Domestic equity markets ended the volatile session on flat note, recovering from the early losses after the Economic Survey was tabled in the Parliament. Traders will be keenly awaiting the Union Budget for the upcoming fiscal, which will be tabled on Wednesday, February 1.
Global markets were also mixed as the global traders will be looking at the US Federal Reserve’s policy outcome, scheduled on Wednesday. Indian traders remained risk aversive ahead of two to major economic events.
Nifty recovered from early morning weakness gradually to end positive. Volumes on the NSE were on the higher side as compared to the recent average, said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities. “Global shares edged down as investors braced for an eventful week that will include central bank meetings, a slew of earnings reports and key US economic data,” he said.
For the day, BSE Sensex added 49.49 points or 0.08 per cent to 59,549.90, while NSE’s Nifty50 Index settled at 17,662.15, gaining 13.20 points or 0.07 per cent. Broader markets outperformed the headline peers as BSE midcap index rallied over a per cent, whereas smallcap index jumped 2 per cent. Fear gauge India VIX spiked eased 5 per cent to 16.87-level.
On a sectoral front, only Nifty IT and pharma indices disappointed, each dropping a per cent. PSU Bank index rallied over 4 per cent, whereas auto, metal and media indices jumped 2 per cent each. Realty index also added over a per cent for the day.
Adani Group stocks continued to hog spotlight for the day as select stocks were locked in the lower circuits, whereas other saw some buying the day, scripting a sharp recovery. Adani Total Gas dropped 10 per cent, whereas Adani Wilmar and Adani Power were down 5 per cent each. Adani Green and Adani Transmission ended 4 per cent up, after early fall.
However, a few of the Adani group stocks remained in the positive territory for majority of the day. Adani Enterprises, whose Rs 20,000 crore FPO sailed through for the day, rose 3 per cent, whereas Adani Ports also jumped in tandem, gaining 3 per cent. Ambuja Cements, ACC and NDTV rose 2-4 per cent each.
On the Nifty50 pack, State Bank of India and M&M gained up 4 per cent each, whereas Power Grid, Ultratrech Cement, Bharat Petroleum and Eicher Motors added 3 per cent each. JSW Steel, Hero Motocorp, ITC, Adani Entertainment, Tata Motors and UPL inched up 2 per cent each.
On the contrary, Bajaj Finance and TCS topped the losers with over 2 per cent fall. Tech Mahindra and Britannia Industries were also down 2 per cent each, whereas HDFC Life, Cipla, Sun Pharma, Divis Labs and Asian Paints were among the other top losers.
The Indian market has been underperforming compared to the rest of the world because it has been trading at premium valuations, which are in contrast to the moderation forecasted in the domestic economy for FY24. The premiumization has tapered, currently trading in-line with developed markets like the US, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
“However, we continue to trade at a premium to other emerging markets. The Adani saga has prolonged the correction as FII selling has increased. Now the focus is on the outcome of budget and Fed policy, on which the market has a mixed view,” he said.
A total of 3,625 stocks that traded for the day on BSE, of which 2,436 settled lower, while 1,063 settled higher. Remaining 126 stocks ended unchanged. A total 231 stocks hit an upper circuit on BSE, whereas 168 stocks hit the lower circuit during the trading session.
In the broader markets, Apar Industries and Manaksia hit an upper circuit of 20 per cent each, followed by a 19 per cent rally in GTL Infra. Kalyan Jewellers India, Universal Cables, EID Parry and Gujarat Ambuja Exports rose 12 per cent each. Manorama Industries, KPI Green Energy and Khaitan Chemicals surged 10-12 per cent each.
On the downside, Astec Lifesciences plunged over 8 per cent after muted Q3 performance. BASF Indian and Heranba Industries dropped up 6 per cent, extending their loses. Orient Bell and Steel Exchange India also shed up to 5 per cent for the day.
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