Barometers turn rangebound, Nifty hovers around 21,800

The key equity barometers traded in a narrow range with limited losses in afternoon trade. The Nifty traded near the 21,800 level. PSU bank, media and oil & gas shares advanced while private bank, financial services and auto stocks declined.

At 13:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 529.05 points or 0.73% to 71,622.95. The Nifty 50 index lost 125.20 points or 0.57% to 21,805.30.

The broader market outperformed the headline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap added rose 0.62% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap shed 0.05%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,772 shares rose and 2,016 shares fell. A total of 113 shares were unchanged.

RBI MPC Outcome:

The Reserve Bank of India�s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Thursday decided to keep its key policy rates unchanged.

It has decided to keep the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) unchanged at 6.50%. Consequently, the standing deposit facility (SDF) rate remains unchanged at 6.25% and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate at 6.75%.

In its last bi-monthly monetary policy of FY24, the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das-headed six-member MPC maintained the repo rate at 6.5% for the fifth consecutive time.

Global economy presenting a mixed picture, odds of a soft landing has increased globally. Emergence of new flash points imparts uncertainty to global macro landscape, the RBI Governor said.

MPC will carefully monitor generalisation of food price pressures which can fritter away the gains in easing of core inflation. Monetary policy must continue to be actively disinflationary to align inflation to 4 percent target on a durable basis. MPC will remain resolute in this commitment. Amidst current headwinds, elevated level of public debt is raising issues of macroeconomic stability in countries, including advanced ones, Governor Shaktikanta Das said.

Gainers & Losers:

Power Grid Corporation of India (up 5.41%), State Bank of India (up 4.46%), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (up 2.99%), Coal India (up 2.78%) and Hindalco Industries (up 1.81%) were major Nifty gainers.

Britannia Industries (down 3.44%), Nestle India (down 2.84%), Tata Consumer Products (down 2.68%), Eicher Motors (down 2.64%) and Axis bank (down 2.53%) were major Nifty losers.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Power Grid Corporation of India jumped 5.41% after the company`s consolidated net profit rose 10.50% to Rs 4,028.25 crore in Q3 FY24 as compared with Rs 3,645.29 crore posted in corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations rose 2.56% YoY to Rs 11,549.79 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2023.

Tata Consumer Products declined 2.68% after the company reported 20.72% declined in consolidated net profit to Rs 278.87 crore in Q3 FY24 as against Rs 351.76 crore recorded in Q3 FY23. Revenue from operations rose 9.48% to Rs 3,803.92 crore in Q3 FY24 from Rs 3,474.55 crore recorded in the corresponding quarter previous year.

Lupin rose 0.97%. The company`s consolidated net profit jumped 292.6% to Rs 618.7 crore in Q3 FY24 as compared with Rs 157.6 crore posted in corresponding quarter last year. Revenue from operations rose 20.2% YoY to Rs 5197.4 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2023 from Rs 4322.2 crore in the quarter ended 31 December 2023.

Parag Milk Foods (PMFL) rallied 4.44% after the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 34.16 crore in Q3 FY24, which is nearly four times as compared with the PAT of Rs 9.26 crore recorded in Q3 FY23. Revenue during the quarter rose by 8.8% YoY to Rs 800.84 crore.

Global Markets:

Most of the European and Asian stocks advanced on Thursday.

China`s consumer prices fell for a fourth consecutive month in January while factory-gate prices declined at a slower pace, the National Bureau of Statistics data showed on Thursday. The country`s consumer price index, a main gauge of inflation, dropped by 0.8% year-on-year in January, the NBS said, after a 0.3% decline in December. China`s producer price index, which gauges factory-gate prices, dropped by 2.5% from a year ago in January, following a 2.7% fall in December, the NBS said.

US stocks advanced on Wednesday as strong earnings offset jitters related to US regional banks and China`s markets.

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