Key benchmark indices continued to trade in green terrain in morning deals, led by buying in Power, Utilities and Metal stocks. Sentiments remained positive with Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant’s statement that India today is well-positioned to become a global leader in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and there is a need to adopt it across all sectors. He further said the government has a crucial role to play in positioning India as the 'tech garage' of the world. However, there was some cautiousness too with Care Ratings’ statement that Maharashtra’s radical lockdown move will have an economic impact of Rs 40,000 crore, with the trade, hotels and transport sector to bear the biggest dent. The rating agency said the loss of economic activity will have a 0.32 per cent impact on the gross value added (GVA) growth at the national level. It revised down its national GDP growth estimate to 10.7 - 10.9 per cent from the 11 - 11.2 per cent given a week ago. Meanwhile, seeking to provide a quicker and value-maximising outcome for stressed Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), the government has introduced a pre-packaged resolution process for such enterprises by amending the insolvency law. Now, MSMEs can seek resolution for their stress through the pre-packaged process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed amid cautious trading, as worries about rising coronavirus cases and extension of lockdown restrictions are weighing on the markets. On the sectoral front, sugar sector remained in focus as the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) demanded that the government give more time to clear the unsold sugar quota as sales have been hit due to the pandemic. It said mills are also finding it difficult to sell sugar at a government-fixed rate of Rs 31 per kg. They are facing fund crunch and not able to make cane payment to growers on time.
The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 49377.90, up by 218.58 points or 0.44% after trading in a range of 48936.35 and 49558.77. There were 27 stocks advancing against 3 stocks declining on the index.
The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.91%, while Small cap index was up by 0.93%.
The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Power up by 1.66%, Utilities up by 1.31%, Metal up by 1.12%, Telecom up by 1.11% and Industrials up by 1.10%, while Consumer Durables down by 0.73% was the lone losing index on BSE.
The top gainers on the Sensex were Asian Paints up by 3.28%, Power Grid up by 1.68%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.53%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 1.35% and Sun Pharma up by 1.25%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 1.10%, Reliance Industries down by 0.19% and HCL Technologies down by 0.11% were the top losers.
Meanwhile, as the country witnesses a rapid resurgence of coronavirus cases, the Monthly Economic Review for March 2021 released by the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) has exuded confidence in the Indian economy and termed the economic recovery as resilient citing improvement in high frequency indicators.
It said that the agricultural sector remains the bright spot of Indian economy with foodgrains production touching 303.3 million tonnes in 2020-21 beating record production levels for the fifth consecutive year in a row. Further, MGNREGS has acted as a strong pillar to insulate the rural economy by generating all-time high employment of 383.8 crore person days during 2020-21, 44.7 per cent higher compared to previous year.
It noted that India's PMI Manufacturing Index of 55.4 in March indicated some loss of momentum compared to February. However, manufacturing sector conditions continue to improve sharply, outpacing the long-run series average with firms scaling up production and witnessing upturn in sales. Further, strengthening in demand conditions could be clearly seen in auto sales and power consumption. Monthly GST collections attained all-time record levels in March, since its inception.
It highlighted the second wave of Covid-19 infection in India with the rise in daily new cases since mid of February. The department, however, is of the view that India has been able to delay the onset of the second wave as the gap between the first peak to start of second wave has been 151 days in India while it was much lower in other countries. At this juncture of onset of the second wave, India is well prepared to combat the scourge of the virus. It is well-equipped with adequate testing and health infrastructure and economic activity has adapted to the pandemic.
The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14713.60, up by 75.80 points or 0.52% after trading in a range of 14573.90 and 14757.75. There were 44 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.
The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Ports &SEZ up by 4.18%, Asian Paints up by 3.05%, JSW Steel up by 2.76%, Tata Motors up by 1.79% and SBI Life Insurance up by 1.57%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 1.21%, HCL Technologies down by 0.46%, Grasim Industries down by 0.38%, Britannia Industries down by 0.26% and Reliance Industries down by 0.16% were the top losers.
Asian markets were trading mixed; Taiwan Weighted strengthened 190.63 points or 1.15% to 16,761.91, Jakarta Composite soared 26.15 points or 0.44% to 5,996.44 and KOSPI rose 4.01 points or 0.13% to 3,124.84. On the flip side, Straits Times trembled 9.65 points or 0.3% to 3,200.09, Shanghai Composite declined 11.07 points or 0.32% to 3,473.32 and Nikkei 225 slipped 331.80 points or 1.1% to 29,757.45.