Markets add more losses in late morning deals

Indian equity markets added more losses in late morning deals on account of profit booking. Sensex fell around 300 points, while Nifty dropped over 110 points.  Selling in NTPC, JSW Steel, Nestle, Asian Paints and Bajaj Finserv dragged the market to trade lower. Meanwhile, broader indices on the BSE were trading mixed. Traders remained cautious after the World Bank International Debt Report said India's total external debt has increased by $31 billion to $646.79 billion in 2023. Besides, investors awaited the rate decision from RBI scheduled for Friday. On the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up positions in IT, TECK and Telecom, while selling was witnessed in Realty, Utilities, Metal, PSU and Power.  

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly higher following positive cues from the US markets overnight. In the stock specific development, Bondada Engineering rose after the company secured a work order from the Bihar Renewable Energy Development Agency.  

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 80660.32, down by 296.01 points or 0.37% after trading in a range of 80467.37 and 81198.87. There were 7 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading mixed; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.23%, while Small cap index up by 0.04%.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 0.42%, TECK up by 0.39% and Telecom up by 0.33%, while Realty down by 0.69%, Utilities down by 0.67%, Metal down by 0.66%, PSU down by 0.65% and Power down by 0.63% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharti Airtel up by 0.55%, TCS up by 0.31%, Infosys up by 0.26%, Titan up by 0.26% and Tech Mahindra up by 0.24%. On the flip side, NTPC down by 1.72%, JSW Steel down by 1.53%, Nestle down by 1.30%, Asian Paints down by 1.28% and Bajaj Finserv down by 1.22% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, fertiliser Association of India (FAI) has asserted that there is no shortage of Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) in the country despite fall in imports and production in the first seven months of this financial year. FAI also demanded that the DAP should command the highest price among all non-urea fertilisers, because of its high nutritional value. It also stressed on the need to protect soil health.  According to FAI data, the production of DAP declined to 25.03 lakh tonnes during April-October this fiscal, from 27.01 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period. Import of DAP declined to 27.84 lakh tonnes from 39.68 lakh tonnes during the period under review. Sales of DAP, too, fell to 56.92 lakh tonnes from 76.31 lakh tonnes. 

However, FAI Chairman N Suresh Krishnan said the sales of DAP have improved in the last month. He said the country requires around 10 million tonnes of DAP annually to meet domestic demand, of which around 60 per cent is imported. Imports from China has also declined so far this year. He also highlighted that sales of NP/NPKs (other than DAP) fertilisers have increased, compensating for the drop in sales of DAP.

Krishnan said the current MRP of the DAP is Rs 1,350 per bag and said the industry was not incurring losses at current subsidy offered by the Centre. Among all non-urea fertilisers, he said DAP should command the maximum price because of its high nutrient value. At present, the Muriate of Potash (MoP) is being sold at Rs 1,500-1,600 per bag, while the price of DAP is Rs 1,350 per bag. The government is providing a huge subsidy on DAP to ensure that farmers get this important nutrient at an affordable rate. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24356.15, down by 111.30 points or 0.45% after trading in a range of 24295.55 and 24539.95. There were 9 stocks advancing against 41 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharti Airtel up by 0.60%, TCS up by 0.36%, Infosys up by 0.33%, Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 0.26% and Titan up by 0.25%. On the flip side, Bajaj Auto down by 2.13%, SBI Life down by 2.12%, Cipla down by 1.90%, NTPC down by 1.78% and Grasim Industries down by 1.61% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Shanghai Composite strengthened 6.86 points or 0.2% to 3,371.51, Straits Times rose 28.07 points or 0.74% to 3,828.01, Nikkei 225 surged 117.79 points or 0.3% to 39,394.18 and Taiwan Weighted added 12.61 points or 0.05% to 23,267.94. However, Hang Seng declined 216.98 points or 1.1% to 19,525.48, Jakarta Composite plunged 32.8 points or 0.45% to 7,293.96 and KOSPI dropped 22.81 points or 0.93% to 2,441.19.