Markets trade in fine fettle in late afternoon session

Indian equity markets continued to trade in fine fettle in late afternoon session as encouraging European markets cues boosted sentiments. Traders took note of report that the commerce ministry has said that the next round of negotiations between India and South American nation Peru for a free trade agreement (FTA) is expected to start in April 2024. The proposed agreement is aimed at promoting bilateral trade and investments between the two countries. Investors continued to take support as commerce ministry in its latest data has said that India’s merchandise exports rose to a three-month high of 3.12 per cent to $36.92 billion in January 2024 as compared to $35.80 billion in January 2023 despite global uncertainties including the Red Sea crisis.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green after stocks on Wall Street set a new record overnight following a decline in U.S. Treasury yields. European markets were trading higher on track to end a data-packed week on a positive note, as stellar earnings updates and hopes of imminent rate cuts by the European Central Bank lifted investors' appetite for risky assets. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 72442.70, up by 392.32 points or 0.54% after trading in a range of 72218.10 and 72516.43. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.75%, while Small cap index was up by 0.87%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 2.07%, Realty up by 1.57%, Consumer Discretionary up by 1.39%, Capital Goods up by 1.38% and Healthcare was up by 1.20%, while Utilities down by 0.48%, Oil & Gas down by 0.48%, Power down by 0.28%, Energy down by 0.25% and PSU was down by 0.09% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Wipro up by 4.37%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 3.57%, Maruti Suzuki up by 2.77%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.65% and Tata Motors up by 2.15%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 1.58%, Reliance Industries down by 0.58%, Axis Bank down by 0.51%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.31% and SBI down by 0.21% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, statutory body, Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) in its latest provisional payroll data has showed that 18.86 lakh new employees have been added in the month of December 2023. Around 23,347 new establishments have been registered and brought under the social security umbrella of the Employees’ State Insurance Scheme in the month of December 2023, thus ensuring coverage to more workers.

According to the report, more jobs have been generated for the youth of the nation as out of the total 18.86 lakh employees added during the month, 8.83 lakh employees amounting to around 47% of the total registrations are up to the age group of 25 years.

The report further noted that gender-wise, net enrolment of female members has been 3.59 lakh in December 2023, while a total 47 transgender employees have also got registered under ESI Scheme in the month of December, 2023. It shows that ESIC is committed to deliver its benefits to every section of the society.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22053.50, up by 142.75 points or 0.65% after trading in a range of 21968.95 and 22068.65. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Wipro up by 4.73%, SBI Life up by 3.86%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 3.78%, Maruti Suzuki up by 2.90% and Bajaj Auto up by 2.90%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 1.65%, ONGC down by 0.94%, Britannia down by 0.94%, Apollo Hospital down by 0.63% and Reliance Industries down by 0.59% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Hang Seng advanced 395.33 points or 2.42% to 16,339.96, Nikkei 225 surged 329.3 points or 0.86% to 38,487.24, Straits Times rose 43.28 points or 1.36% to 3,219.97, KOSPI increased 34.96 points or 1.32% to 2,648.76 and Jakarta Composite was up by 25.92 points or 0.35% to 7,329.20. On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted was down by 37.32 points or 0.2% to 18,607.25.

European markets were trading higher; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 56.51 points or 0.74% to 7,654.04, France’s CAC rose 42.8 points or 0.55% to 7,786.22 and Germany’s DAX was up by 98.6 points or 0.58% to 17,145.29.