Markets trade lower in early deals on Thursday

After a cautious start, Indian equity markets are trading lower with cut of around half a percent in early deals on Thursday. Selling in Power Grid, Sun Pharma, NTPC, Indusind Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank companies’ stocks dragged the markets lower.  Rising U.S. Treasury yields weighed on the market sentiments.  The 10-year Treasury yield added 3.7 basis points to 4.536%, while the 2-year Treasury yield climbed 4.2 basis points to 4.059%. Further, traders also were reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of the release of a slew of U.S. economic data, including producer prices, retail sales and industrial production. On the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up position in Materials, Metal, Telecom, Industrials and Auto, while selling was witnessed in Realty, Bankex, Utilities, Power and Energy

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red as traders remained cautious amid continued uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump's trade policies, despite reaching trade deals between the U.S. and China as well as the U.S. and the U.K. Back home, in the stock specific development, Tata Power rose on healthy Q4 results. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 80984.85, down by 345.71 points or 0.43% after trading in a range of 80959.12 and 81439.04. There were 6 stocks advancing against 24 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.25%, while Small cap index up by 0.50%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Basic Materials up by 0.56%, Metal up by 0.38%, Telecom up by 0.37%, Industrials up by 0.28% and Auto up by 0.17%, while Realty down by 0.72%, Bankex down by 0.49%, Utilities down by 0.43%, Power down by 0.31% and Energy down by 0.26% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Adani Ports up by 0.50%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.43%, Tata Motors up by 0.37%, Tata Steel up by 0.23% and Bharti Airtel up by 0.17%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 1.13%, Sun Pharma down by 1.00%, NTPC down by 0.99%, Indusind Bank down by 0.98% and Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.94% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India in its latest data has said that four Indian entities committed foreign direct investments worth nearly $6 million in Azerbaijan and Turkiye, accounting for a small part of the total $6.8 billion overseas investments proposed by Indian companies in April.

Against the backdrop of Turkiye and Azerbaijan condemning India's recent strikes on terror camps in Pakistan, New Delhi's trade relations with Ankara and Baku might come under strain. There are calls for a boycott of Turkish goods and tourism from certain quarters. The Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) supported the boycott calls.

Subhash Goyal, Chairman, Tourism Committee, ICC, said ‘Several tourism associations and industry bodies have issued statements of solidarity and collective commitment towards prioritising our national interest over commercial goals. The Indian Chamber of Commerce joins these organisations in demanding a boycott of states like Turkiye and Azerbaijan, following their stand against India's response to terrorism.’

As one of India's oldest chambers of commerce, Goyal said ICC remains committed to promoting ethical, responsible, and respectful business and tourism practices while upholding the values of integrity, security, and unity of country.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24546.90, down by 120.00 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 24538.20 and 24706.75. There were 8 stocks advancing against 42 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were JSW Steel up by 2.01%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.72%, Adani Ports up by 0.48%, Shriram Finance up by 0.35% and Tata Motors up by 0.21%. On the flip side, Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 1.35%, Power Grid down by 1.23%, ONGC down by 1.22%, Sun Pharma down by 1.08% and Indusind Bank down by 1.04% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Hang Seng declined 59.72 points or 0.25% to 23,580.93, KOSPI dropped 5.38 points or 0.2% to 2,635.19, Nikkei 225 slipped 415.49 points or 1.1% to 37,712.64, Taiwan Weighted lost 2.01 points or 0.01% to 21,780.86 and Shanghai Composite weakened 14.2 points or 0.42% to 3,389.75. However, Jakarta Composite gained 86.5 points or 1.22% to 7,066.38 and Straits Times rose 13.76 points or 0.35% to 3,884.81.