Benchmarks trade flat in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks were trading flat in morning deals, due to losses in IT, TECK and Capital Goods stocks. Traders remained cautious ahead of the exit polls of five state elections on November 30. Also, the monthly F&O expiry this week will see investors covering their positions.  However, traders got some support as S&P Global Ratings raised India's growth forecast for the current financial year to 6.4 per cent, from 6 per cent, saying that robust domestic momentum has offset headwinds from high food inflation and weak exports.  Sectorally, steel industry related stocks remained in watch with private report stating that India’s steel demand is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7 per cent to touch 190 Million Tonne (MT) level by 2030. The demand will be largely fuelled by construction and infrastructure sectors, which contribute 60-65 per cent to the demand. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in green tracking improvement in global cues with increased possibility of the rate hike cycle coming to an end in the United States, and with crude oil prices stable ahead of the OPEC+ meeting.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 65951.80, down by 18.24 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 65911.01 and 66098.80. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.03%, while Small cap index was up by 0.28%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 2.24%, Utilities up by 2.04%, Power up by 1.48%, Energy up by 1.28% and Basic Materials up by 0.76%, while IT down by 0.40%, TECK down by 0.30%, Capital Goods down by 0.24%, FMCG down by 0.09% and Realty down by 0.09% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Tata Motors up by 2.30%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.61%, Titan Company up by 0.85%, Bajaj Finserv up by 0.81% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.73%. On the flip side, Tech Mahindra down by 0.77%, HCL Technologies down by 0.65%, Reliance Industries down by 0.61%, Infosys down by 0.51% and Larsen & Toubro down by 0.39% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, in a move to manage fiscal requirements, Finance Ministry has said that the central government will the auction (re-issue) three government securities, aiming to raise a cumulative amount of Rs 30,000 crore. The auctions, scheduled for December 1, will be facilitated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) at its Mumbai Office.

It stated the securities to be auctioned include the 7.37 per cent Government Security 2028 with a notified amount of Rs 7,000 crore, the 7.18 per cent Government Security 2033 with a notified amount of Rs 13,000 crore, and the 7.30 per cent Government Security 2053 with a notified amount of Rs 10,000 crore. The government reserves the option to retain additional subscriptions up to Rs 2,000 crore for each of the mentioned securities.

The bidding process will encompass both competitive and non-competitive bids, to be submitted electronically via the RBI Core Banking Solution (E-Kuber) system. Non-competitive bids are scheduled to be submitted between 10:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m., while competitive bids will be accepted from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Eligible individuals and institutions can participate in the auction, with up to 5 per cent of the notified amount allotted for non-competitive bids.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19815.35, up by 20.65 points or 0.10% after trading in a range of 19800.00 and 19848.05. There were 28 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 6.09%, BPCL up by 3.70%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 2.94%, Tata Motors up by 2.31% and Hindalco up by 1.71%. On the flip side, SBI Life Insurance down by 0.86%, Apollo Hospital by 0.77%, HCL Technologies down by 0.70%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.66% and Reliance Industries down by 0.55% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in green; KOSPI increased 18.95 points or 0.76% to 2,514.61, Jakarta Composite gained 32.79 points or 0.47% to 7,046.20, Shanghai Composite strengthened 3.1 points or 0.1% to 3,034.80 and Taiwan Weighted added 202.83 points or 1.18% to 17,340.25.

On the flip side, Nikkei 225 slipped 48.17 points or 0.14% to 33,399.50, Hang Seng declined 105.64 points or 0.61% to 17,419.42 and Straits Times fell 11.7 points or 0.38% to 3,074.72.