FIRST TRADE: Sensex trades flat, Nifty hovers around 18,390; HDFC duo top laggards

The equities started on a muted note on May 16, 2023. In the opening deals, the S&P BSE Sensex was quoting at 62,321.32, down 24 points, or 0.04 per cent while the NSE's Nifty was trading at 18,393.10, down 6 points, or 0.031 per cent. HDFC and HDFC Bank were the top laggards on the Sensex. Both the stocks are trading ex-dividend today. In the broader market, the S&P BSE SmallCap index was ruling half a per cent higher at 29,912.33 levels while the S&P BSE MidCap was trading 0.44 per cent higher at 26,441.37 points. 

Among individual stocks, Sonata Software hit a record high of Rs 933.05 on the BSE after the company reported its March quarter numbers. PVR Inox was trading 3 per cent lower at Rs 1,422.20 on the BSE after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 333.99 crore for the fourth quarter that ended on March 31, 2023. The company had posted a net loss of Rs 105.49 crore in the January-March period a year ago. Its revenue from operations was at Rs 1,143.17 crore during the quarter under review. It was Rs 536.17 crore in the year-ago period.

"The market momentum, primarily driven by relentless FPI buying, is strong enough to take the market to record highs. Bank Nifty racing to fresh highs has the potential to push the Nifty towards an all-time high of 18,887. The global market construct also is favourable with resilience in the mother market US. The only joker in the pack now is the uncertainty regarding the US debt ceiling impasse. For long-term investors, there are contrarian value-buying opportunities in leading IT names. Remain invested in high-quality stocks. At record levels, some profit booking may be considered," says Dr V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

SECTOR WATCH

Oil & gas stocks were trading with decent gains after the government announced that the windfall tax on petroleum crude has been slashed to zero. GAIL (up 1.60 per cent) was the top gainer on the index, followed by ONGC, and IOC. Besides, realty stocks continued to rally. The S&P BSE Realty index was trading 0.86 per cent higher at 3,815.12 levels. DLF and Godrej Properties were the biggest gainers on the index. 

GLOBAL MARKETS

Asia stocks mostly held firm on Tuesday despite weaker-than-expected Chinese economic data, with investors expecting the world's second-biggest economy to provide policy support. Japan's broad Topix gained 0.48 per cent to 2,124.92, its highest since August 1990, helped by the robust outlook of its megabanks. China's industrial output grew 5.6 per cent in April from a year earlier, accelerating from the 3.9 per cent pace seen in March and marking the quickest growth since September 2022, data showed on Tuesday. But it was well below expectations for a 10.9 per cent increase in a Reuters poll of analysts.