Domestic indices extend opening gains to trade firm; IT, Teck stocks led

Indian equity benchmarks made positive start on Monday after US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's speech indicated that an interest rate cut cycle by the US central bank was not too far away. Domestic indices soon gained traction and are trading firm in early deals with IT and Teck stocks leading the gainers. Investors are anxiously awaiting earnings from AI darling Nvidia on Wednesday to see if it can match the market's uber-high expectations. Closer home, some support came as EEPC said despite a challenging global environment, India's engineering goods exports continued their upward trajectory in July with a 3.6 per cent year-on-year growth, reflecting the sector's resilience. The Engineering Export Promotion body EEPC India chairman Arun Kumar Garodia said the engineering goods exports were $9.04 billion in July 2024, compared to $8.72 billion a year ago month. Also, according to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India, India’s foreign exchange reserves rose by $4.54 billion to $674.66 billion in the week ended August 16. The total reserves increased on the back of a rise in foreign currency assets, which grew by $3.6 billion during the week. 

On the global front, Asian markets are trading mixed ahead of inflation data that investors hope will pave the way for rate cuts in the United States and Europe. Figures on U.S personal consumption and core inflation are due on Friday, along with a flash reading on European Union inflation. Back home, cement industry stocks are in focus as Crisil Ratings said Indian cement makers are expected to undertake capital expenditure worth Rs 125,000 crore during financial years 2025-2027, driven by a healthy demand outlook and a quest to attract market share. In stock specific development, Ashoka Buildcon traded higher after the company emerges as lowest bidder for Rs 478 crore project.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81623.82, up by 537.61 points or 0.66% after trading in a range of 81278.44 and 81643.88. There were 23 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.60%, while Small cap index was up by 0.51%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 1.45%, TECK up by 1.21%, Consumer Durables up by 0.78%, Oil & Gas up by 0.77% and Energy up by 0.74%, while there was no loser on the BSE sectoral indices.

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS up by 1.79%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.61%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.33%, Power Grid up by 1.23% and HDFC Bank up by 1.21%. On the flip side, Adani Ports & SEZ down by 0.26%, Sun Pharma down by 0.26%, ITC down by 0.19%, Asian Paints down by 0.16% and Hindustan Unilever down by 0.14% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said India and the US look forward to working together and benefiting from each other's experiences. Singh is in the US on a four-day official visit to further boost the comprehensive global strategic partnership between the US and India. Singh met the US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin. 

Austin praised the momentum behind the US-India relationship. He noted the countries' increased cooperation on a range of defence issues, including efforts to strengthen critical supply chains and interoperability between their militaries. Austin said ‘We share a vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific, and our defence cooperation continues to grow stronger and stronger’. He added ‘We're expanding our defence industrial ties and working to co-produce more capabilities and strengthen supply chain resilience’. He said that the countries have increased operational cooperation across all domains and highlighted India's participation in this summer's Rim of the Pacific, a large-scale exercise led by the US Navy in Hawaii that brought together 29 partner nations. 

He also said the Indian navy remains an important security provider in the Indian Ocean. He said ‘Indian sailors have helped mariners in distress and defended global commerce. So, we are committed to deepening naval cooperation, to doing more together with unmanned technology, and to strengthening undersea domain awareness’. Rajnath Singh said the growing cooperation covers ‘all areas of human endeavour.’ He noted the robust people-to-people ties, shared democratic values, and the convergence of interests between the US and India on a range of issues.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24982.65, up by 159.50 points or 0.64% after trading in a range of 24874.70 and 24987.55. There were 34 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining, while 1 stock remain unchanged on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Wipro up by 2.40%, ONGC up by 1.98%, Bajaj Finserv up by 1.87%, TCS up by 1.72% and LTIMindtree up by 1.72%. On the flip side, Hero MotoCorp down by 0.72%, Grasim Industries down by 0.64%, BPCL down by 0.60%, Bajaj Auto down by 0.45% and Adani Ports &Special down by 0.35% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mixed; Nikkei 225 slipped 409.17 points or 1.07% to 37,955.10, KOSPI dropped 9.09 points or 0.34% to 2,692.60, Straits Times fell 2.05 points or 0.06% to 3,385.94 and Shanghai Composite weakened 2.03 points or 0.07% to 2,852.34. On the other hand, Hang Seng surged 149.22 points or 0.85% to 17,761.32, Taiwan Weighted added 103.2 points or 0.47% to 22,261.25 and Jakarta Composite was up by 31.41 points or 0.42% to 7,575.71.