Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets witnessed a massive crash on Thursday, as solid U.S. economic data along with an uptick in inflation supported recent comments by many Fed officials that there's no rush to cut rates. After a cautious start, indices fell in red and kept on compounding their losses, as traders remained cautious ahead of India’s GDP growth data for the latest July-September 2024 quarter (Q2 FY25) to be released on Friday. The GDP is expected to slow to 6.2-6.9 per cent this quarter due to factors like heavy rains and weak corporate margins. There was some cautiousness among traders ahead of the monthly expiry of futures & options contracts on the NSE. 

In late afternoon deals, a selling pressure intensified over the Dalal Street, despite positive cues from European markets. Investors paid no heed towards India Ratings and Research’s (Ind-Ra) statement that the government will be able to register the fiscal deficit at 4.75 per cent in FY25, 0.19 per cent lower than the budget aim, by reigning in expenditure. It added the revenue expenditure, excluding subsidies, will be 0.12 per cent of GDP, lower than the budget estimate. The street also overlooked the Network Readiness Index 2024 (NRI 2024) report showing that India has improved its position by eleven slots and is now placed at 49th rank as against 60th rank scored in the NRI 2023 report. 

On the global front, European markets were trading higher, even as Spain's consumer price inflation increased more than expected in November to the highest level in four months. The flash data from the statistical office INE showed that consumer price inflation rose to 2.4 percent in November from 1.8 percent in October. That was just above the expected rate of 2.3 percent. Asian markets ended mostly in red on Thursday, after Malaysia's producer prices decreased for the second straight month in October. The figures from the Department of Statistics showed that producer prices fell 2.4 percent year-on-year in October, following a 2.1 percent drop in September. 

Back home, on the sectoral front, paper industry stocks remained in focus as Indian Paper Manufacturers Association (IPMA) expressed concerns over rising imports of virgin fibre paperboard from countries like China and Chile, saying that below-cost shipments are hitting local producers and threatening their investments. Besides, cement industry stocks were in watch, as rating agency ICRA in its latest report has revised down its volume growth forecast for the cement industry to 4-5 per cent at 445-450 million tonne for the current fiscal (FY25) on account of slower-than-expected ramp-up in construction activity across the housing and infrastructure sectors, post the General Elections.

The BSE Sensex ended at 79043.74, down by 1190.34 points or 1.48% after trading in a range of 78918.92 and 80447.40. There was 1 stock advancing against 29 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended mixed; the BSE Mid cap index fell by 0.06%, while Small cap index was up by 0.41%. (Provisional)

The few gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Utilities up by 0.63%, Realty up by 0.09%, PSU up by 0.05% and Oil & Gas up by 0.02%, while IT down by 2.26%, TECK down by 2.12%, Auto down by 1.39%, Consumer Durables down by 1.20% and Bankex down by 0.81% were the top losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The only gainer on the Sensex was SBI up by 0.55%. On the flip side, Infosys down by 3.46%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.36%, Bajaj Finance down by 2.84%, Adani Ports & SEZ down by 2.73% and HCL Tech. down by 2.54% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has said that the Indian automobile industry ranks third globally, behind China and the United States, but the government aims to elevate it to the top position within the next five years. The Indian automobile industry’s market size is around Rs 22 lakh crore. China leads with Rs 47 lakh crore, followed by the US at Rs 78 lakh crore. 

Gadkari said ‘Our mission and dream are to make the Indian automobile industry the world’s largest within five years. This industry is crucial to the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat.’ He stated ‘This sector is our top exporter, contributes the highest GST revenue to both state and central governments, and has so far generated 4.5 crore jobs. By focusing on ethanol, methanol, biodiesel, bio-LNG, electric vehicles, and hydrogen, we are investing in the fuels of the future.’

Besides, talking about the issue of air pollution, he emphasised the need for adopting alternative energy sources for vehicles. He noted ‘We annually import fossil fuels worth Rs 22 lakh crore, a major contributor to pollution. In the transport sector, finding alternatives to fossil fuels is critical.’ He added pollution is a pressing concern. Without reducing fossil fuel imports, the air pollution problem cannot be resolved.

The CNX Nifty ended at 23914.15, down by 360.75 points or 1.49% after trading in a range of 23873.35 and 24345.75. There were 4 stocks advancing against 46 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The few gainers on Nifty were Adani Enterprises up by 1.64%, Shriram Finance up by 0.82%, SBI up by 0.57% and Cipla up by 0.11%. On the flip side, SBI Life Insurance down by 5.10%, Infosys down by 3.53%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 3.53%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 3.36% and Bajaj Finance down by 2.92% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading higher; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 24.01 points or 0.29% to 8,298.76, France’s CAC rose 61.68 points or 0.86% to 7,204.71 and Germany’s DAX gained 163.2 points or 0.85% to 19,424.95.

Asian markets ended mostly in red on Thursday amid much uncertainty about U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's tariff policies and the Federal Reserve's interest-rate path. Investors looked ahead to a key economic meeting of Chinese policymakers next month, where there could be more stimulus actions to boost the struggling economy. Japanese market finished notably higher as the dollar rebounded back up to the lower 151-yen range and reports emerged that U.S. restrictions on sales of semiconductor technology and AI memory chips to China would not be as severe as previously expected. Seoul’s KOSPI fluctuated before ending flat as the Bank of Korea cut its key policy rate for a second consecutive meeting and lowered its growth forecasts, citing weaker global demand, higher tariffs and more policy uncertainty.