Indices pare some gains in late morning session

Indian equity benchmarks pared some gains in late morning session, with both Sensex and Nifty trading marginally higher, impacted due to negative cues from other Asian markets along with selling at Metal, Realty and Oil & Gas counters. Traders got cautious, amid a private report stating that the Reserve Banks of India's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) may deliver interest rate cuts in a measured way and raise liquidity, but it is unlikely to shift its monetary stance from neutral to accommodative as it weighs the implications of the global trade war on financial markets. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading lower, even after the Bank of Korea reduced its benchmark rate by a quarter-point on Tuesday as domestic political unrest and trade policies of the US government weighed on domestic demand and economic growth. The monetary policy board, governed by Rhee Chang Yong, decided to lower the Base Rate by 25 basis points to 2.75 percent.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 74605.82, up by 151.41 points or 0.20% after trading in a range of 74400.37 and 74785.08. There were 18 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell by 0.32%, while Small cap index was down by 0.07%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 0.89%, Auto up by 0.70%, Consumer Durables up by 0.52%, Consumer discretionary up by 0.45% and FMCG up by 0.17%, while Metal down by 1.42%, Realty down by 0.97%, Oil & Gas down by 0.90%, Energy down by 0.78% and Basic Materials down by 0.76% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 3.38%, Zomato up by 2.92%, Bharti Airtel up by 2.52%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.62% and Nestle up by 1.35%. On the flip side, TCS down by 1.25%, Power Grid down by 1.22%, Sun Pharma down by 1.20%, NTPC down by 1.14% and Tech Mahindra down by 0.92% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, domestic rating agency ICRA in its latest report has said that Indian companies are likely to clock 7-8 per cent revenue growth during the March quarter of the current fiscal year (Q4FY25), led by revival in rural demand and uptick in government spending. ICRA expects the private capital expenditure (capex) cycle to remain measured in view of the uncertainties around geopolitical developments and relatively subdued outlook on merchandise exports from India.

Nonetheless, the report said certain sunrise sectors such as electronics, semiconductors and niche segments within the automotive space like electric vehicles (EVs) will continue to see a scale-up in investments, in line with various production-linked incentive programmes announced by the Government of India. It said the recovery in the operating profit margins (OPM) for India Inc witnessed over the past quarter is likely to be sustained at 18.2-18.4 per cent, supported by an increase in demand, led by improved consumer sentiments. It said the evolution of the global economic and political scenario, movement in foreign exchange rates, impact of the new US President's policies, pick up in government spending and a revival in the domestic urban demand would remain the key monitorables over the near-term. 

ICRA's analysis of the Q3 FY2025 (October-December) performance of 602 listed companies (excluding financial sector entities) shows a 6.8 per cent year-on-year revenue growth, supported by improved demand across consumption-oriented sectors like consumer durables, FMCG, retail, hotels and airlines, while a few commodity-oriented sectors like iron and steel witnessed some decline, following lower realisations owing to weak global demand and influx of cheaper imports from China.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 22557.60, up by 4.25 points or 0.02% after trading in a range of 22516.45 and 22625.30. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 3.31%, Bharti Airtel up by 2.40%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.62%, Nestle up by 1.33% and Bajaj Finserv up by 1.26%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 3.63%, Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 2.28%, Trent down by 1.34%, TCS down by 1.26% and Power Grid down by 1.25% were the top losers.

All Asian markets were trading lower; Hang Seng declined 259.86 points or 1.11% to 23,081.75, Jakarta Composite plunged 158.16 points or 2.4% to 6,591.44, Shanghai Composite weakened 17.34 points or 0.51% to 3,355.69, Straits Times fell 2.56 points or 0.07% to 3,925.19, KOSPI dropped 12.76 points or 0.48% to 2,632.51, Nikkei 225 slipped 506.98 points or 1.31% to 38,269.96 and Taiwan Weighted lost 279.59 points or 1.2% to 23,285.72.