Lackluster trade continues over Dalal Street

Lackluster trade continued over the Dalal Street in early afternoon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading lower, impacted by negative cues from other Asian markets. Traders were cautious, as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its latest report said that listed private non-financial companies’ sales growth moderated during Q1FY24. As per the data, sales growth (y-o-y) of listed private non-financial companies moderated to 2.1 per cent in Q1:2023-24 from 8.0 per cent in the previous quarter and 41.0 per cent a year ago. Meanwhile, emphasizing digital capability upgradation of Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) by November 1, 2023, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that banks should map RRBs with MSME clusters and put greater thrust on increasing network of rural branches in cluster areas identified by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red, as industrial output in Japan was down a seasonally adjusted 2.0 percent on month in July. That missed forecasts for a fall of 1.4 percent following the 2.4 percent increase in June. On a yearly basis, industrial production was down 2.5 percent following the flat reading in the previous month.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 64993.03, down by 94.22 points or 0.14% after trading in a range of 64982.12 and 65277.04. There were 16 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose by 0.18%, while Small cap index was up by 0.58%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 0.68%, IT up by 0.64%, TECK up by 0.36%, Industrials up by 0.34% and Metal up by 0.34%, while Oil & Gas down by 0.70%, FMCG down by 0.58%, Utilities down by 0.50%, Energy down by 0.38% and Bankex down by 0.37% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Jio Financial Services up by 4.75%, Maruti Suzuki up by 2.29%, Titan Company up by 0.89%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.86% and HCL Technologies up by 0.70%. On the flip side, Nestle down by 1.78%, Indusind Bank down by 1.40%, Larsen & Toubro down by 1.02%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.85% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.82% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, CareEdge Ratings in its latest report has said the India’s rural demand is vulnerable and could be further impacted by the ‘dual blows’ of lower income and high food inflation owing to an erratic monsoon. It stated the upcoming festivities may lead to a rise in consumption demand but such an increase will depend on the extent of the skewed monsoon impact.

It mentioned monsoon has been deficient so far and there is no certainty if the situation will improve. Consumption, including rural demand, is considered an important factor influencing the overall GDP growth in the country. Some FMCG players have already flagged concerns on the rural demand front.

Further, it said the risk to farm income remains high as uneven distribution of monsoon has affected the sowing of certain crops and can adversely affect yields. It added the cost of living is also rising due to high food inflation and expected hit to agriculture due to an erratic monsoon. Besides, it said the risk to rabi -- the winter crop sowing -- remains high as reservoir levels remain significantly below the 10-year average in eastern and southern India.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19299.70, down by 47.75 points or 0.25% after trading in a range of 19293.70 and 19388.20. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining, while one stock remained unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Jio Financial Services up by 4.99%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.86%, LTIMindtree up by 1.24%, Hindalco up by 0.89% and Tech Mahindra up by 0.81%. On the flip side, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone down by 2.58%, Adani Enterprises down by 2.49%, BPCL down by 1.93%, Nestle down by 1.85% and Indusind Bank down by 1.41% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Taiwan Weighted lost 85.31 points or 0.51% to 16,634.51, Hang Seng declined 79.55 points or 0.43% to 18,403.31, Jakarta Composite plunged 38.07 points or 0.55% to 6,928.59, Shanghai Composite weakened 15.77 points or 0.5% to 3,121.37 and KOSPI dropped 4.95 points or 0.19% to 2,556.27, while Straits Times rose 12.89 points or 0.4% to 3,233.11 and Nikkei 225 surged 285.88 points or 0.88% to 32,619.34.