Sensex ends at fresh closing high, Nifty below 10,850; banks lead

All that happened in the markets today

3:44 PM

Top Sectoral loser: Nifty Realty

3:40 PM

Nifty Bank rallies 0.94% as govt may increase FDI in private banks

3:36 PM

Sectoral Trend

3:34 PM

Sensex top gainers and losers

3:32 PM

Market at close

Benchmark indices ended at fresh closing highs on Thursday, tracking global markets, with banking stocks contributing the most to gains amid expectations that the government would increase the foreign investment limits for banks.

 

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 35,260, up 178  points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,817, up 28 points.

3:22 PM

MCX gets Sebi's approval for deliverable futures contract in brass

 

MCX, the leading exchange for non-agri commodity derivatives, is for the first time in India planning futures contract in brass.

 

In another first for MCX, this metal contract, unlike other metals traded on the exchange, will be physical deliverable. Market regulator SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) has already approved the contract's launch. Read more
 

3:13 PM

Here's what GST Council may announce today after the crucial meet

 

A fortnight ahead of the Union Budget, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council is likely to take up rationalisation of rates of about 70 items, of which at least 40 are services. Amendment in rules may also be taken up to simplify filing and plug some of the loopholes. A fitment committee of officers has made these recommendations to the Council, which will meet on Thursday.

 

With the aim to boost struggling agriculture and rural economy, and encourage clean energy, the Council is expected to rationalise rates of agriculture implements and unconventional fuel buses. It is the last Council meeting before Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presents his last full Budget on 1 February, before general elections in 2019. Read more

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley with (R) MoS for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla, Arvind Subramanian Chief Economic Advisor and (L)Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia at 25th GST Council Meeting in New Delhi | Photo: Dalip Kumar

3:00 PM

Commodity bourse NCDEX appoints Vijay Kumar as MD & CEO for next 3 years

 

Leading commodity bourse NCDEX on Thursday announced the appointment of Vijay Kumar Venkataraman as the new Managing Director and CEO of the exchange for three years effective today.

 

He brings over 25 years of experience in leadership roles in the areas of commodity trading and merchandising along with risk management, logistics and operations, it said. Read more
 

2:46 PM

Earnings

UltraTech Cement, part of the Aditya Birla Group, on Thursday posted a 23% drop in third-quarter profit, hurt by rising pet coke and coal prices.

Profit fell to Rs 4.56 billion ($71.4 million) for the quarter ended Dec 31, from Rs 5.95 billion a year ago, the company said. 

Earnings Impact

2:33 PM

Market Check

S&P BSE Sensex	35,357.89		0.79%
Nifty 50	10,855.05		0.62%
S&P BSE 200	4,776.79		-0.03%
Nifty 500	9,688.75		0.02%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	17,653.68		-1.55%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	19,402.45		-1.45%

2:17 PM

GIFT City wants regulatory tweaks to bring IFSC on par with global centres

 

Gujarat International Finance Tec-City Company Limited (Gift) said on Wednesday that a host of regulatory changes will bring India’s first international financial services centre on a par with such well-established centres in Singapore and Hong Kong.

 

The measures include waiving short-term capital gains tax on derivatives trade, allowing retail investors to trade and removing regulatory hurdles to make it attractive for foreign portfolio investors. Click here for full story

2:00 PM

HDFC Bank, HDFC, ITC contribute over 50% of Sensex 400 points rally

 

HDFC twins – HDFC Bank and Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) - and fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) giant ITC collectively contributed more than half of the Sensex 400 points rally.

 

The index hit a new high of 35,507 in intra-day trade today.

 

Besides, three stocks – ICICI Bank, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki India and YES Bank, these five stocks combined contributed 130 points of the total benchmark index rally.

 

HDFC Bank, HDFC, L&T and Hindustan Unilever are four stocks from the Sensex hit their respective all-time highs in intra-day today.

Click here for full story

1:46 PM

Agri input firms likely to earn robust profits in Q3 ahead of rabi season

 

Companies making agricultural inputs are set to post better profits in the December quarter due to rising demand of seeds, agro-chemicals and fertilisers in the rabi season.

 

The trend is likely to continue in the second half of the financial year with both the top and bottom lines of farm input companies expected to witness robust growth. The first half of the year was affected by inventory buyback in the run-up to the imposition of the goods and services tax and delayed monsoon rainfall. Read more
 

1:38 PM

Why LTCG tenure should be increased, and STCG scrapped

 

It’s that time of the year when we all turn children and ask for gifts from our very own Santa – the finance minister. Demands for increase in basic exemption limit, tax-saving investment limit and interest deduction for self-occupied house’s limit are the perennial favourite toys sought by us.

 

This year, ahead of Budget 2018, the demands are shriller, since it is the last full Budget before the elections in 2019. And, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is expected to provide gifts. Read more

1:18 PM

Mindtree soars 11% on strong Q3 results

 

Mindtree hit a 52-week high of Rs 694, up 11% on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in intra-day trade, after the compared reported a better than expected 13.4% quarter on quarter (q-o-q) growth in net profit at Rs 1.41 billion for December quarter (Q3FY18). The information technology services company had profit of Rs 1.03 billion in previous quarter.

 

Operational revenue grew 3.4% q-o-q at Rs 13.78 billion against Rs 13.32 billion in September quarter. In dollar terms, Mindtree’s revenue grew 3.9% q-o-q at $ 214.3 million. READ MORE

12:59 PM

Sectoral Trend

12:44 PM

Bharti Infratel down 5% as Q3 profit misses estimates

 

Bharti Infratel has dipped 5% to Rs 349 on BSE in intra-day trade after the company reported 6% decline in consolidated net profit at Rs 5.85 billon in December quarter.

 

The telecom services provider had profit of Rs 6.20 billion in the same quarter previous fiscal.

 

Revenue grew 7% at Rs 36.55 billion against Rs 34.01 billion in the corresponding quarter of previous year. READ MORE

12:29 PM

Return of the big boys: Why large-cap stocks might be the best bet for 2018

 

Investors aligning their investments to indices would be better placed betting on large-caps in 2018, it would seem.

 

After four years of underperformance, the blue chip-focused Sensex and Nifty are expected to fare better than the small-cap and mid-cap indices, going by forecasts of brokerages. According to Bloomberg consensus data, analysts are predicting an average 8% upside to Sensex companies, compared to 3-4% expected on the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices. Read more
 

12:18 PM

Panacea Biotec surges 10% on collaboration with Serum Institute of India

 

Panacea Biotec surged 10% to Rs 284 on BSE in intra-day trade after the company announced the collaboration with signing of two long term agreements with Serum Institute of India(SII) and SII's wholly owned subsidiary, Bilthovan Biologicals BV (BBIO).

 

Under the collaboration, SII is entitled to manufacture & sell fully liquid Whole cell Pertussis (wP) and Salk based Injectable Polio Vaccine (IPV) based Hexavalent vaccine (DTwP-HepB-Hib-IPV) developed & commercialized by Panacea Biotec, a first of its kind in this category. Read more
 

12:01 PM

Market Check

S&P BSE Sensex	35,426.69		0.98%
Nifty 50	10,860.30		0.67%
S&P BSE 200	4,797.68		0.41%
Nifty 500	9,720.50		0.35%
S&P BSE Mid-Cap	17,849.93		-0.46%
S&P BSE Small-Cap	19,683.47		-0.02%

11:45 AM

Investing in small-caps? Direct investors should beware of valuation risks

 

Last week the BSE Small-cap Index touched a new high, crossing the 20,000 mark. Over the past year, small-cap stocks have rallied strongly, with this index giving a return of 53.22 per cent.

 

However, valuations within this space have now risen to exorbitant levels. The Nifty Free Float Small-cap 100 Index is currently trading at a 12-month trailing price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 199.1, according to Bloomberg — almost four times the 10-year average P/E of 51.8. Read more
 

11:34 AM

Did the Bitcoin burst? How it compares to history's most famous bubbles

 

Bitcoin’s recent wobbles have given fresh urgency to a question that’s gripped market observers for much of the past year: Will the cryptocurrency go down as one of history’s most infamous bubbles, alongside tulipmania and the dot-com craze?

 

The magnitude of Bitcoin’s boom (before it lost as much as 48% from its Dec 18 high) suggests investors have reason to be worried. Read more
 

11:15 AM

Amid growing competition, Eicher may disappoint on growth expectations

 

The Eicher Motors stock has shed nine per cent over the past month, and about 14 per cent since November, on worries that greater competition will eat into the company’s lucrative market. Further, when the falling order is falling and new models have not gained significant success, the company may not meet the Street’s expectations on growth in volumes. It is no surprise then that some brokerages have downgraded the stock. 

 

In fact, analysts at IIFL Institutional Equities have turned negative on the scrip. They highlight that Royal Enfield’s (RE’s) falling order book indicates weak order flows, declining benefits from network expansion, and lack of success of new models. These trends are much in contrast to the strong order book and near monopoly situation Eicher had not long ago. READ MORE

10:59 AM

HDFC Bank market cap crosses Rs 5-trillion mark first time

 

HDFC Bank saw its market capitalisation (market-cap) crossing Rs 5-trillion after the share price of the bank hit a new high on Thursday. The country’s private sector lender becoming the third firm after Reliance Industries (RIL) and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to achieve this milestone.

 

In past four trading sessions, HDFC Bank has outperformed the market by gaining 4% after its parent company Housing Development Finance Corporation’s (HDFC) board approved fund raising worth Rs 130 billion through a combination of a preferential allotment and Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP).

HDFC Bank branch office in Mumbai

10:46 AM

HDFC Securities sees Nifty going past 11.5k in FY19, sets 11,800 target

 

Expecting an earnings growth of 21.5 per cent next fiscal, domestic stock brokerage HDFC Securities has set the Nifty target at 11,800 for fiscal 2019.

 

The domestic stock brokerage expects Nifty earnings to grow by 13.5 per cent this fiscal year from 10.4 per cent a year-ago. Click here for full story

10:32 AM

Sensex hits 35,000, gains 1,000-point rally in 16 sessions

 

It has taken a mere 16 trading sessions for the Sensex to move from 34,000 to 35,000. HDFC, Infosys, TCS and ICICI Bank have contributed nearly 700 points to the latest 1,000-point gain.

 

So far this fiscal year, FPIs have pumped in over Rs 20 billion into domestic stocks, helping the benchmark index climb 3%. Last year, the Sensex had gained 28% amid huge inflows from equity mutual funds. Following the sharp gains, the 30-share Sensex now trades at 19 times its one-year forward estimated earnings, much higher than its long-term average of 16 times. Read more

10:15 AM

Banks extend rally; HDFC Bank at new high, ICICI Bank nears record high

 

Banking shares extend rally for the second straight day, with the Nifty Bank hit a new high of 26,888 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in intra-day trade on Thursday after a strong gain in private sector as well as public sector banks (PSBs).

 

At 09:38 am; Nifty Bank index, the largest gainer among sectoral indices, was up 2% at 26,805 as compared to the benchmark Nifty 50 index. Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Private Bank index were up 1.4% and 1.9%, respectively. Click here for full story
 

10:00 AM

Adani Transmission hits record high post Q3 results

 

Adani Transmission hit a record high of Rs 252, up 9% on BSE in early morning trade after the company reported profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 1.55 billion for the quarter ended December 2017 (Q3FY18).

 

“On a comparable basis excluding recovery of arrears PAT for the Q3FY18 has increased to Rs 1.55 billion against Rs 999 million of Q3FY17,” Adani Transmission said in a press release. Read more

9:46 AM

Sensex tops 35,000-mark: Here's what market players are saying

 

BSE Sensex breached the 35,000 mark for the first time on Wednesday, as banks rallied after the government decided to cut its additional market borrowing requirement by 60% for the current fiscal year.

 

The BSE Sensex was up 0.89% at 35,081.82, while the broader NSE Nifty ended 0.82% higher at 10,788.55. Both indexes posted record closing highs. Click here to know what market players are saying
 

9:33 AM

RIL results preview: GRM to decline, petchem biz to drive profitability

 

Oil-to-telecom conglomerate Reliance Industries (RIL) is expected to report a sequential decline in gross refining margins (GRM), while still maintaining it in double digit. The market is watching out for the telecom division’s performance which surprised the street with an operating profit in the previous quarter.

 

In a Bloomberg poll, nine analysts estimated the company’s consolidated profit at Rs 84.96 billion against Rs 81.09 billion and seven analysts estimated revenue of Rs1.02 trillion against revenue of Rs 914.81 billion reported in the same quarter a year back. At a standalone level, nine analysts expect revenue at Rs 851.11 billion and 10 analysts expects net income at Rs 85.46 billion. Read more