Post Session: Quick Review

After scaling new highs in yesterday’s session, Indian equity benchmarks witnessed weak trade on Tuesday amid profit booking. Besides, investors preferred to play safe ahead of RBI MPC meeting from April 3 to April 5.  GST collection data and HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data failed to cheer the markets. However, in last leg of trade, markets trimmed some of their losses. The broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index ended with gains of above a percent.

After making cautious start, markets turned volatile for little time tracking weakness on Wall Street overnight as hopes of an early rate cut suffered fresh jolt after data showed that the US manufacturing sector grew for the first time since September 2022. Besides, foreign fund outflows dampened investors sentiments. Provisional data from the NSE showed that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 522.30 crore on April 1. Further, indices added losses in afternoon session, as traders overlooked manufacturing PMI data.  India's manufacturing sector continued to show a stellar performance, with the HSBC India PMI climbing to a 16-year high on the back of the strongest increases in output and new orders since October 2020, parallel to the second-sharpest upturn in input inventories in the history of the survey. According to the survey report, the seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 59.1 in March as against 56.9 in February. Markets continued to trade lower, as traders were cautious, after a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) showed that India’s dependence for trade on the European Union (EU) and China is rising as global trade has seen a restructuring along the geopolitical lines in the past two years. Finally, markets ended the day’s trade in red.

On the global front, European markets were trading higher as strong U.S. manufacturing data helped lift mining and energy stocks. Also, British manufacturers reported their first overall growth in activity in 20 months in March on the back of recovering demand in their home market. Asian markets ended mostly in green as investors assessed economic data from South Korea. South Korea’s March inflation rate held steady at 3.1%, in line with street expectations. Back home, the finance ministry has said that Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections in March 2024 witnessed the second highest collection ever at Rs 1.78 lakh crore, with a 11.5 per cent year-on-year growth.

The BSE Sensex ended at 73,903.91, down by 110.64 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 73,743.77 and 74,099.78. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 1.14%, while Small cap index was up by 1.28%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 1.82%, Oil & Gas up by 1.53%, Metal up by 1.42%, PSU up by 1.41% and Utilities was up by 1.21%, while TECK down by 0.71%, IT down by 0.54%, Telecom down by 0.38% and Bankex was down by 0.19% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.89%, Nestle up by 1.42%, Tata Motors up by 1.40%, Indusind Bank up by 1.11% and SBI up by 1.03%. On the flip side, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.79%, HCL Tech down by 1.53%, ICICI Bank down by 1.52%, Sun Pharma down by 0.90% and Infosys down by 0.84% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, India's manufacturing sector continued to show a stellar performance, with the HSBC India PMI climbing to a 16-year high on the back of the strongest increases in output and new orders since October 2020, parallel to the second-sharpest upturn in input inventories in the history of the survey. According to the survey report, the seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 59.1 in March as against 56.9 in February.

The report noted that growth of new orders accelerated to the quickest in nearly three-and-a-half years during March, amid buoyant demand conditions. Inflows of new work strengthened from both domestic and export markets with better sales to Africa, Asia, Europe and the US. New export orders increased at the fastest pace since May 2022.

Besides, quantities of purchases increased at the quickest rate since mid-2023, and one that was among the strongest in nearly 13 years, as companies sought to build-up stocks in advance of expected improvements in sales. Subsequently, inventories of purchases increased to the second-greatest extent in the survey history (behind May 2023). Capital goods was the brightest area regarding both input buying and stockpiling.

After leaving payroll numbers broadly unchanged in the previous two months, manufacturers in India took on additional workers in March. The pace of job creation was mild, but the best since September 2023. There was a mild pick-up in cost pressures during March, but customer retention remained a priority for goods producers who raised their charges to the least extent in over a year.

The CNX Nifty ended at 22,453.30, down by 8.70 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 22,388.15 and 22,497.60. There were 28 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Tata Consumer up by 4.07%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 2.92%, Bajaj Auto up by 2.59%, BPCL up by 2.51% and Adani Ports up by 2.05%. On the flip side, Hero MotoCorp down by 2.56%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.86%, HCL Tech down by 1.82%, ICICI Bank down by 1.68% and SBI Life down by 1.30% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading higher; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 31.23 points or 0.39% to 7,983.85, France’s CAC rose 20.23 points or 0.25% to 8,226.04 and Germany’s DAX was up by 5.8 points or 0.03% to 18,498.29.