Benchmarks trade flat in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks erased initial gains and were trading flat in morning deals, amid foreign fund outflows. Provisional data from the NSE showed foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 1,410.05 crore on February 22, 2024. Some concern also came as India Ratings and Research stated that India's GDP is expected to grow by 6.5 percent in 2024-25. While this would represent a decline from the statistics ministry's first advance estimate of 7.3 percent for the current financial year, the prospect of the private investment cycle bodes well for the economy. Traders overlooked Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s statement that robust tax collections had given the Centre confidence to go ahead with increased capital expenditure and continue investment in infrastructure projects. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in red as traders are cautious after data showed new home prices in 70 of China's major cities fell at a faster pace year-on-year in January.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 73178.97, up by 20.73 points or 0.03% after trading in a range of 73155.98 and 73413.93. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.12%, while Small cap index was up by 0.40%

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 1.20%, Realty up by 1.00%, Consumer Durables up by 0.67%, IT up by 0.46% and Industrials up by 0.38%, while Oil & Gas down by 0.85%, Energy down by 0.51%, PSU down by 0.47%, Utilities down by 0.45% and Power down by 0.39% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Titan Company up by 1.27%, Wipro up by 0.80%, Bajaj Finserv up by 0.64%, HDFC Bank up by 0.58% and Tech Mahindra up by 0.55%. On the flip side, Asian Paints down by 1.29%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.23%, NTPC down by 1.02%, Power Grid Corporation down by 0.97% and Larsen & Toubro down by 0.61% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has expressed confidence that India will continue to have 6-8 per cent consistent growth rate over the next 10 years, as he invited global players to innovate in the country for the domestic and world markets. He stated India is open to the world, and to new ideas. He nudged the global community to ‘come here, innovate here for India... for the world.’ 

He stated ‘The Indian economy is growing at a consistent clip at a very good rate. In the next 10 years, India will continue to see a 6-8 per cent consistent growth rate... I can say that with a high level of confidence.’ The building blocks for this are already in place and the results are visible, he said, outlining various initiatives taken by the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Further, he said improvement in physical and digital infrastructure, education and skilling, as well as innovation and development, has bolstered the country's growth. The next five years will further lay the foundation for India to become a developed country by 2047. The focus over the next five years will be on the full spectrum of manufacturing, upliftment through education, and infusion of technology in the healthcare sector, among other priorities. Besides, he said that in the current global geopolitical backdrop, many old structures are getting revised, and added it is time to reposition the country. The world is looking to India as a trusted geography and large talent pool.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22227.80, up by 10.35 points or 0.05% after trading in a range of 22216.35 and 22297.50. There were 26 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 1.45%, Titan Company up by 1.28%, Cipla up by 1.05%, Wipro up by 0.93% and HDFC Life Insurance up by 0.91%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 1.32%, Asian Paints down by 1.23%, BPCL down by 1.21%, NTPC down by 1.12% and Power Grid Corporation down by 1.04% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; Hang Seng declined 55.87 points or 0.33% to 16,687.08, Straits Times fell 40.79 points or 1.27% to 3,182.15, Jakarta Composite plunged 64.4 points or 0.89% to 7,275.24 and Shanghai Composite weakened 1.2 points or 0.04% to 2,987.16.

On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted added 70.72 points or 0.38% to 18,923.50 and KOSPI increased 4.67 points or 0.18% to 2,668.94.