Domestic indices trade marginally higher in late morning deals

Domestic equity indices traded marginally higher in late morning deals on account of buying in Maruti Suzuki, Adani Ports, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and Bajaj Finance. There was some encouragement in markets on report that finance ministry said the government will continue its focus on improving quality spending, strengthening the social security net and bring down the fiscal deficit to 4.5 per cent of the GDP in FY26. However, broader indices were trading in red with BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index falling in the range of 0.40-0.55%. On the BSE sectoral front, traders were seen pilling up positions in Auto, PSU, Power, Utilities and Energy, while selling was witnessed in Realty, Basic Materials, Industrials, FMCG and Capital Goods. 

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green as traders reacted to China's central bank holding the interest rate on the one-year medium-term lending facility at 2%. Back home, in the stock specific development, Ceigall India surged after the company’s subsidiary Ceigall Ludhiana Bathinda Greenfield Highway signed a concession agreement with NHAI for a Rs 981 crore six-lane highway project. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 78518.43, up by 45.56 points or 0.06% after trading in a range of 78325.37 and 78898.37. There were 15 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.53%, while Small cap index down by 0.40%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 0.76%, PSU up by 0.30%, Power up by 0.29%, Utilities up by 0.27% and Energy up by 0.13%, while Realty down by 0.91%, Basic Materials down by 0.37%, Industrials down by 0.30%, FMCG down by 0.25% and Capital Goods down by 0.24% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 2.00%, Adani Ports up by 1.83%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.45%, Tata Motors up by 0.99% and Bajaj Finance up by 0.40%. On the flip side, TCS down by 0.51%, Asian Paints down by 0.44%, ICICI Bank down by 0.32%, Tech Mahindra down by 0.20% and Tata Steel down by 0.18% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has formulated a strategy to boost India's exports to America, aiming to capitalise on potential opportunities that may arise as the US President-elect, Donald Trump, has threatened to impose high tariffs on Chinese goods. As part of its plan, the body has urged the government to provide financial assistance for Indian exporters to participate in exhibitions across the US.

FIEO Vice President Israr Ahmed has said ‘we have identified five key sectors in the strategy -- apparel, electronics, toys, footwear, and organic chemicals -- as areas of focus to drive growth in exports to the American market’. He emphasised the need for aggressive promotion and visibility in the US market, stating that increased financial support would enable Indian exporters to showcase their products effectively and tap into emerging opportunities created by the shifting trade dynamics. 

He said ‘capacities are being built as big factories are coming up in the country. We have to increase our presence in the US. We are asking for more fundings under the Market Access Initiatives (MAI) scheme to seize the opportunities. The scheme should focus on the US for at least three years.’ He noted that FIEO is also looking at joining hands with associations of the US in these sectors. He said a lot of apparel firms are shifting bases to India from Bangladesh due to political uncertainties there. About the major challenges for exporters, Ahmed said 'liquidity', and added that export finance, too, has come down.

FIEO has urged the government to relax the requirement of making payments to MSMEs within 45 days of buying goods and services, besides a five-year extension of interest equalisation scheme. Further, he said FIEO is discussing with the commerce ministry the issue of documentation (if RodTEP benefits to an exporter is crossing Rs 1 crore) to deal with countervailing duty cases on domestic products over the RoDTEP scheme. The move is important as countervailing or anti-subsidy duties were imposed on certain domestic units by the US and the European Union.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23758.70, up by 31.05 points or 0.13% after trading in a range of 23701.05 and 23854.50. There were 33 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Ports up by 1.87%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.85%, Mahindra & Mahindra up by 1.60%, SBI Life up by 1.52% and Coal India up by 1.27%. On the flip side, Trent down by 0.56%, Asian Paints down by 0.43%, TCS down by 0.40%, Grasim Industries down by 0.29% and ICICI Bank down by 0.24% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green; Shanghai Composite strengthened 2.38 points or 0.07% to 3,395.73, Nikkei 225 surged 429.87 points or 1.1% to 39,560.30 and Taiwan Weighted added 26.81 points or 0.12% to 23,246.94.  However, Straits Times fell 4.85 points or 0.13% to 3,764.70 and KOSPI dropped 7.39 points or 0.3% to 2,433.13.