Indices end higher after a choppy session, Nifty hold 10100; IT stocks gain

All that happened in the market today

3:42 PM

Market rundown by Nikhil Kamath, Co-Founder and Head of Trading, Zerodha

 

Markets opened lower in  trade Tuesday on the back of weaker global cues; the downtick was soon bought into with markets rallying post 10 am to close up for the session overall. Banks were weak in trade today, with public sector banks underperforming again, Oil marketing companies were weak in trade today, whereas auto and metals were the best performers of the session.

 

Overall markets seem to have reached oversold territory in the short term, and we would recommend entering fresh positions at this juncture with a long-term view towards portfolio building."

3:40 PM

Nifty IT index ends 1.51% higher. Top gainers:

COMPANY	LATEST	PREV CLOSE	GAIN( )	GAIN(%)	VOLUME
TECH MAHINDRA	634.90	609.90	25.00	4.10	3262256
KPIT TECH.	231.65	226.20	5.45	2.41	2490492
INFOSYS	1169.40	1146.75	22.65	1.98	4169811
WIPRO	293.90	288.65	5.25	1.82	2676359
TCS	2870.15	2831.00	39.15	1.38	1963055

3:37 PM

Sectoral Trend

3:35 PM

BSE Sensex: Tata Steel top gainer of the day, ONGC top loser

3:32 PM

Market at close

 

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 32,997, up 74 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,124, up 30 points.

3:23 PM

I-T Dept says no to Sebi plea for tax exemption for unified broking licence

Indian tax authorities are not willing to concede the request of market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to provide one-time tax exemption to trading members of stock and commodity exchanges to do both businesses under one entity. READ MORE

3:16 PM

PNB woes spur Goldman to downgrade India's economic growth forecasts

Investment bank Goldman Sachs downgraded its forecasts for India's economy on Tuesday in the wake of a more than $2 billion fraud at Punjab National Bank, warning it could spark tighter regulation of the banking sector that would constrain credit growth.

In a note to clients, Goldman Sachs lowered its real gross domestic product (GDP) forecast on India for the year to March 2019 to 7.6 percent from 8 percent earlier. READ MORE

3:05 PM

Gold rebounds on jewellers' buying

Gold prices bounced back by Rs 210 to Rs 31,390 per 10 grams at the bullion market today on fresh buying by local jewellers, shrugging off a weak trend overseas. READ MORE

2:55 PM

Europe Trade

European markets edged higher as investors focused on earnings ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting.

 

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.32 per cent higher with almost every sector trading in positive territory.

 

Investors were monitoring a Federal Reserve meeting that starts today. The central bank is expected to announce a rate hike, which could have repercussions in the bond and equity markets.

2:45 PM

USFDA approvals can unlock $1 bn biosimilar business for Biocon in the US

 

Biocon Ltd, the only Indian drugmaker to win approval to sell copies of a biologic drug in the US, expects its business in that nascent sector will generate $1 billion in revenue by 2025 as it clears further regulatory hurdles this year.

 

The company’s other leading drug candidates are back on track for approval after hiccups in the US and Europe, said Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw in an interview. Biocon is also exploring the sale of part of its stake in its publicly traded contract research arm, Syngene International Ltd., to fund its growing ambitions in the biologics business, she said. The stake is worth about $1.2 billion. READ MORE

2:34 PM

Most active stocks by value

COMPANY	PRICE( )	CHG( )	CHG(%)	VALUE(  CR)
TATA STEEL	593.45	18.40	3.20	68.23
INFOSYS	1161.30	14.15	1.23	61.14
EDELWEISS.FIN.	253.65	0.30	0.12	56.69
KOTAK MAH. BANK	1047.10	-4.25	-0.40	55.34
ICICI BANK	291.80	-3.20	-1.08	53.66

2:17 PM

JBF Industries nears four-year low; tanks 27% in two trading days

 

JBF Industries was quoting close to its four year low at Rs 104, down 9%, falling 27% from Rs 143 in past two trading days on the BSE. The stock is trading at its lowest level since May 27, 2014.

 

Since February 8, 2018, JBF Industries tanked 44% from Rs 185 after reported a weak set of numbers for the quarter ended December 2017 (Q3FY18). On comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 4% during the same period. READ MORE

2:01 PM

Market Check

 

S&P BSE Sensex	32,974.77		0.16%
Nifty 50	10,118.20		0.24%
S&P BSE 200	4,423.73		0.16%
Nifty 500	8,910.65		0.19%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	15,973.26		0.06%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	17,183.98		-0.26%

1:45 PM

Sugar mills urge govt to re-introduce minimum indicative export quota

Hit by a sustained fall in prices for their output, sugar mills have urged the central government to re-introduce the earlier Minimum Indicative Export Quota (MIEQ).

Introduced in September 2015 for sugar season 2015-16, this had allowed mills to export (the Centre has to permit any shipment) a cumulative four million tonnes (mt) of white sugar, with allocations up to a cap among mills, within a specified period. The aim was to cut surplus stock within the country. READ MORE

1:30 PM

Cipla rebounds after clarification on USFDA observations for Goa unit

Cipla has moved higher to Rs 558, bouncing back 7% from its early morning low on the BSE, after the company said that the observations received from the US drug regulator are procedural in nature. READ MORE

1:14 PM

Nalco, Canada's Almex to forge JV for Rs 25 bn auto-grade aluminium unit

National Aluminium Company Ltd (Nalco) has firmed up plans to set up a joint venture with Ontario (Canada)-based Almex for the production of automotive-grade aluminium. The project, estimated to cost Rs 25 billion, will come up at the downstream aluminium park at Angul (Odisha) in the vicinity of Nalco’s aluminium smelting unit. READ MORE

1:01 PM

Domestic steel companies to urge Centre for anti-dumping duty revision

Primary domestic steel producers will ask the government for a mid-term review of the anti-dumping duty on hot- and cold-rolled steel products in the wake of a sharp rise in raw material prices since the duty was imposed in August 2016. READ MORE

12:45 PM

Elpro International zooms 20% on PNB MetLife stake sale plan

Shares of Elpro International have surged 20% to Rs 49.45 per share on the BSE in intra-day trade after the company said it will offload 1.25% of its equity stake in PNB MetLife Insurance Company (MetLife), which may fetch it about Rs 1,250 million. READ MORE

12:30 PM

Airline stocks trade firm post February domestic passenger traffic data

Shares of airline companies such as SpiceJet, InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) and Jet Airways (India) gained by upto 2% on the BSE after the domestic air passenger traffic recorded 24.14% year on year surge at 10.7 million in February 2018. READ MORE

12:16 PM

Top gainers in BSE Midcap

COMPANY	LATEST	PREV CLOSE	GAIN( )	GAIN(%)	VOLUME
JINDAL STEEL	232.15	220.90	11.25	5.09	1020059
S A I L	71.90	68.85	3.05	4.43	1128944
MARICO	312.90	301.90	11.00	3.64	46004
CROMPTON GR. CON	226.00	219.80	6.20	2.82	6617
RELIANCE CAPITAL	428.75	418.90	9.85	2.35	253754

12:01 PM

Markets at noon

 

S&P BSE Sensex	33,058.89		0.41%
Nifty 50	10,141.95		0.47%
S&P BSE 200	4,435.48		0.42%
Nifty 500	8,934.25		0.45%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,021.21		0.36%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	17,262.24		0.20%

11:46 AM

Market may be heading for a bear phase; short-term trend clearly negative

 

The market broke down from a trading zone and it now appears to heading into what could be a long-term bear market. The Nifty was trading a zone of 10,300-10,600. Once a key support at 10,275 broke, the likely target would be about 10,000. That is well below its own 200-Day Moving Average ( 200-DMA), which is currently around 10,150. Friday, the Nifty dropped below its 200-DMA when it closed at 10,094. A move below the 200-DMA generally indicates a long-term bear market.

 

The short-term trend is clearly negative. The next bounce, on short-covering is likely to come along soon. But, the zone at 10,275-10,300 is now likely to provide stiff resistance. A quick rebound beyond 10,300 could lead to another phase of range trading. The VIX has climbed, which does indicate fear. Breadth was negative and there's more volume in net losers. READ MORE

11:31 AM

Top Nifty IT gainers

COMPANY	LATEST	PREV CLOSE	GAIN( )	GAIN(%)	VOLUME
TECH MAHINDRA	622.00	609.90	12.10	1.98	1133857
INFOSYS	1155.55	1146.75	8.80	0.77	1482173
KPIT TECH.	227.85	226.20	1.65	0.73	742199
TCS	2848.25	2831.00	17.25	0.61	674243
HCL TECHNOLOGIES	931.70	926.50	5.20	0.56	603784

11:17 AM

After Facebook and Google, Twitter likely to ban cryptocurrency ads: Report

 

After Facebook and Google, Twitter was now likely to ban cryptocurrency, token sales and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO) advertisements on its platform.

 

According to a Sky News report on Monday, the new Twitter policy will be implemented in two weeks. "Twitter may also ban all ads for cryptocurrency exchanges, with some limited exceptions, when the policy is launched," the report added. Google last week announced that it will ban advertisements for cryptocurrencies and other "speculative financial products" across its ad platforms. READ MORE

11:02 AM

Domestic investment bankers rake in hefty bonuses as issues swell

 

Domestic investment bankers are set to sign off a blockbuster year for equity fund-raising by taking home hefty bonuses, ranging between 100 and 200 per cent of their annual pay.

 

The current financial year has seen a mop-up in excess of Rs 1.2 trillion, a historic high, by way of initial public offerings (IPOs) and qualified institutional placements (QIPs).

 

Bonuses are typically commensurate with deal activity in any given year. Investment banks, on average, pocket 2-3 per cent as fees for managing an IPO and 1.5-2 per cent for handling QIPs. Fees vary depending on the issue size and the number of bankers managing the deal. READ MORE

10:45 AM

Canara Bank dips 5% on report of CBI filing charge sheet against ex-CMD

Canara Bank has dipped 5% to Rs 251 on the BSE in early morning trade after a media report suggested that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a charge sheet against ex-chairman and managing director (ex-CMD) of the state-owned bank. READ MORE

10:31 AM

Top BSE 500 gainers

COMPANY	LATEST	PREV CLOSE	GAIN( )	GAIN(%)	VOLUME
VAKRANGEE	271.00	260.45	10.55	4.05	515893
RELIANCE INFRA.	440.50	424.30	16.20	3.82	164118
BHARTI INFRA.	339.55	327.30	12.25	3.74	29229
S A I L	71.20	68.85	2.35	3.41	744834
MARICO	310.90	301.90	9.00	2.98	29870

 

10:15 AM

GSPL falls 6% after board approves stake buy in Gujarat Gas

Gujarat State Petronet (GSPL) dipped 6% to Rs 178 on the BSE in early morning trade after the company said that its board approved the acquisition of 28.4% stake of Gujarat Gas (GGL) from Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPCL) by way of an inter-se transfer. GSPL is a subsidiary company of GSPCL. READ MORE

10:01 AM

Market Check

 

S&P BSE Sensex	32,973.83		0.15%
Nifty 50	10,104.15		0.10%
S&P BSE 200	4,426.51		0.22%
Nifty 500	8,904.95		0.12%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	16,016.57		0.34%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	17,230.95		0.01%

9:47 AM

IPO analysis: Strong prospects for I-Sec, but correlated to markets

At a time when the stock markets are near all-time highs, many would want to invest in ICICI Securities (I-Sec), the country's largest equity broker since 2013-14, based on brokerage revenue and active customers on the National Stock Exchange. READ MORE