Markets remain in green in late morning deals

Domestic equity markets traded marginally higher in late morning deals on account of buying in HDFC bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Wipro and Titan companies’ stocks. Meanwhile, broader indices were also trading in green with BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index gaining in the range of 0.25-0.55%. Traders were getting some encouragement as Economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) in its report said successful conclusion of India's proposed trade agreements with the UK, Oman and four European nation bloc EFTA (the European Free Trade Association) will reflect its commitment to trade liberalisation and economic integration at a time when the whole world is turning protectionist. It said the free trade agreements (FTAs) have become pivotal instruments for India's economic expansion and integration into the world market. However, gains were limited as market participants considered the path ahead for interest rates after minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest meeting indicated caution about cutting rates too soon.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed after China's new home prices slowed their month-on-month declines in January with the biggest cities seeing some stabilisation, but the nationwide downward trend persisted despite Beijing's efforts to revive demand. New home prices fell 0.3% month-on-month in January after dipping 0.4% in December. Back home, on the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up position in Telecom, Industrials, Capital Goods, Consumer Durables and IT, while selling was witnessed in Oil & Gas, Energy, PSU, Utilities and Power. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 73256.65, up by 98.41 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 73145.28 and 73413.93. There were 21 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.25%, while Small cap index up by 0.52%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 1.34%, Industrials up by 0.87%, Capital Goods up by 0.80%, Consumer Durables up by 0.64% and IT up by 0.54%, while Oil & Gas down by 0.95%, Energy down by 0.67%, PSU down by 0.37%, Utilities down by 0.34% and Power down by 0.25% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.76%, Wipro up by 1.18%, Titan up by 1.13%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.61% and HDFC Bank up by 0.60%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 1.38%, Asian Paints down by 1.31%, NTPC down by 0.88%, Power Grid down by 0.76% and SBI down by 0.67% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das has said that the RBI's job to bring down inflation is not over, and any premature move on the policy front could undermine the success achieved so far on the price situation. 

RBI's rate setting panel, Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), had met for three days from February 6-8, 2024. The panel decided to leave the key policy rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent for the sixth time in row. It is almost a year now that the repo rate or short-term borrowing rate is at 6.5 per cent. It was in February 2023 when the RBI hiked the repo rate and has held the policy rate since then.

According to the minutes of the February Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting released by the central bank, Das had said ‘at this juncture, monetary policy must remain vigilant and not assume that our job on the inflation front is over’. He stressed that the MPC must remain committed to successfully navigate the last mile of disinflation that can be sticky. 

As per the minutes, the governor said as markets are front-running central banks in anticipation of policy pivots, any premature move may undermine the success achieved so far. He argued that price and financial stability were essential to sustain a long haul of high growth, and the monetary policy's objective was to stay focused on achieving the 4 per cent inflation target on a durable basis, keeping in mind the objective of growth.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22248.65, up by 31.20 points or 0.14% after trading in a range of 22206.00 and 22297.50. There were 30 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.77%, Cipla up by 1.48%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 1.45%, Wipro up by 1.40% and HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.14%. On the flip side, BPCL down by 1.36%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.30%, Asian Paints down by 1.27%, Power Grid down by 0.85% and NTPC down by 0.77% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Hang Seng declined 4.4 points or 0.03% to 16,738.55, Straits Times fell 39.96 points or 1.24% to 3,182.98 and Jakarta Composite plunged 64.4 points or 0.89% to 7,275.24. However, Taiwan Weighted added 57.33 points or 0.3% to 18,910.11, KOSPI increased 3.10 points or 0.12% to 2,667.37 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 5.86 points or 0.2% to 2,994.22.