Mumbai, India (BBN)-The Sensex and Nifty were trading flat tracking US and Asian counterparts on upbeat global economic data, but the gains were tempered by caution ahead of corporate results and the government’s annual budget.
At 2.55 pm, the 30-share BSE index Sensex was down 5.7 points or 0.02 per cent at 26,637.54 and the 50-share NSE index Nifty was down 2.65 points or 0.03 per cent at 8,189.60, reports The Hindu Business Line.
Among BSE sectoral indices, realty index gained the most by 2.25 per cent, followed by TECk 1.02 per cent, consumer durables 0.98 per cent and IT 0.89 per cent.
On the other hand, banking index was down 0.82 per cent, FMCG 0.27 per cent, oil & gas 0.26 per cent and metal 0.14 per cent.
Top five Sensex gainers were Bharti Airtel (+1.91 per cent), Bajaj Auto (+1.76 per cent), ONGC (+1.71 per cent), Tata Motors (+1.49 per cent) and Wipro (+1.38 per cent), while the major losers were Reliance (-1.71 per cent), HUL (-1.1 per cent), ICICI Bank (-0.98 per cent), Cipla (-0.9 per cent) and Lupin (-0.86 per cent).
GLOBAL MARKETS
Shares in the US and Asia were boosted by a round of factory surveys from China, the euro zone and United States that pointed to more momentum in the global economy.
US factory activity accelerated to a two-year high in December, while manufacturing in the euro zone grew at its fastest pace in five years and China’s factory activity was better than expected.
“While positive global data could help strengthen foreign inflows which in turn could support market gains, the market is unlikely to find a big direction for now because key focus is on the budget session and upcoming earnings season,” said Siddhartha Khemka, head of research at Centrum Wealth.
Corporate results are scheduled to start next week and the government’s budget is due on February 1.
SERVICES PMI
India’s services industry ended 2016 on a sour note, contracting for a second month in a row in December as orders shrank amid a severe cash shortage, according to a private business survey on Wednesday.
A report by SMC Global said: “US equities saw strong gains as strong manufacturing data fuelled confidence in the US economy as US dollar extended gains.
Global equities rally extended into the New Year as data from the US, China and Europe boosted optimism for global growth.
Japanese equities gained close to 2 per cent in the first trading session of 2017 in Asia, after strong economic data fuelled gains in the US dollar against weaker yen.
Chinese shares were lower, despite the overall cheer in Asian markets.
US manufacturing expanded at the fastest pace in two years led by the biggest pickup in new orders since 2009.
The Purchasing Managers Index for December rose to 54.7, its fourth straight monthly advance, according to data.
Orders for exports rose at its fastest pace since May 2014 while the addition of staff grew at the quickest rate since mid-2015.
The positive economic data helped the US markets snap a three-day losing streak.
The S&P 500 Index posted its biggest gains in four weeks while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained over a 100 points to head closer towards the 20,000 mark.
The NASDAQ Composite Index advanced 0.85 per cent.”
The US dollar crept nearer to14-year peaks on Wednesday as an abundance of upbeat global economic data boosted Wall Street and signs of quickening inflation dented fixed-income debt.
The strength of the US currency pressured commodity prices and helped drag oil off an 18-month top, but gave Japan’s exporter-heavy stock market a fillip.
The Nikkei climbed 2.1 per cent, recovering from two sessions of losses as domestic data showed factory activity expanded at the fastest pace in a year.
BBN/SK/AD