Markets trim losses in late morning deals

Domestic equity markets trimmed some of their losses in late morning deals on account of buying in Reliance Industries, Sun Pharma and Hindustan Unilever stocks.  Traders were getting some encouragement as the government has extended export benefits under the RoDTEP scheme for one more year till June 2024. However, indices continued to trade in red amid mixed cues from global markets.  Traders were cautious amid uncertainty about the Fed's rate path and worries over a possible U.S. government shutdown.  There was some buzz in online gaming industry related stocks as the GST Council will meet on October 7 and is likely to review the progress made by the states in incorporating changes with regard to taxation of online gaming in SGST laws as approved by the council in its August meeting.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green despite negative cues from the US markets overnight. Back home, on the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up position in Healthcare, Telecom, Realty, Industrials and Capital Goods, while selling was witnessed in Bankex, Consumer Durables, Oil & Gas, Auto and Consumer Disc.  In the stock specific development, 3i Infotech rallied on bagging contract worth Rs. 39.55 crore from Ujjivan Small Finance Bank.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 65775.76, down by 169.71 points or 0.26% after trading in a range of 65549.96 and 65925.64. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.42%, while Small cap index up by 0.43%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Healthcare up by 0.80%, Telecom up by 0.79%, Realty up by 0.68%, Industrials up by 0.46% and Capital Goods up by 0.32%, while Bankex down by 0.58%, Consumer Durables down by 0.42%, Oil & Gas down by 0.40%, Auto down by 0.15% and Consumer Disc down by 0.15% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 0.74%, Reliance Industries up by 0.69%, JSW Steel up by 0.58%, Hindustan Unilever up by 0.52% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.42%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 1.09%, Titan down by 1.05%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.02%, HDFC Bank down by 1.02% and ICICI Bank down by 0.93% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, rating agency ICRA in its latest report has said that India's export of cut and polished diamonds is projected to decline by 22 per cent to $17.2 billion in the current fiscal (FY24) due to weakened demand from the key consuming nations. In the first five months of the current fiscal, cut and polished diamond exports witnessed a sharp year-on-year decline of 31 per cent following lower export volumes and higher polished diamond prices. Export of cut and polished diamonds has been on a declining trend since the first half of 2022-23.

According to the report, the export contraction is primarily being driven by weak underlying demand conditions in key consuming nations like the US and Europe due to the inflationary pressures, leading to a shift in spending away from diamonds. It also said the demand from China, which accounts for 10-15 per cent of the global demand, has also not picked up meaningfully so far. In addition, it said competition from lab-grown diamonds, which are priced at a significant discount to natural diamonds, also accentuated the dip in volumes, particularly for the large-sized diamonds in the range of one to three carats. 

The report stated that the share of lab-grown diamonds within India's total cut and polished diamonds exports continues to rise. It said prices of rough diamonds remain elevated in FY2024, with current prices hovering around the 15-year median level, despite some softening seen in recent months. It noted that these prices had soared in the last two years, following limited supply from mining companies and robust revival in demand post the pandemic.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19619.35, down by 45.35 points or 0.23% after trading in a range of 19554.00 and 19649.55. There were 23 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 1.53%, Cipla up by 1.06%, Adani Ports up by 0.97%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 0.96% and Apollo Hospital up by 0.85%. On the flip side, Tata Steel down by 1.12%, BPCL down by 1.08%, Grasim Industries down by 1.04%, ICICI Bank down by 1.04% and Bajaj Finance down by 1.03% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng advanced 100.9 points or 0.57% to 17,567.80, Taiwan Weighted added 34.29 points or 0.21% to 16,310.36, Shanghai Composite strengthened 7.57 points or 0.24% to 3,109.84, Jakarta Composite gained 26.35 points or 0.38% to 6,950.15 and Nikkei 225 surged 1.44 points to 32,316.49. However, Straits Times fell 28.25 points or 0.89% to 3,186.82 and KOSPI dropped 0.10 points or 0% to 2,462.87.