Al China saw 15% fall in 2020 birth-rate
BEIJING: China’s number of registered births in 2020 dropped by nearly a third from the year before, in the latest sign that family planning policy relaxations are failing to spark a baby boom. Official figures showed there were 10.04 million registered births in 2020, which is 15% down from the figure reported last year for 2019.
Indian shares snapped a six-day rally on Tuesday, as investors locked in gains in high-flying automotive stocks following news of lower vehicle sales in January.
The NSE Nifty 50 index ended 0.04% lower at 15,109.30, having hit a record high earlier in the session. The S&P BSE Sensex also closed 0.04% lower at 51,329.08. Both indexes are still up nearly 11% so far this month.Of the 14 sectoral indexes, autos fell the most, shedding 1.39%.
Automakers Mahindra and Mahindra and Tata Motors, which had climbed 6.3% and 7.3%, respectively on Monday, fell more than 3% each and were among the biggest drags on the Nifty 50.
“The market has run up too fast and too big. Now, profitbooking is setting in, and it might continue for a few more days,” said AK Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital in Mumbai. India’s benchmark stock indexes have hit multiple all-time highs in recent sessions, as investors cheered last week’s high-spending and growth-focused federal budget. Strong foreign inflows into equities and solid corporate earnings have also aided sentiment. Future Group companies jumped nearly 10% after an Indian court overturned an order that had stalled the group’s $3.4 billion deal to sell its retail assets to Reliance Industries.
Meanwhile, global stock markets climbed to a record high on Tuesday, following a record-setting day on Wall Street.
THE NSE NIFTY 50 INDEX ENDED 0.04% LOWER AT 15,109.30, HAVING HIT A RECORD HIGH EARLIER IN THE SESSION