Markets trim opening losses in early deals

Indian equity benchmarks made negative start on Monday tracking weakness in global markets. Soon, markets managed to trim most of their losses and are trading tad lower in early deals as investors proffered to buy stocks at lower levels after domestic indices fell sharply in previous session. There is some cautiousness as the Union government is all set to present the Economic Survey for 2023-24, ahead of the Budget. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will table the document in both Lok Sabha at 1 PM and Rajya Sabha at 2 PM, followed by a press conference at 2:30 PM. Markets managed to recover some lost ground amid foreign fund inflows. Foreign investors injected Rs 30,772 crore into Indian equities so far this month, driven by hopes of continued policy reforms, sustained economic growth and a better-than-expected earnings season. 

Some support also came as a recent report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that India is likely to have the highest per-capita income growth in the world at 5.4 per cent per annum during 2024-33, allowing it and other emerging economies to drive global consumption of agricultural and fisheries products in the next decade. Besides, data shared by the Reserve Bank of India showed India’s forex reserves jumped by $9.69 billion to hit an all-time high of $666.85 billion as of July 12. 

On the global front, most of the Asian markets are trading lower, following the broadly negative cues from global markets on Friday, as traders remain concerned about the effects of the widespread Microsoft outage that hit services from airlines, banks and financial services worldwide. The deepening Sino-U.S. trade tensions, uncertainty about the outcome of the upcoming U.S. presidential election, and rising concerns about the outlook for China's growth also hurt market sentiment. Back home, in stock specific development, Anant Raj surged as arm signs agreement with Google. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 80513.20, down by 91.45 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 80100.65 and 80536.50. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.39%, while Small cap index waws up by 0.14%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 1.11%, Power up by 1.07%, Utilities up by 1.00%, Metal up by 0.50% and Basic Materials up by 0.46%, while Realty down by 0.73%, Consumer Durables down by 0.60%, IT down by 0.52%, TECK down by 0.40% and Energy down by 0.32% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 2.26%, HDFC Bank up by 1.96%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.51%, Power Grid up by 1.30% and Tata Steel up by 1.24%. On the flip side, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 2.63%, Reliance Industries down by 2.52%, ICICI Bank down by 0.98%, HCL Technologies down by 0.86% and JSW Steel down by 0.70% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, invoking the Indian business community to invest in India, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said that since India has never defaulted in its history, it is the best time to invest in the development of the country. He said ‘Investing in India has tremendous growth potential for jobs and driving the immense growth potential. NRI deposits saw a $3 billion inflow between April and May of the current year. It was four times what it was last year. India has never defaulted on its sovereign bond, which is a very safe investment. Considering the US interest rates, I can ensure that there is no better country to invest in with growth, safety, and stable currency.’

He highlighted ‘India will continue to lead the world economy as the most preferred destination for investment, most favoured destination for manufacturing. Believe in India, believe in PM Modi and I assure you that the future is bright’. He described India-US relations as the golden era and stated that the current relationships have resulted in an opportunity for synergies for the business ecosystem between both countries. He said that the US and Europe will once again be investing in India’s infrastructure and Indian talent.

He further stated that the government is looking for collaboration with the US in the area of semiconductors and associated components. Reiterating PM Modi’s commitment to responsible artificial intelligence (AI), he said that both countries are looking to work together for the responsible use of AI. The Cabinet has approved an allocation of over Rs 10,300 crore for the IndiaAI Mission, marking a significant step towards bolstering India’s AI ecosystem. Lauding the endeavours of the government for infrastructure development he said ‘You will see huge infrastructure projects going on in the country which is transforming the way business works, and the way people commute.’

He also described the upliftment of the economy from the 11th largest economy to the 5th largest economy. He further said ‘In the next three years by 2027-28, we will be the third largest Gross Domestic Product (GDP) economy in the world.’ India is one of the fastest-growing major economies and is currently ranked as the world’s sixth-largest economy. Ministry of Commerce and Industry in its official statement has stated that the economic performance of the country is indicative of the potential of India to achieve a $5 trillion economy by 2025.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24502.40, down by 28.50 points or 0.12% after trading in a range of 24362.30 and 24512.55. There were 29 stocks advancing against 21 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were BPCL up by 2.52%, NTPC up by 2.13%, HDFC Bank up by 1.98%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.76% and Tata Steel up by 1.29%. On the flip side, Wipro down by 8.66%, Reliance Industries down by 2.63%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 2.50%, ICICI Bank down by 1.05% and Eicher Motors down by 0.99% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; Taiwan Weighted lost 613.89 points or 2.68% to 22,255.37, Nikkei 225 slipped 534.63 points or 1.33% to 39,529.16, KOSPI dropped 40.39 points or 1.44% to 2,755.07, Shanghai Composite weakened 21.18 points or 0.72% to 2,961.13 and Straits Times fell 1.6 points or 0.05% to 3,445.96. On the other hand, Hang Seng surges 142.79 points or 0.82% to 17,560.47 and Jakarta Composite was up by 21.43 points or 0.29% to 7,315.93.