Domestic indices trade flat in late morning deals

Domestic equity indices traded flat in late morning deals amid mixed cues from global markets. Selling in ICICI Bank, NTPC, Tata Steel and Bajaj Finance companies’ stocks restricted the markets to go up. Traders were cautious after hawkish comments from Fed officials and ahead of Chair Jerome Powell's speech. Traders seemed reluctant to make significant moves and will pay close attention to the Powell's statements for clues about the outlook for interest rates. Further, foreign fund outflows dented sentiments. According to the provisional data available on the NSE, foreign institutional investors (FII) offloaded shares worth net Rs 497.21 crore on November 7, 2023. However, broader indices were trading higher with BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index gaining in the range of 0.65-0.75%.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red despite positive cues from US markets overnight. Back home, on the sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up position in Healthcare, Realty, Oil & Gas, Energy and Consumer Durables, while selling was witnessed in Bankex, Power and TECK. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 64868.27, down by 74.13 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 64851.06 and 65124.00. There were 10 stocks advancing against 20 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 0.71%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Healthcare up by 1.29%, Realty up by 1.06%, Oil & Gas up by 1.04%, Energy up by 0.87% and Consumer Durables up by 0.73%, while Bankex down by 0.49%, Power down by 0.03%, TECK down by 0.02% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Titan up by 1.08%, Asian Paints up by 1.04%, Sun Pharma up by 0.79%, TCS up by 0.54% and Reliance Industries up by 0.42%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 1.30%, NTPC down by 0.88%, Tata Steel down by 0.88%, Bajaj Finance down by 0.64% and Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.60% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, expressing serious concerns over the European Union's move to impose carbon tax on imports from certain sectors like steel, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has assured the domestic industry that India will not accept such unfair taxes and will fight to get a fair deal for producers and exporters. He said India has already flagged its concerns over the carbon tax with the European Union (EU) and in the WTO (World Trade Organization). The CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) or carbon tax (a kind of import duty) will come into effect from January 1, 2026, but from October 1 2023, domestic companies from seven carbon-intensive sectors, including steel, cement, fertiliser, aluminium and hydrocarbon products, will have to share data with regard to carbon emissions with the EU.

The minister said the world will have to take a view on this tax and India would onboard other countries on the issue to address this ‘very serious’ concern. He said ‘we will always find innovative solutions but I can assure you that India will not be accepting unfair taxes or levies being put on the Indian steel or aluminum industry or any other industry’. He said the EU would have to allow ‘common but differentiated responsibility’ to India on the issue as New Delhi is a developing economy. 

Goyal said to protect domestic steel players from dumping, India is including provisions like ‘high’ value-added norms and ‘melt and pour’ in these agreements. He said ‘we are looking at both the options so that our steel industry gets protected from any dumping from the developed world and these provisions would deter countries from misuse of FTAs’. He also asked the industry to provide information about businesses who are importing that steel which is available here at competitive prices as such irrational imports hurt domestic manufacturing and demand.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19432.40, up by 25.70 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 19401.50 and 19455.70. There were 34 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were BPCL up by 3.34%, Adani Ports up by 2.27%, Cipla up by 1.77%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 1.52% and Asian Paints up by 1.21%. On the flip side, ICICI Bank down by 1.13%, NTPC down by 0.94%, Tata Steel down by 0.71%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 0.63% and Bajaj Finance down by 0.45% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng declined 57.41 points or 0.32% to 17,612.75, Nikkei 225 slipped 81.64 points or 0.25% to 32,190.18, Straits Times fell 46.16 points or 1.45% to 3,127.65, KOSPI dropped 21.08 points or 0.86% to 2,422.88, Shanghai Composite weakened 9.27 points or 0.3% to 3,048.00 and Jakarta Composite plunged 46.46 points or 0.68% to 6,797.33. However, Taiwan Weighted added 55.88 points or 0.33% to 16,740.83.