Indian markets down on Asian cue

Fri, 6 Jan 09:30 am

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All major Asian stock markets have opened the day on a weak note with stock markets in South Korea (down 1.4%), Hong Kong (down 1.3%) and Japan (down 1%) leading the losses. The Indian stock markets have also opened the day on a weak note. Stocks in the capital goods, banking and metal space are leading the losses. However, technology stocks are trading firm.

The BSE-Sensex is trading lower by 74 points (0.5%), while the NSE-Nifty is down by around 24 points (0.5%). Mid cap and small cap stocks are trading mixed, with the BSE Mid cap index marginally down by 0.05%, while the BSE Small cap index is trading flat. The rupee is trading at 52.82 to the US dollar.

Food Stocks have opened the day on a mixed note with Lakshmi Energy and ITC Ltd trading firm. However, Sterling Biotech and United Spirits are facing selling pressure. Nestle India, consumer goods and dairy major, announced that it has started the contract farming for coffee in the southern part of India. This is called Nescafe Plan which is a global initiative by Nestle. This initiative brings coffee farming, production and consumption under a single umbrella. The company is of the opinion that it will help them to optimise their own supply chain and accrue benefits. The company's R&D (research & development) team will provide farmers with high yielding and disease resistant plantlets that are made for local conditions. This in turn will help the company to source coffee sustainably by working closely with coffee farmers. Nestle India has also setup coffee demo farms and training centres in Karnataka.

Auto Stocks have opened on a weak note with Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors (Telco) and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M) leading the losses. At the Auto Expo 2012, Maruti Suzuki showcased its new concept Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) car called XA Alpha. Its design has been based on the traditional Indian martial art of wrestling. The company said that it will plan its production based on the feedback that it receives from customers and others. The company has developed this vehicle in a bid to address the changing expectations of customers for more sophisticated cars based on their personality and lifestyle. This car was the result of research and development efforts of Suzuki Motor Company, Japan and Maruti Suzuki over the last 9 months. For the auto industry, the utility vehicle segment accounted for about 3.5 lakh units in total sales, which is about 14% of all passenger vehicles sold. As a result, many auto companies are either launching or planning to launch compact SUVs.