Indian equity benchmarks are trading flat in morning deals amid volatility, as traders remained on sidelines ahead of Consumer price index (CPI) data for September and Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data for August slated to be announced on October 12. Some concern also came as Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri warned surging oil prices could hinder the economic recovery of many nations by curbing demand. Traders took a note of traders' body CAIT flagged the 'inordinate delay' in the roll-out of a national e-commerce policy and consumer protection rules, saying the delay in their implementation has provided an opportunity to certain foreign e-commerce players to damage domestic retail trade. On the global front, Asian markets are trading higher as markets wagered that U.S. rates have peaked after more dovish remarks from Federal Reserve officials, while traders awaited the U.S. consumer inflation report later in the day for further monetary policy clues.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 66346.27, down by 126.78 points or 0.19% after trading in a range of 66342.53 and 66577.60. There were 12 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.32%, while Small cap index was up by 0.54%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 1.37%, Energy up by 0.99%, Oil & Gas up by 0.97%, PSU up by 0.80% and Auto up by 0.66%, while TECK down by 0.83%, IT down by 0.80%, Realty down by 0.50%, FMCG down by 0.28%, Capital Goods down by 0.15% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 1.84%, NTPC up by 1.28%, JSW Steel up by 1.05%, Tata Steel up by 0.92% and Indusind Bank up by 0.82%. On the flip side, TCS down by 1.67%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.07%, Infosys down by 0.99%, Nestle down by 0.90% and Bharti Airtel down by 0.72% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Crisil in its latest report has said that the Indian agrochemicals sector is likely to witness 3 per cent decline in revenue in this financial year (FY24) due to falling prices, tepid demand and lower reservoir levels. It mentioned for the first time in a decade, agrochemical makers will see a 3 per cent drop in revenue in 2023-24 due to falling prices globally following a supply deluge from China, muted demand for exports (53 per cent of revenues) owing to destocking by global manufacturers and the impact of lower reservoir levels on rabi sowing.

Further, it stated operating margins too may plunge by 400-450 basis points (bps) to a decadal low of 10-11 per cent this fiscal due to lower volumes and realisations, impacting cash accruals for agrochemical players. Besides, it said that volume growth within India will be in the low single digit this fiscal year given that inventories with domestic manufacturers are high because of lower exports. It noted erratic monsoon, resulting in low reservoir levels and posing a risk to rabi sowing, which typically accounts for 35 per cent of the domestic pesticide consumption, could also be a challenge.

Moreover, it said the current muted demand is prompting agrochemicals manufacturers to prune their capital expenditure (capex) plans. It added this coupled with healthy balance sheets should provide sufficient headroom to withstand business pressures. Crisil Ratings Director Poonam Upadhyay said ‘Increased supplies of low-priced products from China prodded global agrochemicals companies to increase inventory by 45 days between January and June. The subsequent destocking amid a slowing global economy led to slump in exports from India in the first half of this fiscal. However, with global manufacturers restocking before the onset of the cropping season in Latin America and the US, which accounts for 55 per cent of exports, a recovery in overseas demand should begin from November.’

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 19813.85, up by 2.50 points or 0.01% after trading in a range of 19772.65 and 19843.30. There were 22 stocks advancing against 28 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Coal India up by 2.14%, Maruti Suzuki up by 1.69%, Hindalco up by 1.55%, BPCL up by 1.52% and NTPC up by 1.45%. On the flip side, TCS down by 1.66%, Tech Mahindra down by 1.08%, Infosys down by 1.02%, Nestle down by 1.00% and Cipla down by 0.96% were the top losers.

All Asian markets are trading higher; Nikkei 225 surged 536.15 points or 1.68% to 32,472.66, Taiwan Weighted added 122.74 points or 0.74% to 16,794.77, Hang Seng advanced 338.18 points or 1.85% to 18,231.28, Straits Times rose 35.23 points or 1.1% to 3,228.10, KOSPI increased 21.36 points or 0.87% to 2,471.44, Jakarta Composite gained 33.19 points or 0.48% to 6,964.94 and Shanghai Composite strengthened 25.4 points or 0.82% to 3,104.36.