remains beneath the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 65305.27, up by 85.24 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 65108.51 and 65436.10. There were 17 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose by 0.60%, while Small cap index was up by 0.78%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.26%, Capital Goods up by 1.26%, Industrials up by 1.13%, Consumer Durables up by 0.76% and Realty up by 0.74%, while FMCG down by 0.34%, Auto down by 0.14% and Oil & Gas down by 0.06% were the few losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Axis Bank up by 1.71%, Tata Steel up by 1.23%, Larsen & Toubro up by 1.21%, SBI up by 0.80% and Maruti Suzuki up by 0.58%. On the flip side, Jio Financial Services down by 5.00%, Sun Pharma down by 1.00%, ITC down by 0.98%, Tata Motors down by 0.78% and Bharti Airtel down by 0.70% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has said that the e-commerce industry needs regulation to provide a level-playing field for small businesses. CAIT Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal said that the same set of 5-6 companies are top sellers on prominent e-commerce platforms which leaves no scope for small businesses to grow. He said 'there has to be a regulatory authority like SEBI for share market, and for telecom industry to regulate and monitor e-commerce and we are going to request the government (for the same)'.

Khandelwal also said that the government is likely to roll out a robust e-commerce policy against unethical business practices and foreign direct investment (FDI) violations by the end of the month. The proposed national e-commerce policy of 2019 by the commerce and industry ministry is said to be in the final stages, with the e-commerce policy aiming to prepare strategies for inclusive and harmonious growth of the e-commerce sector through a streamlined regulatory framework for ease of doing business, adoption of modern technologies, integration of supply chains and enhancing exports through the medium.

He also said ‘it is in the domain of the government to announce this, but I believe that by the end of the month, we will be having a robust ecommerce policy and rules’. The traders' body has time and again alleged that foreign online retailers violate norms of FDI in commerce and the government should take action against those indulging in malpractices such as deep discounting and predatory pricing.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19432.40, up by 35.95 points or 0.19% after trading in a range of 19366.60 and 19450.20. There were 29 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindalco up by 2.91%, Axis Bank up by 1.82%, Divi's Laboratories up by 1.62%, Tata Steel up by 1.28% and Larsen & Toubro up by 1.27%. On the flip side, Jio Financial Services down by 4.99%, Sun Pharma down by 1.10%, Adani Enterprises down by 1.05%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone down by 0.88% and ITC down by 0.85% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted added 119.51 points or 0.72% to 16,557.12, Hang Seng advanced 61.42 points or 0.34% to 17,852.43, Nikkei 225 surged 38.07 points or 0.12% to 31,894.78, Jakarta Composite gained 31.84 points or 0.46% to 6,948.29 and Straits Times rose 6.8 points or 0.21% to 3,166.68, while KOSPI dropped 14.21 points or 0.57% to 2,501.53 and Shanghai Composite weakened 17.23 points or 0.56% to 3,103.10.