Benchmarks continue to trade with marginal gains

Indian equity benchmarks continued to trade with marginal gains in morning deals, tracking the strength from global markets. Traders took support as India and the US have signed a ‘landmark’ agreement that provides a framework for both sides to explore cooperation in the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) would enable MSMEs of the two countries to foster trade. However, gains remain capped with a private report that the RBI is unlikely to consider softening rates this fiscal year even after the consumer inflation gauge declined below the mandated 4% target for the first time in five years, with street attributing the fall to a statistical base effect and might not indicate a durable victory against sticky prices just yet. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in green following positive cues from global markets. After a measure of U.S. producer price inflation rose less than expected in July, investors now looked ahead to the release of U.S. CPI data later in the day for further direction.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 79016.37, up by 60.34 points or 0.08% after trading in a range of 78895.72 and 79122.42. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index fell 0.18%, while Small cap index was down by 0.71%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 0.95%, TECK up by 0.89%, Oil & Gas up by 0.19%, Telecom up by 0.09% and Metal up by 0.08%, while Capital Goods down by 0.92%, Industrials down by 0.87%, Power down by 0.82%, Basic Materials down by 0.49% and FMCG down by 0.39% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS up by 2.26%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.39%, HCL Technologies up by 1.36%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.20% and SBI up by 0.98%. On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 1.92%, ICICI Bank down by 1.06%, Adani Ports &SEZ down by 1.02%, Bajaj Finserv down by 1.02% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.86% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, CRISIL in its latest report has said that as the economic landscape in India continues to shine with optimism, Indian companies are increasingly turning their gaze towards international markets, seeking new avenues for growth. This surge in global expansion is anticipated to drive an increase in revenues for both global and domestic banks providing cross-border support.

It stated, in recent years, Indian corporations have significantly ramped up their international operations. Currently, approximately 83 per cent of large India-based corporations utilize at least one bank for cross-border trade and payments, a rise from 71 per cent two years ago. This increase reflects a broader trend of Indian firms seeking to leverage domestic economic strength to capitalize on global opportunities.

Ruchirangad Agarwal, Relationship Director and Head of Corporate Banking - Asia and Middle East at Coalition Greenwich (a division of CRISIL) highlighted this trend and said, ‘Over the past 12 months, we have seen an increase in activity by large corporates in India across various outbound, cross-border corridors into other markets within the Asia-Pacific region, into Europe, and North America as well.’ Not only large corporations are venturing abroad; approximately 75 per cent of mid-sized Indian companies are also engaging with banks for international trade needs. These businesses primarily use banking services for traditional trade, cross-border payments, and managing receivables from global suppliers and clients.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24150.90, up by 11.90 points or 0.05% after trading in a range of 24099.70 and 24196.50. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Apollo Hospital up by 3.42%, TCS up by 2.24%, BPCL up by 1.45%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.37% and HCL Technologies up by 1.34%. On the flip side, Hero MotoCorp down by 4.50%, Divi's Lab down by 3.33%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.92%, Tata Consumer Product down by 1.43% and Eicher Motors down by 1.15% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Taiwan Weighted added 226.07 points or 1.04% to 22,022.64, Jakarta Composite gained 53.25 points or 0.72% to 7,409.89, Straits Times rose 14.8 points or 0.45% to 3,273.37 and KOSPI increased 11.85 points or 0.45% to 2,633.35.

On the flip side, Hang Seng declined 62.63 points or 0.37% to 17,111.43, Shanghai Composite weakened 10.05 points or 0.35% to 2,857.90 and Nikkei 225 slipped 36.22 points or 0.1% to 36,196.29.