Domestic indices remain below neutral lines in late morning deals

Domestic equity indices remained below neutral lines in late morning deals amid weak cues from the other Asian markets. Selling in Bajaj Finance, JSW Steel, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank and Infosys weighed on the markets. Traders were cautious as Viral Acharya, former deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said India can’t rely on wealthy individuals to drive growth and expect the overall economy to improve. Acharya said after the Covid-19 pandemic, rural consumption and investments have weakened. However, broader indices were trading higher with BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index gaining in the range of 0.20-0.65% On the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up positions in Consumer Durables, Capital Goods, Industrials, Healthcare and FMCG, while selling was witnessed in Oil & Gas, Metal, Bankex, Energy and Utilities. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red despite South Korea’s inflation rate hits 42-month low. South Korea’s headline inflation for August eased to 2% from 2.6%, its lowest level on a year-on-year basis since March 2021. Back home, in the stock specific development, Hindustan Aeronautics climbed after the union cabinet committee approved procurement of 240 aero-engines for Su-30 MKI aircraft worth Rs. 26,000 crore from the company.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 82470.29, down by 89.55 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 82400.76 and 82675.06. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.24%, while Small cap index up by 0.62%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 0.97%, Capital Goods up by 0.90%, Industrials up by 0.74%, Healthcare up by 0.73% and FMCG up by 0.65%, while Oil & Gas down by 0.47%, Metal down by 0.29%, Bankex down by 0.27%, Energy down by 0.25% and Utilities down by 0.22% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Nestle up by 1.40%, Hindustan Unilever up by 1.05%, Sun Pharma up by 0.78%, ITC up by 0.76% and Mahindra & Mahindra up by 0.58%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 1.81%, JSW Steel down by 0.78%, Bajaj Finserv down by 0.71%, Axis Bank down by 0.71% and Infosys down by 0.64% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Union Cabinet has approved seven big-ticket programmes for the holistic growth of agriculture and allied sectors with a total outlay of nearly Rs 14,000 crore, as it aims to improve farmers' income. The focus of these programmes would be on research & education, climate resilience, natural resource management and digitisation in the agriculture sector along with emphasis on growth of horticulture and livestock sectors. 

The Cabinet has approved crop science for food and nutritional security programmes with a total outlay Rs 3,979 crore. The six pillars have been included in the programme with a focus on preparing the farmers for climate resilient crop sciences and food security by 2047. These six pillars are -- Research and Education; Plant Genetic Resource Management; Genetic improvement for food and fodder crop; Pulse and oilseed crop improvement; Improvement of commercial crops; and Research on insects, microbes, pollinators.

The Cabinet also approved an outlay of Rs 2,291 crore for strengthening agricultural education, management and social sciences. This programme will be under Indian Council of Agricultural Research. The aim is to modernise agri-research and education in line with New Education Policy 2020. The use of latest technology like Digital DPI, Al, big data, remote, etc will be promoted and the programme includes natural farming and climate resilience. The Cabinet also approved the Digital Agriculture Mission with a total investment of Rs 2,817 crore. There are two foundation pillars in the project -- Agri Stack and Krishi Decision Support System. 

A Rs 1,702 crore scheme has also been cleared for sustainable livestock health and their production. The scheme aims to increase farmers' income from livestock and dairy. Under this scheme, the focus will be on animal health management and veterinary education; dairy production and technology development; animal genetic resource management, production and improvement; and animal nutrition and small ruminant production and development. Another major scheme cleared by the Cabinet relates to sustainable development for horticulture. With a total outlay of Rs 860 crore the measure is aimed at increasing farmers’ income from horticulture plants. The programme comprises of tropical, sub-tropical and temperate horticulture crops; root, tuber, bulbous and arid crops; vegetable, floriculture, and mushroom crops; and plantation, spices, medicinal, and aromatic plants The Union Cabinet also gave approvals to a Rs 1,202-crore scheme for strengthening of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and a Rs 1,115-crore scheme for Natural Resource Management.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25257.15, down by 21.55 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 25235.80 and 25321.70. There were 22 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Nestle up by 1.39%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.07%, Hindustan Unilever up by 0.97%, Tata Consumer up by 0.95% and Sun Pharma up by 0.83%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 1.87%, JSW Steel down by 0.80%, Axis Bank down by 0.78%, Bajaj Finserv down by 0.77% and BPCL down by 0.67% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng declined 82.66 points or 0.47% to 17,609.31, Jakarta Composite plunged 56.3 points or 0.74% to 7,638.23, Shanghai Composite weakened 13 points or 0.46% to 2,798.04, KOSPI dropped 14.34 points or 0.54% to 2,666.66, Nikkei 225 slipped 27.02 points or 0.07% to 38,673.85 and Taiwan Weighted lost 142.89 points or 0.65% to 22,092.21. However, Straits Times rose 14.39 points or 0.41% to 3,477.47.