Bourses add downward pressure in late afternoon session

The Indian benchmarks added downward pressure in late afternoon session, as losses in IT stocks. The broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index were also trading in red. Globally, investors were cautious ahead of US Federal Reserve policy meeting outcome. Besides, India’s exports declined by 6.86 per cent to $34.48 billion in August this year as against $37.02 billion in the same month last year. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red at the outset of a new week marked by monetary policy decisions by the Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan as well as Bank of England. Minutes of Reserve Bank of Australia are also due for release early this week. Meanwhile, Japanese market is closed for a holiday. European markets were trading lower amidst overwhelming anxiety ahead of monetary policy decisions by the Federal Reserve, Bank of England and Bank of Japan. Optimism that the ECB would no longer hike rates is seen limiting the losses.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 67665.56, down by 173.07 points or 0.26% after trading in a range of 67552.03 and 67803.15. There were 17 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 0.13%, while Small cap index was down by 0.32%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 1.36%, Consumer Durables up by 1.12%, Auto up by 1.02%, Utilities up by 1.01% and Power was up by 0.72%, while Telecom down by 1.31%, Realty down by 0.95%, TECK down by 0.76%, Metal down by 0.74% and IT was down by 0.65% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Titan Company up by 2.99%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.73%, Power Grid up by 2.09%, NTPC up by 2.07% and Bajaj Finserv up by 1.34%. On the flip side, HDFC Bank down by 1.79%, Infosys down by 1.44%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.22%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.17% and Tata Steel down by 0.98% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in order to encourage greater utilization of the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan (NMP) amongst the States/UTs, the Logistics Division, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce & Industry is organizing weekly meetings. These meetings involve discussions with the nodal officers/ representatives from different States and Union Territories (UTs) to assess their advancements in assets mapping and project planning using the National Master Plan.

Recently, a review meeting was convened for the North Zone States/UTs, chaired by Special Secretary (Logistics), DPIIT, Sumita Dawra in virtual mode. The meeting witnessed active participation from States/UTs viz Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Haryana, Delhi, and Uttarakhand. 

During the meeting, the Special Secretary (Logistics) encouraged the North Zone States/UTs to utilize the PM GatiShakti SMP (State Master Plan) for area development. A SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) Analysis can be conducted by the States/UTs to identify gaps in social, infrastructure, and logistics for area development planning.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 20152.25, down by 40.10 points or 0.20% after trading in a range of 20121.65 and 20195.35. There were 28 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index, while 2 stocks remained unchanged. 

The top gainers on Nifty were Titan Company up by 3.00%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.72%, BPCL up by 2.23%, Power Grid up by 2.14% and HDFC Life Insurance up by 2.11%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 2.53%, HDFC Bank down by 1.78%, Infosys down by 1.40%, Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 1.36% and Adani Ports down by 1.33% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng declined 252.34 points or 1.41% to 17,930.55, Taiwan Weighted lost 222.68 points or 1.33% to 16,698.24, Jakarta Composite plunged 42.24 points or 0.6% to 6,940.55, KOSPI dropped 26.56 points or 1.03% to 2,574.72 and Straits Times was down by 15.74 points or 0.48% to 3,264.95. On the flip side, Shanghai Composite was up by 8.19 points or 0.26% to 3,125.93.

European markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 0.68 points or 0.01% to 7,710.70, France’s CAC fell 51.02 points or 0.69% to 7,327.80 and Germany’s DAX was down by 65.07 points or 0.41% to 15,828.46.