Key benchmark indices once again trimmed losses from lower level in a rangebound trade. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 60.77 points or 0.24% at 25,428.80. The Nifty 50 index was currently down 23.30 points or 0.3% at 7,791.60. Sentiment was impacted after India's weather department, the India Meteorological Department, in its latest update forecast a delay in the onset of the Southwest monsoon. Weakness in European stocks also played as a spoilsport.
In overseas markets, European stocks edged lower despite Asian bourses shrugging off more evidence of a slowing Chinese economy. Most Asian stocks rose, shrugging off soft Chinese data released over the weekend. China's investment, factory output and retail sales all grew more slowly than expected in April, adding to doubts about whether the world's second-largest economy is stabilizing, data released on Saturday showed. Industrial output rose 6% year-over-year in April, compared with 6.8% growth in March, the National Bureau of Statistics said. Fixed-asset investment in urban areas grew by a weaker-than-expected 10.5% year-over-year in the January-to-April period, compared with an annual increase of 10.7% for the first three months of 2016. Retail sales grew by a less-than-expected 10.1% in April compared with a year earlier, slowing from March's 10.5% year-over-year rise. US stocks ended lower during the previous trading session on Friday, 13 May 2016 on a slump in consumer-focused companies.
Closer home, the market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was negative. On BSE, 1,294 shares declined and 1,046 shares rose. A total of 141 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently down 0.14%. The fall in this index was lower than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently off 0.32%. The fall in this index was higher than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms.
Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) dropped 1.87%. The company said that it has bagged Rs 1600 crore order for setting up coal based thermal power project in Odisha. The announcement was made during market hours today, 16 May 2016. The 250 megawatts unit will be set up at Rourkela power project on engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) basis. The order has been placed on Bhel by NTPC-SAIL Power Compny (NSPCL), a joint venture of NTPC and SAIL.
Realty stocks declined on worries that the Reserve Bank of India may hold off on cutting rates in its next monetary policy meet scheduled next month after data showed that inflation based on wholesale price index turned positive in April 2016. Unitech (down 2.71%), DLF (down 0.49%), Housing Development & Infrastructure (HDIL) (down 0.12%), and D B Realty (down 2.32%) edged lower. Sobha (up 1.95%), Indiabulls Real Estate (up 0.75%), and Oberoi Realty (up 1.22%) gained. Purchases of both residential and commercial property are largely driven by finance.
Shares of most power generation and power distribution companies edged lower. Tata Power Company (down 0.92%), NTPC (down 1.31%), Adani Power (down 1.01%), Power Grid Corporation of India (down 0.91%), Reliance Infrastructure (down 1.64%) and Reliance Power (down 1.32%) declined. Torrent Power (up 0.13%), GVK Power & Infrastructure (up 2.58%), and NHPC (up 0.7%) gained.
State run coal miner Coal India gained 0.18% to Rs 282. The stock hit high of Rs 284 and low of Rs 279.70 so far during the day.
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Among macro data, the inflation based on wholesale price index (WPI) stood at 0.34% in April 2016 as compared to a reading of negative 0.85% in March 2016, data released by the government today, 16 May 2016 showed. Build up inflation rate in the financial year so far was 1.37% compared to a build up rate of 0.17% in the corresponding period of the previous year. The annual rate of inflation based on final index for February 2016 stood at negative 0.85% as compared to negative 0.91% reported earlier.
Meanwhile, separate data showed that India's merchandise exports continued to register year-on-year decline in value terms at the beginning of the new financial year. Merchandise exports fell 6.74% at $20.57 billion in April 2016 over April 2015. Non-petroleum exports fell 3.68% at $18.58 billion in April 2016 over April 2015. The trend of falling exports is in tandem with other major world economies, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. Imports fell 23.1% at $25.41 billion in April 2016 over April 2015. Oil imports fell 24.01% at $5.65 billion. Non-oil imports fell 22.83% at $19.76 billion. The trade deficit fell sharply to $4.84 billion in April 2016 from $10.99 billion in April 2015. The commerce ministry released the trade data for April 2016 after trading hours on Friday, 13 May 2016.
India's weather department, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday, 15 May 2016 said that the statistical model forecast suggests that the monsoon onset over Kerala in this year is likely to be slightly delayed. The southwest monsoon is likely to set over Kerala on 7 June 2016 with a model error of 4 days. The arrival of the south-west monsoon in Kerala marks the beginning of monsoon season. Earlier, IMD in its release of the long range forecast for the 2016 southwest monsoon season rainfall on 12 April 2016, said that the monsoon seasonal rainfall during the forthcoming monsoon is likely to be 106% of the Long Period Average (LPA) with a model error of 5%. The LPA of the seasonal rainfall over the country as a whole for the period 1951-2000 is 89 cm.
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