Sensex, Nifty near day’s high in early noon deals

Indian equity benchmarks gained traction in early afternoon deals, with both Sensex and Nifty trading near their intraday high points, despite negative cues from other Asian markets. Sentiments remained optimistic, after a G20 document prepared by the World Bank stated that India has achieved financial inclusion targets in just 6 years which would otherwise have taken at least 47 long years. The document highlights the groundbreaking measures taken by Central Government and the pivotal role of government policy and regulation in shaping the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) landscape. The street also took a note of a private report stating that India needs to grow at 8-9 per cent for the next 20 years to become a developed nation by 2047 as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading lower, as a measure of public opinion about the Japanese economy weakened unexpectedly in August after rebounding in the previous month. The survey data from the Cabinet Office showed that the current conditions index of the Economy Watchers' Survey, which measures the present situation of the economy, dropped to 53.6 in August from 54.4 in July. Both household and cooperative activities contributed to the decrease in the overall index.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 66557.27, up by 291.71 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 66299.30 and 66612.19. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose by 0.72%, while Small cap index was up by 0.57%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 1.81%, Utilities up by 1.72%, Power up by 1.68%, Realty up by 1.66% and Capital Goods up by 1.51%, while Healthcare down by 0.22% and FMCG down by 0.11% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 2.95%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.25%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.82%, Tata Motors up by 1.65% and Bharti Airtel up by 1.35%. On the flip side, ITC down by 0.57%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.37%, Wipro down by 0.28%, Ultratech Cement down by 0.23% and TCS down by 0.15% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Special Secretary (Logistics) in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Sumita Dawra has said that the PM GatiShakti initiative is an effective mechanism for fast-tracking infrastructure projects and bringing socio-economic area-based development. She said PM GatiShakti NMP, a GIS data-based digital platform with more than 1,400 data layers and over 50 tools, provides a visual depiction of trunk and utility infrastructure, land use, existing structures (like bridge and railway crossing), soil quality, habitation sprawl, tourism sites, forest-sensitive areas, and functionalities for data-based decisionmaking such as site suitability, among others.

Special Secretary highlighted that India has already operationalised and is successfully implementing the PM GatiShakti, transformative approach to area-based infrastructure development. So it is not just building infrastructure connectivity, but also bringing with it both economic and social development leading to both Ease of Doing Business and Ease of Living. Highlighting examples of the Indo-Nepal Haldia Access Controlled Corridor project for seamless connectivity and trade movement between Nepal and eastern Indian states, and the Regional Waterways Grid (RWG) project for multimodal connectivity to growth centres and border points, she showcased the PM GatiShakti adoption in enhancing connectivity with regional partners.

At the same time, she suggested that Asian Development Bank (ADB) and partner countries can draw lessons for broadening the scope of their regional cooperation programmes like South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) by integrating area-centric growth models on the lines of this initiative.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19812.80, up by 85.75 points or 0.43% after trading in a range of 19727.05 and 19823.45. There were 33 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 3.19%, NTPC up by 2.95%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.24%, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone up by 1.88% and Bajaj Finserv up by 1.82%. On the flip side, Eicher Motors down by 0.78%, ITC down by 0.59%, SBI Life Insurance Company down by 0.58%, Apollo Hospital down by 0.46% and Dr Reddy's Laboratories down by 0.45% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading lower; Nikkei 225 slipped 384.24 points or 1.18% to 32,606.84, Jakarta Composite plunged 33.04 points or 0.48% to 6,921.77, Shanghai Composite weakened 5.63 points or 0.18% to 3,116.72, Straits Times fell 14.43 points or 0.45% to 3,212.16, KOSPI dropped 0.58 points or 0.02% to 2,547.68 and Taiwan Weighted lost 43.12 points or 0.26% to 16,576.02.