Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets witnessed recovery during late afternoon session and closed the Tuesday’s trade with gains of over half a percent led by gains in Metal and banking sectors’ stocks. Traders turned their focus towards Tuesday’s US election result. In first half of the session, indices traded just below their neutral lines amid continued foreign fund outflows. The broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index ended in green.

After making cautious start, markets traded in red tracking overnight losses on Wall Street along with mixed cues from Asian counterparts. Besides, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,329.79 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Traders took a note of report that corporate affairs ministry underscored the need for a ‘continuous refinement’ in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to address future challenges in corporate recast effectively. In afternoon session, indices remained lower. Traders were cautious amid reports that the central board of direct taxes (CBDT) has set monetary limitations for waiver or Reduction of Interest on Tax Payments with riders. However, in late afternoon session, indices wiped out all their losses and turned positive. Traders took note of private report that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chaired a meeting on November 4 to conduct a comprehensive review of the Income Tax Act 1961, in line with the announcement made during the last Union Budget. Finally, Nifty and Sensex settled above the psychological 24,200 and 79,400 levels, respectively.

On the global front, European markets were trading higher as traders’ focus turned to Tuesday’s US election and a Federal Reserve interest-rate decision looming later in the week.  Asian markets ended mostly in green as Fed is widely expected to lower interest rates by another 25 basis points, but traders will be looking to the accompanying statement for clues about the likelihood of future rate cuts. Back home, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has said that subsidies to the oil & gas sector saw a reduction of 85 per cent from a peak of $25 billion in 2013 to $3.5 billion by 2023. Since 2010, India has steadily reformed its fossil fuel subsidies, adopting a ‘remove, target, and shift’ approach.

The BSE Sensex ended at 79,476.63, up by 694.39 points or 0.88% after trading in a range of 78,296.70 and 79,523.13. There were 21 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.48%, while Small cap index was up by 0.41%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 2.38%, Bankex up by 2.09%, Basic Materials up by 1.84%, PSU up by 1.11%, Oil & Gas up by 1.08%, while FMCG down by 0.17%, TECK down by 0.17%, IT down by 0.05% were the few losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were JSW Steel up by 4.73%, Tata Steel up by 3.64%, Axis Bank up by 2.63%, Indusind Bank up by 2.49% and SBI up by 2.33%. On the flip side, Adani Ports down by 1.46%, ITC down by 0.96%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.80%, Asian Paints down by 0.79% and Infosys down by 0.63% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, with an aim to review the various aspects of the Income Tax Act 1961, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has chaired a meeting with Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra, Secretary, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) chairman Ravi Agarwal, and senior CBDT officials. The finance ministry said that Malhotra informed the Finance Minister that 22 specialised sub-committees have been established to review the various aspects of the Income Tax Act to review the various aspects of the Income Tax Act.  

These committees have actively engaged in numerous meetings 'both in person and via VC' with domain experts to collaboratively explore and recommend improvements to the Act. The ministry added the income tax department has received 6,500 suggestions from stakeholders over the past month on review of the Income Tax Act. 

Last month, the CBDT's internal committee invited public inputs for review of the six-decade-old I-T Act with regard to simplification of language, litigation reduction, compliance reduction, and obsolete provisions. Pursuant to the Budget announcement by Sitharaman for a comprehensive review of the Income-tax Act, 1961, the CBDT had set up an internal committee to oversee the review and make the Act concise, clear, and easy to understand, which will reduce disputes, litigation, and provide greater tax certainty to taxpayers.

The CNX Nifty ended at 24,213.30, up by 217.95 points or 0.91% after trading in a range of 23,842.75 and 24,229.05. There were 39 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were JSW Steel up by 4.67%, Bajaj Auto up by 3.67%, Tata Steel up by 3.63%, Hindalco up by 3.45% and Axis Bank up by 2.85%. On the flip side, Coal India down by 1.89%, Adani Ports down by 1.47%, Trent down by 1.35%, Asian Paints down by 0.96% and ITC down by 0.91% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading higher; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 29.06 points or 0.35% to 8,213.30, France’s CAC rose 16.89 points or 0.23% to 7,388.60 and Germany’s DAX was up by 64.07 points or 0.33% to 19,211.92. 

Asian markets settled mostly higher on Tuesday, even after Wall Street drifted lower overnight ahead of the presidential election and the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision due later this week. Japanese shares rose as trading resumed after a long holiday weekend with the US central bank widely expected to cut its main interest rate for a second straight time. Moreover, Chinese and Hong Kong shares gained on prospects of additional stimulus measures from China's major economic meeting this week and after reports showed China's service activity expanded at the fastest pace since July. Chinese Premier Li Qiang said he was fully confident of meeting this year's growth target and that there was room for more stimulus.