Asian markets are trading mixed as investors await the release of China's trade data in the day ahead. Hang Seng is experiencing a notable decline of 1.59%, while Shanghai is down by 0.52%. However, Nikkei is showing some resilience, trading higher by 0.22%.

Automobile wholesales of listed companies rose marginally by 1% YoY to 12.1 lakh units in July, while exports fell by 16.9% YoY to 2,49,213 units.

Domestic two-wheeler wholesales of listed companies were down 3.4% YoY to 8.1 lakh units, and passenger vehicle wholesales rose 8% YoY to 2.3 lakh units.

Asian markets are trading lower as investors eagerly await the release of China's inflation data and trade balance data later this week. Hang Seng is down by 0.07%, while Shanghai is experiencing a decline of 0.64%, and Nikkei is also trading lower by 0.07%.

Amid a challenging global economic landscape, Indian software giants have faced a tough climate in FY24. The first quarter was disappointing, with weak revenue growth and a cautious outlook due to macroeconomic uncertainties.

Indian exchanges reported a strong July 2023. This is evident from growth in equity derivatives (more than INR 3trn ADTV), cash (back to more than INR 700bn ADTV) and robust commodity options in MCX (adjusted total volumes taking futures and 40% of option for revenue equivalence at INR 478bn for Jul’23 vs INR 294bn/370bn in FY22/23).

Payments ecosystem remains strong in terms of credit card (count, spends, receivables per card), monthly Paytm data (GMV, merchant addition, credit disbursement) and UPI data (transactions/value up by 59%/46% YoY to 9.3bn/INR 14.8trn in Jun’23).

NIFTY50 index is consolidating just below the 20,000 mark after rallying 14% from Mar’23 lows (modest 7% YTD return) while robust earnings expansion catches up, thereby indicating rational behaviour. However, bull market frenzy is visible in the mid, small and micro-cap indices, which have risen 25%, 29% and 42% respectively from Mar’23 lows.

Key takeaways from recent quarterly results of large US banks: 1) Technology spend growth rate has slowed down vs the previous quarter for Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. However, full-year tech spend outlook remains intact for Bank of America and J.P. Morgan (7% YoY in CY23 vs 14.4% YoY in CY22).

On the face of it, the acquisition of Sanghi Industries (SIL) by Ambuja Cements (ACEM) comes across as industry consolidation. However, we view it as a catalyst to start price war in West India given – a) SIL’s sales volumes stand at just 2-2.5mn tonnes p.a. as against cement capacity of 6.1mtpa and clinker capacity of 6.6mtpa; b) with Adani
Group’s expertise in port logistics and ACEM’s strong brand presence in West India, we see huge scope for ACEM to run SIL units at optimal capacity.

On the face of it, the acquisition of Sanghi Industries (SIL) by Ambuja Cements (ACEM) comes across as industry consolidation. However, we view it as a catalyst to start price war in West India given – a) SIL’s sales volumes stand at just 2-2.5mn tonnes p.a. as against cement capacity of 6.1mtpa and clinker capacity of 6.6mtpa; b) with Adani Group’s expertise in port logistics and ACEM’s strong brand presence in West India, we see huge scope for ACEM to run SIL units at optimal capacity.