Sensex, Nifty trade with small gains; breadth strong

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Barometers traded with small gains in early afternoon trade. All the sectoral indices on the NSE were in the green. Metal, pharma and PSU banks stocks rallied while FMCG shares saw profit selling.

At 12:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 109.43 points or 0.22% at 49,618.51. The Nifty 50 index added 51.3 points or 0.35% at 14,742.25.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.72% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.38%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1939 shares rose and 714 shares fell. A total of 152 shares were unchanged.

The buying was supported by positive cues from other Asian stock markets, backed by surveys showing higher production across Asia’s factories last month, and the the U.S. government’s $2 trillion spending plan.

US President Joe Biden unveiled a massive infrastructure package on Wednesday, which includes roughly $2 trillion in spending over eight years. The government will raise the corporate tax rate to 28%, combined with measures designed to stop offshoring of profits, to fund the infrastructure plan within 15 years.

Derivatives:

The NSE’s India VIX, a gauge of market’s expectation of volatility over the near term, fell 1.8% to 20.2725. The Nifty March futures were trading at 14,839.95, at a premium of 91.15 points as compared with the spot at 14,748.80.

The Nifty option chain for 29 April 2021 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 22 lakh contracts at the 15,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 37.6 lakh contracts was seen at 14,000 strike price.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty PSU Bank index gained 0.93% to 2,177.85, rising for fourth consecutive trading day. The index added 3.8% in four days.

Indian Overseas Bank (up 5.62%), Central Bank of India (up 4.91%), Punjab Sindh Bank (up 4.83%), UCO Bank (up 2.7%), Bank of India (up 2.36%), J&K Bank (Up 1.56%), Punjab National Bank (up 1.5%) and Union Bank of India (up 1.47%) were top gainers in PSU banking space.

March Auto Sales:

Escorts fell 1.54%. The company’s Agri Machinery Segment (EAM) in March 2021 sold 12,337 tractors, its highest ever March sales, and registered a growth of 126.6% against 5,444 tractors sold in March 2020. Sequentially, the company’s tractor sales have increased by 9.86% last month from 11,230 units sold in February 2021. Domestic tractor sales in March 2021 stood at 11,730 tractors, registering a growth of 124.4% from 5,228 tractors sold in March 2020. Escorts said the tractor demand is expected to continue to be strong led by higher Rabi output, favourable crop prices, and initial positive forecast of 2021 monsoon season, all supporting rural customer sentiments.

Maruti Suzuki rose 0.52%. The car major’s total sales surged 99.31% to 1,67,014 units in March 2021 as against 83,792 units March 2020. Sequentially, the company’s total auto sales rose 1.54% in March 2021 as against 1,64,469 units sold in February 2021. Total domestic sales (PV+LCV) jumped 94.23% to 1,49,518 units while total export sales surged 146.11% to 11,597 units in March 2021 over March 2020. Total domestic sales (domestic+OEM) grew 96.53% to 1,55,417 units in March 2021 over 79,080 units in March 2020.

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