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Bourses continue to trade in positive terrain

Indian stock markets continued to trade in positive terrain in the afternoon session due to buying in auto, realty and PSU stocks. Buying in frontline stocks such as Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finserv and ONGC were aiding sentiment, while selling in Tech Mahindra, TCS and Dr. Reddys Lab kept the gains in the markets in check. Traders took some solace with reports that Indians are among the most optimistic globally in terms of their expectations for a return to pre-COVID normal, with over 70 per cent expecting  it to happen in less than a year. However, upside remain limited as India’s factory output, measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), contracted for the second straight month by 3.6 per cent in February. This is the sharpest contraction the factory output has seen in six months.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mixed as investors gear up for the much anticipated earnings season and the key US inflation data later in the day. Back home, in scrip specific developments, Adani Ports declined as firm removed from S&P sustainability index, while  L&T jumped on beginning constructing 300 MW Jeddah Solar PV Power Plant.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 47943.75, up by 60.37 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 47775.32 and 48315.09. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.06%, while Small cap index was up by 0.16%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 1.48%, Realty up by 1.38%, PSU up by 1.33%, Oil & Gas up by 1.24% and Bankex was up by 1.18%, while IT down by 3.53%, TECK down by 2.98%, Healthcare down by 0.88%, Industrials down by 0.24% and Power was down by 0.15% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 4.88%, Bajaj Finserv up by 3.56%, ONGC up by 3.21%, Power Grid up by 2.96% and Maruti Suzuki was up by 2.75%. On the flip side, Tech Mahindra down by 4.96%, TCS down by 4.67%, Dr. Reddys Lab down by 3.44%, HCL Tech down by 3.28% and Infosys was down by 3.00% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, consumer price index (CPI) based retail inflation rose to a four-month high of 5.52 per cent in March over 5.03 per cent in February on account of rising food prices as well as costlier fuel, though it remained within the comfort zone of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The Reserve Bank, which mainly factors in the retail inflation while arriving at its monetary policy, has been asked to keep CPI inflation at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side. In the year-ago month (March 2020), the retail inflation print stood at 5.91 per cent. The previous high CPI print was 6.93 per cent in November 2020. Besides, the food inflation as a category measured under the head ‘Consumer Food Price Index’ (CFPI) rose to 4.94 per cent during the month, as against 3.87 per cent in February 2021.

The National Statistical Office (NSO) under Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation in its data has showed that the Rural CPI (General) in March 2021 stood at 4.61 per cent as against 4.19 per cent in February. The Urban CPI (General) stood at 6.52 per cent in March as against 5.96 per cent in February. The index value for Rural, Urban and Combined CPI (General) stood at 156.7, 156.9 and 156.8, respectively, in March 2021.

The highest year-on-year increase in retail prices was witnessed in the ‘oil and fats’ segment, showing an increase of 24.92 per cent during the month. Inflation in case of ‘pulses and products’ was 13.25 per cent, up from 12.54 per cent. Likewise, in ‘meat and fish’ and fruits segments, it moved up to 15.09 per cent and 7.86 per cent, respectively. ‘Fuel and light’ inflation increased to 4.5 per cent in March this year from 3.53 per cent a month ago.

However, ‘cereals and products’ turned cheaper further with a negative print at (-) 0.69 per cent as against (-) 0.35 per cent. In vegetables basket too, the CPI remained in negative territory. The rate of price rise in protein-rich item egg was lower at 10.60 per cent from 11.13 per cent in February. Transport and communication costs spiked by 12.55 per cent in March, while healthcare costs were up by 6.17 per cent.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 14323.70, up by 12.90 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 14274.90 and 14449.05. There were 36 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Mahindra & Mahindra up by 5.03%, Bajaj Finserv up by 3.71%, ONGC up by 3.26%, Power Grid up by 2.73% and Maruti Suzuki was up by 2.71%. On the flip side, Tech Mahindra down by 5.06%, TCS down by 4.77%, Adani Ports down by 4.63%, Wipro down by 3.94% and Dr. Reddys Lab was down by 3.60% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Hang Seng increased 128.07 points or 0.45% to 28,581.35, Straits Times advanced 9.78 points or 0.31% to 3,183.71, Nikkei 225 surged 212.88 points or 0.72% to 29,751.61 and KOSPI was up by 33.49 points or 1.07% to 3,169.08.

On the flip side; Shanghai Composite declined 17.79 points or 0.52% to 3,395.16, Jakarta Composite lost 49.64 points or 0.83% to 5,898.93 and Taiwan Weighted was down by 34.79 points or 0.21% to 16,824.91.

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