Domestic indices trade slightly higher in late morning deals

Domestic equity indices pared most of their early gains and were trading marginally higher in late morning deals on profit taking at higher levels. Foreign fund outflows dented domestic sentiments. Provisional data from the National Stock Exchange (NSE) showed foreign institutional investors (FII) sold shares worth Rs 1,631.63 crore on September 13. However, broader indices on the BSE outperformed their large peers and were trading with gains in the range of 0.65-1.30%. Positive cues from other Asian markets supported domestic sentiments. The sentiments were further supported by Indian rupee appreciating against the dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on increased selling of the US currency by exporters and banks. On the sectoral front, all the sectoral indices, except Consumer Durables, on the BSE were trading higher led by Metal, Realty, Oil & Gas, PSU and Energy. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading higher as investors digested the US consumer-price index data showing inflation picked up in August, but likely not by enough to prompt a September interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve. Back home, in the stock specific development, Bajaj Healthcare advanced as it received the Establishment Inspection Report from the U.S. health regulator for its Vadodara facility in Gujarat.

 The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 67513.80, up by 46.81 points or 0.07% after trading in a range of 67407.46 and 67771.05. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.69%, while Small cap index up by 1.26%.

The  top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.99%, Realty up by 1.63%, Oil & Gas up by 1.25%, PSU up by 0.90% and Energy up by 0.88%, while Consumer Durables down by 0.18% was the only losing index on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Tata Steel up by 2.32%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.01%, Nestle up by 0.84%, JSW Steel up by 0.83% and Wipro up by 0.80%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 1.10%, Titan down by 0.54%, ITC down by 0.43%, Sun Pharma down by 0.40% and ICICI Bank down by 0.29% were the top losers. 

Meanwhile, Rating agency Icra has said that it has revised upwards its growth estimate for the domestic steel industry to 9-10 per cent this fiscal (FY24), on account of the robust government capital expenditure. It had estimated the steel industry to grow in the range of 7-8 per cent at the start of the current 2023-24 fiscal.

It stated that powered by the government's infrastructure-oriented growth model, the domestic steel demand has been growing in double digits since FY22, and the momentum has continued in the current fiscal as well. Steel demand registered a growth of 13.1 per cent between April and August this fiscal.

Jayanta Roy, Senior Vice-President and Group Head of Corporate Sector Ratings, Icra said ‘Around 14.3 million tonne per annum (MTPA) of new steelmaking capacity is expected to come on stream in the current fiscal. This will be the largest capacity addition made by the industry in a single year in the recent past. The industry's supply pipeline is expected to remain strong in FY25 as well when an estimated 12.3 MTPA of capacities are lined up for commissioning.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 20095.90, up by 25.90 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 20062.15 and 20167.65. There were 33 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindalco up by 4.35%, UPL up by 3.17%, ONGC up by 2.31%, Tata Steel up by 2.16% and Tech Mahindra up by 1.95%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 1.14%, Titan down by 0.58%, ITC down by 0.56%, Sun Pharma  down by 0.53% and Tata Consumer Products down by 0.41% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading higher; Hang Seng advanced 72.11 points or 0.4% to 18,081.33, Taiwan Weighted added 210.77 points or 1.27% to 16,792.28, Straits Times rose 25.62 points or 0.8% to 3,244.55, Shanghai Composite strengthened 3.35 points or 0.11% to 3,126.42, Jakarta Composite gained 26.72 points or 0.38% to 6,962.20, KOSPI increased 27.61 points or 1.09% to 2,562.31 and Nikkei 225 surged 476.01 points or 1.46% to 33,182.53.