Sensex, Nifty trade flat with negative bias in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks erased initial gains and were trading flat with negative bias in morning deals, amid weak global cues. Traders remained cautious as provisional data from the NSE showed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 1,335.51 crore on February 20, 2024. However, losses were limited as some support came with the latest payroll data released by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) showing that the labour market recovered slightly in December as fresh formal job creation hit a three-month high. As per the data, in December 2023, the number of new monthly subscribers under the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) increased by nearly 10 per cent to 840,584 in December from 762,513 in November. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in red tracking US losses as investors await a key tech earnings report and Fed policy meeting minutes later in the day. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 72995.11, down by 62.29 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 72980.58 and 73267.80. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.14%, while Small cap index was up by 0.11%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 2.34%, Metal up by 1.19%, Basic Materials up by 0.83%, Consumer discretionary up by 0.32% and Healthcare up by 0.24%, while Utilities down by 0.79%, IT down by 0.59%, TECK down by 0.52%, Power down by 0.30% and PSU down by 0.29% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were JSW Steel up by 2.75%, Tata Steel up by 2.34%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.03%, Ultratech Cement up by 0.96% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.69%. On the flip side, Power Grid Corporation down by 1.94%, Infosys down by 1.36%, Axis Bank down by 1.22%, HCL Technologies down by 1.06% and NTPC down by 0.85% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) latest Bulletin has said that Fresh round of capital expenditure by the corporate sector is likely to fuel the next leg of growth. It stressed that stable and low inflation at 4 per cent provides the bedrock for sustaining GDP expansion. The likelihood of the global economy exhibiting stronger-than-expected growth in 2024 has brightened in recent months, with risks broadly balanced.

It stated that the Indian economy continues to sustain the momentum achieved in the first half of 2023-24, going by high frequency indicators. Overall, investment intentions of the private corporate sector have been positive this year so far.

Moreover, it stated that total cost of projects, for which loans were sanctioned by major banks/all-India financial institutions (FIs) stood at Rs 2.4 lakh crore during April-December 2023, which was 23 per cent higher than that in the corresponding period last year. Funds raised through external commercial borrowings (ECBs) for capex and initial public offerings (IPOs) remained robust during the second and third quarters of the current financial year, though their levels were lower than such resources raised during Q1 2023-24.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22189.85, down by 7.10 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 22173.70 and 22249.40. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were JSW Steel up by 2.70%, Tata Steel up by 2.41%, Hindalco up by 1.72%, Eicher Motors up by 1.33% and Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.88%. On the flip side, Power Grid Corporation down by 1.93%, BPCL down by 1.37%, Hero MotoCorp down by 1.34%, Infosys down by 1.33% and Axis Bank down by 1.21% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; Shanghai Composite strengthened 0.67 points or 0.02% to 2,911.21, Jakarta Composite gained 43.2 points or 0.59% to 7,339.90, Taiwan Weighted added 88.56 points or 0.47% to 18,724.36 and Straits Times rose 2.29 points or 0.07% to 3,228.20.

On the flip side, Nikkei 225 slipped 141.69 points or 0.37% to 38,328.69, Hang Seng declined 44.34 points or 0.28% to 16,111.27 and KOSPI dropped 32.84 points or 1.24% to 2,647.42.