Key indices end lower for 5th day in a row

Indian equity benchmarks ended with losses for the fifth consecutive day on Thursday, as investors booked profits amid relentless foreign fund outflows and uncertainty over the US H-1B visa fee. A weak trend in global peers also hit the investor sentiment. 

Some of the important factors in trade:

GST reform to positively impact on Indian economy by promoting ease of doing business: RBI bulletin said the GST reform will have a positive impact on the Indian economy by promoting ease of doing business, lowering retail prices, and strengthening consumption growth drivers. 

India, Australia sign agreement for trade in organic products: The commerce ministry has said that India and Australia have signed an agreement to facilitate trade of organic products including wine and agri produce in each other's countries. 

Cabinet approves Rs 69,725 crore package to revitalize India’s shipbuilding, maritime ecosystem: Recognizing the strategic and economic importance of the maritime sector, the Union Cabinet has approved a comprehensive package of Rs 69,725 crore to revitalise India's shipbuilding and maritime ecosystem. 

Rupee recovers marginally against US Dollar: Indian rupee moved in a tight range to end marginally higher against the American currency due to suspected RBI intervention amid a strong US dollar and weak domestic markets. 

Global front: European markets were trading lower as sticky inflation and a slowing job market clouded the outlook for U.S. interest rates. Asian markets settled mostly down as investors awaited more U.S. economic data, including jobless claims and PCE inflation data for directional cues. 

Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 555.95 points or 0.68% to 81,159.68 and the CNX Nifty was down by 166.05 points or 0.66% to 24,890.85.     

The BSE Sensex touched high and low of 81,840.73 and 81,092.89 respectively. There were 3 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.   

The broader indices ended in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.72%, while Small cap index was down by 0.75%.

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Telecom up by 0.34% and Metal up by 0.17%, while Realty down by 1.70%, Power down by 1.38%, Utilities down by 1.21%, Consumer discretionary down by 1.14% and IT down by 1.10% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bharat Electronics up by 2.05%, Bharti Airtel up by 0.31% and Axis Bank up by 0.28%. On the flip side, Trent down by 3.19%, Power Grid Corporation down by 3.05%, Tata Motors down by 2.71%, TCS down by 2.50% and Asian Paints down by 2.23% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has emphasized the need to increase the share of agriculture and allied sector in the GDP to at least 26 per cent from the present 18 per cent to make India self-reliant. He underscored the need to reduce the cost of production to make agriculture sector economically viable. On input cost front, he has called upon the farm equipment manufacturers to make electric as well as flex-engine tractors. Besides, he asked the agro-chemicals industry to focus on introducing affordable bio-pesticides and bio-insecticides products by undertaking intensive research & development (R&D) works. He suggested the industry to produce basic raw material in India and reduce import dependency to ensure the quality of the finished agro-chemicals.

Moreover, he has emphasized the importance of the agriculture sector in the economy saying, ‘the farm sector is the backbone of our country’. Highlighting the growth in the agriculture sector since independence, he said that India has become self-sufficient in foodgrain production. However, he noted that there is need to reduce the expenditure and capital cost and enhance the productivity. He added that there is a need for high-yielding seed varieties to boost crop yields and production.

Also, he noted that around 30 per cent of population migrated to urban cities from rural India since independence. He pointed out that if the agriculture sector remains economically viable and there are enough employment opportunities at village level, there would be no migration to urban cities. Further, he highlighted that the agro-chemicals sector is growing at a rapid pace and India has become the third largest exporter of agro-chemicals. Meanwhile, about introduction of genetically modified seeds, he stressed on the need to have unanimity on this issue among all stakeholders.

The CNX Nifty touched high and low of 25,092.70 and 24,878.30 respectively. There were 7 stocks advancing against 43 stocks declining on the index.  

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharat Electronics up by 2.07%, Hero MotoCorp up by 1.51%, Hindalco up by 0.80%, ONGC up by 0.49% and Axis Bank up by 0.35%. On the flip side, Trent down by 3.61%, Power Grid Corporation down by 3.10%, Tata Motors down by 2.64%, TCS down by 2.55% and Asian Paints down by 2.17% were the top losers.

European markets were trading lower; UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 25.18 points or 0.27% to 9,225.25, France’s CAC fell 47.05 points or 0.6% to 7,780.40 and Germany’s DAX lost 161.71 points or 0.68% to 23,505.10.