Bourses remain under selling pressure in early afternoon session

Indian equities continued to trade under pressure in early afternoon session even after positive cues from other Asian markets. Traders were cautious ahead of monetary policy meeting minutes, which is due later in day. Traders ignored the report that private sector output in India increased at the fastest pace in six months during February, amid a quicker expansion in services activity. The HSBC Flash India Composite Output Index was at 60.6 in February, up from a final reading of 57.7 in January. It is a seasonally adjusted index that measures the month-on-month change in the combined output of India's manufacturing and service sectors. On the global front, all Asian markets are trading higher despite US Labor Department's report on Thursday, initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 5,000, reaching a seasonally adjusted total of 219,000 for the week ending February 15.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 75343.31, down by 392.65 points or 0.52% after trading in a range of 75175.97 and 75748.72. There were 8 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 0.86%, while Small cap index was down by 0.20%.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 0.77%, Utilities up by 0.18% and Industrials was up by 0.03%, while Auto down by 2.22%, Healthcare down by 1.43%, Consumer discretionary down by 1.08%, Oil & Gas down by 1.05% and Telecom was down by 0.80% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Tata Steel up by 1.09%, NTPC up by 0.80%, HCL Tech up by 0.63%, Asian Paints up by 0.63% and Larsen & Toubro up by 0.62%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 5.39%, Adani Ports down by 2.30%, Tata Motors down by 1.92%, Power Grid down by 1.79% and Ultratech Cement down by 1.63% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) in its report has said that the total number of operational electric vehicles (EVs) in India is likely to cross the 28 million-mark by 2030 fuelled by increasing demand and incentives. It said India continues to make significant and sustained inroads in its decarbonization journey, with rapid increase in sales of EVs, supported by demand and supply incentives, growing consumer demand, and a focus on developing charging infrastructure.

The report said the outlook for electric vehicle sales continues to be positive, driven by increasing environmental awareness, customer interest, advancements in battery technology, and readily available and easily accessible EV charging infrastructure. It noted that India's cumulative electric vehicle (EV) sales crossed 4.1 million units in the fiscal year 2023-2024. 

IESA said it is projected that 83 per cent of the annual sales would be electric two-wheelers, 10 per cent would be electric four-wheelers, and commercial vehicles such as trucks, buses, and three-wheelers contributing to 7 per cent of sales. It said the total installed capacity in the country is required to grow from 466 GW in January 2025 to 900 GW by 2032. This includes 500 GW of renewable sources, wind, small hydro, and others (from 165 GW installed capacity in Jan 2025).

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22797.45, down by 115.70 points or 0.50% after trading in a range of 22733.30 and 22921.00. There were 14 stocks advancing against 36 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindalco up by 2.11%, Eicher Motors up by 1.33%, Shriram Finance up by 1.16%, Tata Steel up by 1.04% and NTPC up by 0.86%. On the flip side, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 5.36%, BPCL down by 2.47%, Adani Ports down by 2.37%, Wipro down by 2.07% and Tata Motors down by 1.93% were the top losers.

All Asian markets are trading higher; Hang Seng advanced 744.84 points or 3.19% to 23,321.82, Taiwan Weighted added 242.79 points or 1.02% to 23,730.25, Nikkei 225 surged 98.9 points or 0.26% to 38,776.94, Shanghai Composite strengthened 27.92 points or 0.83% to 3,378.70, Jakarta Composite gained 11.19 points or 0.16% to 6,799.23, Straits Times rose 3.36 points or 0.09% to 3,930.87 and KOSPI was up by 0.52 points or 0.02% to 2,654.58.