Indian benchmarks erased all the gains to turn negative in late afternoon session. Both Sensex and Nifty were trading below their crucial 50,800 and 15,000 marks, respectively. Auto, Energy and banking counters were on the priority list of the sellers. Sentiment on the street weakened with the private report that number of industrial investment proposals touched a record low in 2020, the pandemic year. And in value terms they were at a three year low as economic activity came to a standstill during the prolonged lockdown in the quarter ended June. Traders failed to get any sense of relief with PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in its latest report showing that India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth is likely to enter a double digit growth trajectory and may grow at more than 11 per cent in the next financial year, as economic activities gather pace and investor sentiments revive. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green, as U.S. stimulus and easing bond yields helped lift the mood, although Philippine stocks struggled on concerns over the country's economic recovery. European markets were trading lower, as a rise in Treasury yields resurfaced some investor caution.
The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 50793.55, down by 485.96 points or 0.95% after trading in a range of 50719.25 and 51821.84. There were 4 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.
The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 0.42%, while Small cap index was down by 0.03%.
The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 1.02%, Power up by 0.68% and Consumer Durables was up by 0.15%, while Auto down by 1.78%, Bankex down by 1.38%, Energy down by 1.32%, Metal down by 1.26% and Consumer Discretionary was down by 0.93% were the top losing indices on BSE.
The top gainers on the Sensex were Power Grid up by 2.02%, Titan Company up by 1.31%, Infosys up by 0.65% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.16%. On the flip side, Bajaj Auto down by 2.92%, Maruti Suzuki down by 2.59%, ICICI Bank down by 2.01%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.99% and Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 1.96% were the top losers.
Meanwhile, in order to boost export potential of India’s agricultural and processed food products, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has launched its first Virtual Trade Fair (VTF).
The fair with a theme ‘India Rice and Agro Commodity’, will focus on showcasing the exports potential of various agricultural commodities. Importers as well as exporters will be key participants of the VTF. The potential buyers or importers and visitors will get to explore a wide range of food products presented by the exporters through this virtual fair.
Because of COVID-19 related restrictions on physical travel and trade, APEDA has initiated the concept of VTF for sustaining India’s agricultural and processed food products exports and also exploring new markets for expanding export footprints.
The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14995.80, down by 179.00 points or 1.18% after trading in a range of 14995.25 and 15336.30. There were 8 stocks advancing against 42 stocks declining on the index.
The top gainers on Nifty were Indian Oil up by 2.33%, Power Grid up by 1.88%, BPCL up by 1.77%, Titan Company up by 1.34% and Infosys up by 0.65%. On the flip side, Hindalco down by 3.00%, Bajaj Auto down by 2.76%, SBI Life down by 2.61%, Maruti Suzuki down by 2.56% and HDFC Life Insurance down by 2.51% were the top losers.
Asian markets were trading mostly in green, Nikkei 225 surged 506.19 points or 1.73% to 29,717.83, Jakarta Composite soared 93.53 points or 1.49% to 6,358.21, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 75.62 points or 0.47% to 16,255.18, KOSPI rose 40.69 points or 1.35% to 3,054.39 and Shanghai Composite was up by 16.25 points or 0.47% to 3,453.08. On the flip side, Straits Times trembled 9.27 points or 0.3% to 3,096.74 and Hang Seng was down by 645.89 points or 2.2% to 28,739.72.
European markets were trading lower, UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 21.94 points or 0.33% to 6,715.02, France’s CAC decreased 5.88 points or 0.1% to 6,027.88 and Germany’s DAX was down by 73.23 points or 0.5% to 14,496.16.