Domestic indices maintain gaining momentum in late morning deals

Domestic equity indices maintained their gaining momentum in late morning deals as market participants indulged in enlarging their positions. Meanwhile, the session was also jubilant for broader indices, with BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index trading higher in the range of 1.00-1.10%.  Markets traded with solid gains, driven by financials and energy stocks as state election results boosted market momentum emerging from strong macroeconomic data and easing global interest rate expectations. Sentiments also got boost as GST collections jumped 15 per cent to nearly Rs 1.68 lakh crore in November on increased domestic activity and festive season buying.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as investors awaited a slew of key economic data Tuesday and inflation readings later this week. Inflation reading for Tokyo will be released Tuesday, which is widely seen as a leading indicator for nationwide trends. South Korea inflation numbers will also be out the same day. Back home, in the stock specific developments, Adani group shares were trading higher as investors were reportedly enthused by the fact that there were no adverse reports against the Adani group.  

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 68422.17, up by 940.98 points or 1.39% after trading in a range of 68274.47 and 68587.82. There were 28 stocks advancing against 2 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 1.03%, while Small cap index up by 1.10%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 3.81%, PSU up by 3.22%, Capital Goods up by 3.14%, Energy up by 2.99% and Power up by 2.73%, while there were no losers.  

The top gainers on the Sensex were Larsen & Toubro up by 4.60%, SBI up by 3.13%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 2.31%, Ultratech Cement up by 2.25% and ICICI Bank up by 2.25%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 0.82% and Maruti Suzuki down by 0.79% were the only losers.

Meanwhile, a study by the Indian Biogas Association (IBA) has stated that the proposed 5 per cent blending of biogas with natural gas supplies in the country can cut LNG imports worth $1.17 billion annually. The study comes against the backdrop of the government's recent mandate to blend one per cent biogas with piped natural gas (PNG) supplies in the country from April 1, 2025 under the compressed biogas blending obligation (CBO) scheme. The biogas blending is proposed to be further increased to 5 per cent by fiscal year 2028-29.

According to the study, this blending initiative gels well with the government's macro-level move to make India a gas-based economy, with a target to increase the current share of gas in the energy mix from 6 per cent currently to 15 per cent by 2030. The IBA estimates show that 5 per cent blending of biogas with natural gas can reduce LNG imports worth $1.17 billion. This can also bring down per capita CO2 emissions by two per cent, benchmarked to the 2019 figure, which was 1.9 metric tonne of CO2 per person in India.

Additionally, the body said preventing organic waste going to landfills can bring innumerable benefits. The CBO scheme shall encourage investment of around Rs 37,500 crore and facilitate the establishment of at least 750 compressed bio gas (CBG) projects by 2028-29, as per government estimates. This is going to improve India's energy security, as it is currently heavily reliant on imported natural gas to meet its energy needs. Blending biogas with PNG and CNG can help reduce this dependence, which is invaluable. Blending of biogas with natural gas will streamline the market for biofuels, making it more investor-friendly by reducing capital and operational costs. It also emphasized that selling biofuels in the market will become smoother, and the ecosystem will benefit from increased investor confidence.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 20563.70, up by 295.80 points or 1.46% after trading in a range of 20507.75 and 20602.50. There were 45 stocks advancing against 5 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 6.45%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 5.30%, BPCL up by 4.78%, Larsen & Toubro up by 4.56% and ONGC up by 4.24%. On the flip side, Maruti Suzuki down by 0.84%, Sun Pharma down by 0.81%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 0.54%, Britannia down by 0.52% and LTIMindtree down by 0.39% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Straits Times rose 12.71 points or 0.41% to 3,103.02, KOSPI increased 11.56 points or 0.46% to 2,516.57, Shanghai Composite strengthened 0.85 points or 0.03% to 3,032.49 and Jakarta Composite gained 71.4 points or 1% to 7,131.31. However, Hang Seng declined 58.64 points or 0.35% to 16,771.66, Nikkei 225 slipped 229.8 points or 0.69% to 33,201.71, Taiwan Weighted lost 14.4 points or 0.08% to 17,423.95.