Benchmarks add gains; Sensex surpasses 20500 mark

Indian equities added gains to continue firm trade hovering near the highest point of the day in the late afternoon session on account of buying in frontline counters. Speculations that falling oil prices will cool inflation after Iran agreed to limit its nuclear program in exchange for relief from some sanctions has mainly triggered buying activities at Dalal Street. The market also took note of E&Y survey which stated that India has emerged as the most attractive investment destination surpassing neighbouring China and the US, thanks to relaxation in FDI norms to boost investor sentiments. Traders were seen piling position in Bankex, Capital Goods and FMCG stocks while selling was witnessed in IT and TECK sector stocks. In scrip specific development, Cairn India was trading in green as the company stated on Friday that the board of directors will consider the proposal to buyback equity shares on Tuesday i.e. November 26. Shares of government-owned oil companies BPCL, HPCL, IOC, ONGC and MRPL were trading in green as the Iran nuclear deal eased crude import process.

On the global front, the Asian markets barring Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng were trading in green while the European markets were too trading on optimistic note. Back home, the NSE Nifty and BSE Sensex were trading above their psychological 6,050 and 20,500 levels respectively. The market breadth on BSE was positive in the ratio of 1268:994 while 158 scrips remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 20518.83, up by 301.44 points or 1.49% after trading in a range of 20,543.54 and 20326.66. There were 24 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were too trading in green; the BSE Mid cap and Small cap indices were trading higher by 0.86% and 0.82% respectively.

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Bankex up by 3.01%, Capital Goods up by 2.81%, FMCG up by 1.94%, PSU up by 1.81% and Realty up by 1.65% while, IT down by 0.14% and TECK down by 0.09% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were ICICI Bank up by 4.57%, SBI up by 3.55%, L&T up by 3.42%, BHEL up by 3.14% and Hero Moto Corp up by 2.77%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 0.91%, Infosys down by 0.73%, NTPC down 0.50%, SSLT down 0.34% and Dr. Reddy’s Lab down by 0.15% were the top losing indices on the Sensex.

Meanwhile, as per the global consulting firm Ernst & Young (EY) survey, India has emerged as the most attractive investment destination for overseas investors surpassing neighbouring countries such as China and the US mainly on the back of relaxation in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) norms.

The survey, based on the assessment of about 1,600 senior executives from large companies across 70 countries, highlighted that sharp currency depreciation and opening up of FDI in various sectors have made the country a favorable investment destination. Further, owing to the prevailing macro-economic pressure and heavy debt burden, several Indian companies are looking to divest non-core businesses, which have created a large opportunity for foreign players vying for a greater role in Indian market. On country wise, the US, France and Japan have emerged as top three investors likely to invest in India particularly in sectors like automotive, technology, life sciences and consumer products.

Furthermore, the survey highlighted that despite the challenges the country's economy has faced in the recent past, global investors’ outlook for India remains positive. Indian companies reflect optimising operations to deliver cost reduction and a concerned focus on job creation. Around 38 percent of the respondents felt that M&A volumes in India are expected to improve over the next 12 months. Conversely, Indian corporate entities have also started looking at developed markets for making acquisitions. EY survey has ranked Brazil and China at second and third positions in most attractive investment destinations followed by Canada and the US at fourth and fifth positions.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 6,091.25, up by 95.80 points or 1.60% after trading in a range of 6,095.60 and 6,035.95. There were 43 stocks advancing against 7 declining on the index.

The top gainers of the Nifty were BPCL up by 5.14%, ICICI Bank up by 4.77%, SBI up by 3.95%, Axis Bank up by 3.69% and L&T up by 3.51%. On the flip side, Bharti Airtel down by 0.92%, Infosys down by 0.68%, NTPC down by 0.66%, SSLT down by 0.26% and Lupin down by 0.10% were the major losers on the index.

The Asian equity indices were mostly trading in green; Taiwan Weighted up by 0.87%, Seoul Composite up by 0.49%, KLSE Composite up by 0.46%, Nikkei 225 up by 1.54%, Jakarta Composite added 0.46% and Straits Times up by 0.22% while, Shanghai Composite down by 0.47% and Hang Seng down by 0.05% were the losers amongst Asian pack.

The European markets were trading in green; France’s CAC 40 was up 0.47%, Germany’s DAX added 0.51% and UK’s FTSE 100 jumped 0.45%.