Benchmarks continue to trade marginally in red in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade marginally in red in morning deals, as investors remain cautious in the wake of weak global cues. Sentiments remained down-beat as exchange data showed Foreign institutional investors (FII) offloaded shares worth net Rs 3245.86 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) sold shares worth net Rs 247.46 crore on September 6, 2023. However, markets trimmed some of their initial losses as some support came with Chairman, CII national committee on EXIM, Sanjay Budhia, stating that negotiating trade pacts with certain G20 countries and diversifying exports to regions like Brazil and Mexico could help India boost outbound shipments and manufacturing in the years to come. He said that tapping into opportunities in G20 countries is crucial for India’s economic growth and global influence. On the global front, Asian markets are trading lower after a decline on Wall Street, where strong economic data revived worries that the Federal Reserve might keep interest rates high for longer than investors had been hoping. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 65808.85, down by 71.67 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 65672.34 and 65858.42. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.51%, while Small cap index was up by 0.49%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Industrials up by 0.75%, Capital Goods up by 0.73%, PSU up by 0.71%, Realty up by 0.66% and Energy up by 0.43%, while TECK down by 0.26%, FMCG down by 0.24%, Utilities down by 0.23%, IT down by 0.21% and Power down by 0.08% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Larsen & Toubro up by 0.77%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.72%, Tata Steel up by 0.54%, Tata Motors up by 0.47% and SBI up by 0.44%. On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 0.89%, NTPC down by 0.80%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.75%, Sun Pharma down by 0.74% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.64% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, rating agency Icra has said that it has revised the outlook on the petrochemicals and basic chemicals industries to negative from stable due to weak demand and global supply glut. It said that the petrochemical and basic chemicals industries are likely to face pressure on operating rates and profitability.

Further, it stated outlook on specialty chemicals remains stable, with profitability expected to moderate in FY2024, but not trigger an outlook change at this stage. According to Prashant Vasisht, senior vice president and co-group head of corporate ratings, Icra, tepid global growth and inflationary pressures in major chemical-consuming nations are exerting pressure on the global demand of a host of chemicals and thus, volume growth for these chemicals is expected to slow down in the near term.

Moreover, he said sizable capacity expansions over 2022 to 2024, are expected to weigh on the operating rates and would result in a supply overhang, which is likely to keep the spreads and margins under pressure in the next 2-3 years. While domestic demand is likely to remain healthy, dumping of excess output by large overseas producers is likely to keep profitability under pressure

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19590.85, down by 20.20 points or 0.10% after trading in a range of 19550.05 and 19621.10. There were 21 stocks advancing against 29 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 3.05%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 0.98%, Maruti Suzuki up by 0.79%, Larsen & Toubro up by 0.79% and UPL up by 0.60%. On the flip side, Tata Consumer Product down by 2.26%, NTPC down by 0.91%, Ultratech Cement down by 0.85%, Apollo Hospital down by 0.83% and Bajaj Finance down by 0.76% were the top losers.

All Asian markets are trading lower; Hang Seng declined 175.07 points or 0.96% to 18,274.91, Taiwan Weighted lost 114.17 points or 0.69% to 16,623.99, Straits Times fell 9.08 points or 0.28% to 3,213.80, Shanghai Composite weakened 18.26 points or 0.58% to 3,139.82, Jakarta Composite plunged 26.69 points or 0.38% to 6,969.26, KOSPI dropped 19.75 points or 0.78% to 2,543.59 and Nikkei 225 slipped 217.74 points or 0.66% to 33,023.28.