Key gauges trade marginally lower in morning deals

Indian equity benchmarks erased initial gains and traded marginally lower in morning deals, due to losses in Utilities, Power and Auto stocks. Traders turned cautious as the finance ministry in a report stated that India's economic outlook for the coming months is cautiously optimistic, with agriculture likely to benefit from favourable monsoon conditions, increased minimum support prices and adequate supply of inputs. Also, it said India’s export recovery may face challenges due to softening demand in developed markets. Sector-wise, Pharma stocks remained in limelight with a private report that major pharmaceutical companies of the country reported a 10 per cent year-on-year (YoY) growth in the second quarter of FY25, largely driven by strong performance in North America and the domestic market. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in red as worries spread over President-elect Donald Trump’s comment that he plans to impose sweeping new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China as soon as he takes office.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 80022.61, down by 87.24 points or 0.11% after trading in a range of 79899.89 and 80482.36. There were 12 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.26%, while Small cap index up by 0.27%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 1.34%, IT up by 1.12%, Metal up by 1.03%, TECK up by 0.90% and Telecom up by 0.84%, while Utilities down by 1.22%, Power down by 0.77%, Auto down by 0.51%, Healthcare down by 0.36% and Consumer Durables down by 0.30% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 1.93%, Asian Paints up by 1.52%, Tata Steel up by 1.15%, Tech Mahindra up by 0.93% and JSW Steel up by 0.83%. On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 2.77%, Adani Ports &SEZ down by 2.08%, Sun Pharma down by 1.36%, NTPC down by 1.26% and Bajaj Finserv down by 1.12% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has said that the contribution of tourism sector to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) for 2022-23 stood at 5%. Shekhawat also said that in 2023, the total foreign tourist arrivals stood at 9.52 million.

He stated among these, tourists who travelled for leisure holiday and recreation accounted for 46.2% while the share of Indian diaspora was 26.9%. He said as per the third Tourism Satellite Account, 2015-16, the percentage contribution of tourism sector to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) for 2018-19 stood at 5.01%, while the share for 2022-23 was 5%. For 2020-21, it was 1.50% and 1.75% for 2021-22.

Besides he said that to facilitate the visit of foreign nationals to come to India for medical treatment, the government has extended e-medical visa or e-medical attendant visa facility to people of 167 countries.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24211.45, down by 10.45 points or 0.04% after trading in a range of 24160.05 and 24343.30. There were 23 stocks advancing against 27 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bharat Electronics up by 2.22%, Infosys up by 2.05%, Asian Paints up by 1.68%, Hindalco up by 1.39% and Tech Mahindra up by 1.28%. On the flip side, Ultratech Cement down by 2.50%, Adani Enterprises down by 2.24%, Eicher Motors down by 1.97%, Adani Ports &SEZ down by 1.84% and Bajaj Auto down by 1.60% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 588.55 points or 1.52% to 38,191.59, Taiwan Weighted lost 252.36 points or 1.1% to 22,696.01, KOSPI dropped 15.25 points or 0.6% to 2,519.09, Straits Times fell 7.97 points or 0.21% to 3,723.42 and Jakarta Composite plunged 23.37 points or 0.32% to 7,290.74.

On the flip side, Shanghai Composite strengthened 14.06 points or 0.43% to 3,277.82 and Hang Seng advanced 93.64 points or 0.49% to 19,244.63.