Key gauges add some losses in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks added some losses in morning deals, amid fresh foreign fund outflow and concerns over the steep hike in US H-1B visa fees. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,910.09 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Traders took note of survey showed India's private sector growth remained strong in September but cooled from August's multi-year high as softer demand tempered new orders and failed to translate into faster job creation. HSBC's flash India Composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, fell to 61.9 in September from a final reading of 63.2 in August. Separately, the commerce ministry's investigation arm DGTR has recommended imposition of anti-dumping duty for five years on imports of cold rolled non-oriented electrical steel from China, with an aim to guard domestic players from cheap inbound shipments. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly higher as optimism around all things AI sucked money into the tech sector, while wagers on several more US interest rate cuts kept gold on a hot streak. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81952.00, down by 207.97 points or 0.25% after trading in a range of 81869.87 and 82307.50. There were 10 stocks advancing against 20 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.19%, while Small cap index down by 0.18%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 1.11%, Metal up by 0.04% and PSU up by 0.02%, while Consumer Durables down by 0.97%, FMCG down by 0.87%, TECK down by 0.62%, IT down by 0.51% and Oil & Gas down by 0.42% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 2.22%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.77%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.17%, Bajaj Finserv up by 0.90% and Tata Motors up by 0.57%. On the flip side, Trent down by 2.64%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.95%, Asian Paints down by 1.88%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.17% and Titan Company down by 1.16% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, A research report from the State Bank of India's Economic Research Department has said that there is merit and rationale for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to reduce the key benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points in the forthcoming monetary policy, as retail inflation is expected to remain benign even in the next financial year. The RBI has already reduced the repo rate by 100 basis points since February, amidst declining consumer price index (CPI) based inflation. After reducing the repo rate three times in a row, the RBI hit a pause button in August.

The RBI Governor-headed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which decides on the interest rate, is scheduled to meet on September 29 for a three-day deliberation. The decision will be announced on October 1. The report stated ‘There is merit and rationale in going for a September rate cut...This will but require calibrated communication by the RBI as post June, the bar for rate cut is indeed higher.’

Further, it said central bank communication is a crucial toolkit for monetary policy, and post-June policy, such communication has played a major role in yields hardening. It stated ‘But there is no point in committing a Type 2 error again (no rate cut with neutral stance) by not cutting rates in September as inflation will continue to remain benign even in FY27, and without a GST cut, it is tracking below 2 per cent in September and October.’

Moreover, it said the CPI for fiscal 2026-27 numbers are now tracking around 4 per cent or less, with GST rationalisation, October CPI could be closer to 1.1 per cent, the lowest since 2004. It noted that a rate cut in September is the best possible option for RBI, which also projects it as a forward-looking central bank.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25137.95, down by 64.40 points or 0.26% after trading in a range of 25110.05 and 25250.85. There were 16 stocks advancing against 34 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 2.27%, Eicher Motors up by 1.69%, Bajaj Finance up by 1.58%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.18% and Adani Enterprises up by 0.90%. On the flip side, Trent down by 2.70%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.83%, Asian Paints down by 1.82%, Nestle down by 1.38% and Tech Mahindra down by 1.16% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly higher; Taiwan Weighted added 299.71 points or 1.16% to 26,180.31, Jakarta Composite gained 41.5 points or 0.52% to 8,081.54, KOSPI increased 19.91 points or 0.57% to 3,488.56 and Straits Times rose 16 points or 0.37% to 4,313.37.

On the flip side, Shanghai Composite weakened 41.49 points or 1.08% to 3,787.09 and Hang Seng declined 226.14 points or 0.86% to 26,118.00.