Indices trade near flat line, bank stocks decline

The frontline indices pared gains and traded near the flat line in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty traded a tad above the 17,600 level. Bank stocks witnessed profit booking after advancing in the past seven trading sessions.

At 14:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 34.81 points or 0.06% to 59,798.16 . The Nifty 50 index added 5.30 points or 0.03% to 17,604.45.

The broader market outperformed the headline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.28% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.15%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,906 shares rose and 1,656 shares fell. A total of 153 shares were unchanged.

Skymet expects below normal monsoon for India in 2023:

Private weather forecaster Skymet expects the upcoming June-September monsoon to be `below normal` to the tune of 94% of the long period average (LPA). In January, Skymet had forecast the monsoon 2023 to be sub-par and now retains the same outlook.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper declined to 7.216 from 7.219 in previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 81.78, compared with its close of 82.02 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2023 settlement slipped 0.84% to Rs 60,001.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.07% to 102.03.

The United States 10-year bond yield fell 0.60% to 3.363.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2023 settlement added 3 cents or 0.04% to $85.15 a barrel.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index fell 0.61% to 40,790.50, snapping its seven-day rising streak. The index witnessed profit booking after advancing 4.18% in seven trading sessions.

IDFC First Bank (down 1.36%), ICICI Bank (down 0.85%), IndusInd Bank (down 0.79%), AU Small Finance Bank (down 0.61%), Axis Bank (down 0.53%), Punjab National Bank (down 0.32%) and HDFC Bank (down 0.29%) edged lower.

On the other hand, Bandhan Bank (up 0.41%), Federal Bank (up 0.39%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.32%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Larsen & Toubro rose 1.34%. The EPC major said that its hydrocarbon business, L&T Energy Hydrocarbon (LTEH), has secured a significant order under its AdVENT (Advanced Value Engineering and Technology) business vertical. As per L&T classification, the value of the significant project is Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 2,500 crore. The counter hit a 52-week high of Rs 2,319.65 in intraday today.

Ajmera Realty & Infra India (ARIIL) jumped 6.30% after the company announced that its sales value stood at Rs 140 crore in Q4 FY23, registering the growth of 16% as compared with Rs 122 crore in Q4 FY22. Sequentially, sales value rose 10% in Q4 FY23 from Rs 128 crore posted in Q3 FY23.

Thomas Cook (India) rallied 3.85% after the company & SOTC Travel announced the signing of exclusive long-term agreement with Mandai Wildlife Group to target the high growth India market.

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