Key indices remain in red in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade lower in morning deals as persistent foreign fund outflows, concerns over further US tariffs on Indian exports, and geopolitical overhangs dented investors' sentiments. Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 3,769.31 crore on Friday, according to exchange data. Investors also awaited quarterly earnings updates from a slew of companies, including IT majors TCS and HCL Technologies. Traders overlooked the commerce ministry’s data showing that Spain, Germany, Belgium, and Poland are emerging as India’s key export destinations within the 27-nation European Union (EU) bloc. On the global front, Asian markets were trading higher after US jobs data catalysed in pushing stocks to new highs in the previous session. Also, positive sentiment has been generated in reaction to another report showing US consumer sentiment improved by slightly more than expected in the month of January.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 83207.44, down by 368.80 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 83043.45 and 83617.53. There were 8 stocks advancing against 22 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.67%, while Small cap index was down by 0.96%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 0.63%, PSU up by 0.12% and Basic Materials up by 0.08%, while Healthcare down by 1.13%, Industrials down by 1.02%, Realty down by 0.98%, Telecom down by 0.93% and Capital Goods down by 0.88% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Trent up by 1.24%, NTPC up by 1.04%, Tata Steel up by 0.93%, Asian Paints up by 0.43% and ITC up by 0.27%. On the flip side, Bajaj Finance down by 1.31%, Larsen & Toubro down by 1.06%, Infosys down by 1.05%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.97% and HCL Technologies down by 0.96% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jitin Prasada has said that the number of free trade agreements (FTAs) signed and implemented by India will provide better market access to the domestic agri and food processing sectors. He said that the government has taken several measures to improve ease of doing business in India.

He noted ‘We have navigated a series of free trade agreements. Our produce has access to these markets. India has recently signed and implemented FTAs with Mauritius, Australia, the EFTA bloc, the UK, Oman, and New Zealand.

He stated the government has also ensured ease of doing business in India by removing unnecessary compliances and regulatory burdens that hinder business, investment, and foreign participation within India. He added the red carpet has been rolled out for investment. Besides, he also said that India has over 40,000 registered agro-based processing units and that there is now a need to focus on increasing revenues.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 25585.45, down by 97.85 points or 0.38% after trading in a range of 25529.05 and 25700.95. There were 14 stocks advancing against 36 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 2.77%, HDFC Life Insurance up by 1.59%, Trent up by 1.26%, SBI Life Insurance up by 1.23% and Tata Steel up by 0.93%. On the flip side, Max Healthcare Inst down by 1.45%, Eicher Motors down by 1.23%, Bajaj Finance down by 1.16%, Larsen & Toubro down by 1.04% and Tech Mahindra down by 1.04% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading higher; Taiwan Weighted added 300.55 points or 0.99% to 30,589.51, Jakarta Composite gained 11.21 points or 0.13% to 8,947.96, Shanghai Composite strengthened 36 points or 0.87% to 4,156.43, KOSPI increased 37.87 points or 0.83% to 4,624.19, Hang Seng advanced 247.21 points or 0.93% to 26,479.00 and Straits Times rose 33.04 points or 0.7% to 4,777.70.