Benchmarks continue to trade with marginal gains in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade with marginal gains in morning deals, led by gains in Power, Utilities and Oil & Gas stocks. Traders took a note of Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI's) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member Ashima Goyal’s statement that the Indian economy has done well despite multiple external shocks, but counter-cyclical macroeconomic policy measures will be required to aid the economy's natural resilience as geopolitical situation remains fragile. Goyal further said inflation in the country has come down but it has not yet reached the target levels. However, gains remain capped as oil extended gains after climbing over 2 percent to a four-month high on Friday amid rising tensions in the Red Sea and Middle East as well as OPEC's decision to extend output cuts. On the sectoral front, power stocks remained in watch as government data showed India's power consumption grew over 8 per cent to 127.79 Billion Units (BU) in February as compared to the year-ago period. In February 2023, power consumption stood at 118.29 BU, higher than 108.03 BU recorded in the same month a year ago. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in green as weak U.S. economic data released on Friday added to optimism about the Federal Reserve eventually cutting interest rates. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 73897.21, up by 91.06 points or 0.12% after trading in a range of 73747.01 and 73983.88. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.17%, while Small cap index was down by 0.52%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 1.84%, Utilities up by 1.73%, Oil & Gas up by 1.35%, PSU up by 1.29% and Energy up by 1.03%, while Metal down by 0.63%, Basic Materials down by 0.62%, Consumer Durables down by 0.57%, Auto down by 0.38% and FMCG down by 0.37% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 3.06%, Power Grid Corporation up by 2.39%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.31%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 0.89% and Indusind Bank up by 0.66%. On the flip side, JSW Steel down by 2.75%, Tata Steel down by 2.09%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.48%, Ultratech Cement down by 0.94% and Titan Co down by 0.81% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI's) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member Ashima Goyal has said that the Indian economy has done well despite multiple external shocks, but counter-cyclical macroeconomic policy measures will be required to aid the economy's natural resilience as geopolitical situation remains fragile. Goyal further said inflation in the country has come down but it has not yet reached the target levels.

She said ‘Major contributing factors for good performance were India's rising economic diversity and the role of policy in smoothing shocks. Both these helped India do well despite multiple external shocks.’ 
The Reserve Bank has projected GDP growth for the next financial year at 7 per cent on the back of improved household consumption and upturn in the private capex cycle. Besides, noting that the government has over-achieved its fiscal deficit target despite nominal income growth being less than what projected in the budget (since wholesale prices fell), she said higher growth and tax buoyancy gives room to reduce deficit and debt ratios while adequately raising absolute amounts of spending.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22413.35, up by 34.95 points or 0.16% after trading in a range of 22358.30 and 22440.90. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were NTPC up by 3.79%, Power Grid Corporation up by 2.88%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 2.41%, BPCL up by 1.85% and Bajaj Auto up by 1.79%. On the flip side, JSW Steel down by 2.91%, Tata Steel down by 2.13%, Eicher Motors down by 1.87%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.37% and SBI Life Insurance down by 1.09% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 195.97 points or 0.49% to 40,106.79, Taiwan Weighted added 356.77 points or 1.88% to 19,292.70, KOSPI increased 31.23 points or 1.18% to 2,673.59, Shanghai Composite strengthened 6.61 points or 0.22% to 3,033.63.

On the flip side, Jakarta Composite plunged 6.62 points or 0.09% to 7,305.29, Hang Seng declined 10.49 points or 0.06% to 16,578.95 and Straits Times fell 12.29 points or 0.39% to 3,123.47.