Benchmarks extend gains in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks extended gains in morning deals, tracking overnight gains on the Wall Street, along with gains in the Asia Pacific region. Traders took support as the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) forward looking survey stated that consumer confidence improved in the September 2024 Survey round compared to the previous round in July due to better perceptions about the general economic, employment, and income conditions. Current situation index (CSI) improved by 0.8 points to 94.7 though it remained below the threshold level of 100. However, market participants remained on sidelines ahead of Q2 earnings season, starting with TCS which set to report its result later in the day. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly higher after minutes from the Federal Reserve's recent policy meeting boosted expectations for additional U.S. rate cuts. But traders remained cautious due to lingering Middle East tensions and ahead of key U.S. consumer and producer price inflation readings due this week. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81889.90, up by 422.80 points or 0.52% after trading in a range of 81542.65 and 82002.84. There were 24 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.45%, while Small cap index was up by 0.81%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 1.50%, PSU up by 1.38%, Oil & Gas up by 1.31%, Power up by 1.17% and Energy up by 1.16%, while Healthcare down by 0.31% was the lone losing index on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were NTPC up by 2.53%, Power Grid Corporation up by 2.26%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.81%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.60% and Indusind Bank up by 1.10%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 0.47%, ICICI Bank down by 0.35%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.31%, Tata Motors down by 0.16% and Asian Paints down by 0.13% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Secretary Arunish Chawla has said that exports of India's pharmaceutical and meditech sectors are expected to sustain the growth momentum in the ongoing fiscal (FY25) despite a slowdown in the global economy. He stated with the government revving up support for drug development in India, as many as 16 blockbuster molecules targeted for a wide range of therapeutic areas. This includes cancer, diabetes, HIV and tuberculosis, which are in the pipeline to be produced in India, Department of Pharmaceuticals.

He said ‘We have been analysing the export trends in the recent data. Even though there is a general slowdown in exports globally, the good news is that the Indian pharmaceuticals, biotech, and bulk drug exports have grown double-digit over the last year.’ Further, He said, in the first four months of this year, these exports have now become the fourth largest merchandise export item for the Indian economy. That's a huge achievement, and it's an important milestone that has been crossed. 

He also highlighted the robust performance of both pharma and the meditech industry. Last year, the consumables and surgical space became an export-oriented industry. Other segments, like imaging devices, body implants, and in-vitro diagnostic exports are showing good growth this year. Bullish on India's pharma and meditech exports, he said ‘We are confident that when the data comes finally for the current financial year, you will see impressive results for yourself.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25107.90, up by 125.95 points or 0.50% after trading in a range of 24995.85 and 25134.05. There were 36 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were NTPC up by 2.43%, Power Grid Corporation up by 1.93%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.89%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.79% and Bharat Electronics up by 1.54%. On the flip side, Trent down by 1.35%, Adani Enterprises down by 1.30%, Cipla down by 1.05%, Shriram Finance down by 0.91% and Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 0.67% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly higher; Nikkei 225 surged 125.44 points or 0.32% to 39,403.40, Hang Seng advanced 871.13 points or 4.05% to 21,508.37, KOSPI increased 17.20 points or 0.66% to 2,611.56 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 96.15 points or 2.87% to 3,355.01.

On the flip side, Straits Times fell 1.52 points or 0.04% to 3,594.14 and Jakarta Composite plunged 0.61 points or 0.01% to 7,500.68.