Benchmarks drift lower in early trade, Nifty below 19,100 level

The key equity indices were trading near the flat line with minor cuts in early trade. The Nifty traded below the 19,100 level. Realty, oil & gas and auto stocks advanced while metal, private bank and bank shares declined.

At 09:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 63.76 points or 0.10% to 63,811.17. The Nifty 50 index shed 11.55 points or 0.06% to 19,068.05.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 0.04% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.35%.

The market breadth is strong, On the BSE, 1,697 shares rose and 925 shares fell. A total of 113 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 696.02 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 340.25 crore in the Indian equity market on 31 October, provisional data showed.

Economy:

The index of eight core industries in India saw a growth of 8.1% in September on an annual basis, data from the Ministry of Commerce & Industry showed Tuesday. The index had grown 12.1% in August. The index rose 7.8% YoY between April and September 2023-24.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Bharti Airtel fell 1.09%. The telecom major`s consolidated net profit slipped 37.5% to Rs 1,340.7 crore in Q2 FY24 as against Rs 2,145.2 crore reported in Q2 FY23. Revenue from operations grew 7.29% to Rs 37,043.8 crore in the quarter ended 30 September 2023, backed by strong and consistent performance in India operations.

Larsen & Toubro rose 0.70%. The engineering & construction major`s consolidated net profit rose 45% to Rs 3223 crore on 19% rise in revenue to Rs 51024 crore in the quarter ended 30 September 2023 over the quarter ended 30 September 2022. The company received orders worth Rs 89,153 crore at the group level during the quarter ended 30 September 2023, registering a growth of 72% on y-o-y basis. The consolidated order book is at Rs 450,734 crore as on 30 September 2023, with international orders having a share of 35%.

Tata Consumer Products added 0.40%. The FMCG company has recorded 1% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 359 crore on a 11% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 3,734 crore in Q2 FY24 as compared with Q2 FY23.

Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL) tumbled 5.81%. JSPL has reported 534% rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,390 crore in Q2 FY24 from Rs 219 crore in Q2 FY23. Net revenue, however, declined by 9% year-over-year to Rs 12,282 crore in the second quarter from Rs 13,522 crore recorded in the same period last year.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper added 0.04% to 7.354 from its previous close of 7.351.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 83.2675, compared with its close of 83.2425 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 December 2023 settlement declined 0.33% to Rs 60,740.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.04% to 106.71.

The United States 10-year bond yield advanced 0.76% to 4.914.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for January 2023 settlement gained 19 cents or 0.22% to $85.21 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks were trading higher on Wednesday ahead of a policy decision from the U.S. Federal Reserve, as investors monitored a slew of manufacturing data. The Fed will conclude its two-day monetary policy meeting later in the day, with markets expecting the central bank to stand pat on interest rates.

China�s Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing PMI fell to 49.5 in October from 50.6 in September, marking the first contraction since July.

US stocks closed higher on Tuesday, regaining some ground at the end of a dismal month that was defined by surging interest rates.

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