Bourses trade in fine fettle in late afternoon session

Indian equity markets traded in fine fettle in late afternoon session, as traders continued to take support from retail inflation data. As for broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index traded in green, while Small cap index traded in red. Sentiments were upbeat as Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) has indicated that India’s unemployment rate (UR) in urban areas for persons aged 15 years and above decreased during October-December 2023 to 6.5 per cent from 7.2 per cent in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) eased to a three-month low of 5.1 per cent in January 2024. Inflation was at 5.69 per cent in December 2023. It was 6.52 per cent in January 2023. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green as many regional markets resumed trading after a long holiday weekend. European markets were trading lower as investors assessed incoming corporate earnings reports and awaited a key U.S. inflation print. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 71576.26, up by 503.77 points or 0.71% after trading in a range of 70924.30 and 71662.74. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.34%, while Small cap index was down by 0.04%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Bankex up by 1.49%, PSU up by 0.99%, Energy up by 0.87%, Healthcare up by 0.58% and Consumer Durables was up by 0.39%, while Metal down by 1.51%, Basic Materials down by 1.15%, Power down by 0.63%, Realty down by 0.44% and Utilities was down by 0.39% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were ICICI Bank up by 2.53%, Axis Bank up by 1.97%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.70%, NTPC up by 1.60% and Wipro up by 1.59%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.28%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.01%, Tata Motors down by 0.76%, Power Grid down by 0.35% and Bharti Airtel down by 0.26% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) has indicated that India’s unemployment rate (UR) in urban areas for persons aged 15 years and above decreased during October-December 2023 to 6.5 per cent from 7.2 per cent in the year-ago period.  

According to the data, for male, UR decreased from 6.5 per cent in October-December 2022 to 5.8 per cent in October-December 2023, while for female UR decreased from 9.6 per cent in October-December 2022 to 8.6 per cent in October-December 2023.

It further said the Worker Population Ratio (WPR) for persons aged 15 years and above in urban areas increased from 44.7 per cent in October-December 2022 to 46.6 per cent in October-December 2023. For male, it increased from 68.6 per cent to 69.8 per cent during this period and for female, it increased from 20.2 per cent to 22.9 per cent during this period. Labour Force Participation Rate in urban areas increased from 48.2 per cent in October-December 2022 to 49.9 per cent during the period under review for persons aged 15 years and above. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 21742.00, up by 125.95 points or 0.58% after trading in a range of 21543.35 and 21766.80. There were 35 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 4.25%, UPL up by 4.05%, ICICI Bank up by 2.51%, SBI Life Insuran up by 2.22% and HDFC Life Insurance up by 2.12%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 12.47%, Grasim Industries down by 3.68%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.32%, BPCL down by 1.14% and Divi's Lab down by 1.05% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 1066.55 points or 2.81% to 37,963.97, KOSPI increased 29.32 points or 1.11% to 2,649.64 and Straits Times was up by 3.78 points or 0.12% to 3,142.08. On the flip side, Jakarta Composite was down by 80.86 points or 1.12% to 7,216.81.

European markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 6.72 points or 0.09% to 7,566.97, France’s CAC fell 18.69 points or 0.24% to 7,671.11 and Germany’s DAX was down by 90.24 points or 0.53% to 16,947.11.