MARKET WRAP: Sensex ends 391 pts higher led by financials, IMD forecast

Among sectoral indices, the Nifty Bank index rose 1.24 per cent led by a rise in the shares of Axis Bank, YES Bank and Punjab National Bank.

3:44 PM

Nifty Bank index settles 1.24%. Top gainers:

COMPANY	LATEST	PREV CLOSE	GAIN( )	GAIN(%)
AXIS BANK	574.90	547.25	27.65	5.05
PUNJAB NATL.BANK	88.25	85.15	3.10	3.64
YES BANK	373.45	361.80	11.65	3.22
IDFC BANK	41.20	40.10	1.10	2.74
KOTAK MAH. BANK	1310.05	1280.20	29.85	2.33

3:41 PM

Nifty sectoral gainers of the day

3:40 PM

BSE Sensex: Axis Bank, YES Bank, ICICI Bank among top gainers of the day

3:32 PM

Market at close

 

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 37,556, up 391 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 11,361, up 116 points.

3:15 PM

Emerging market flows rebound but second quarter inflow a tenth of first quarter: IIF

Investors pumped $11.9 billion into emerging stocks and bonds in July, reversing some of June's hefty outflows, according to the Institute for International Finance (IIF).

 

The IIF, one of the most authoritative trackers of capital flows to and from the developing world, also said portfolio inflows to developing countries totalled just $11 billion in the second quarter, a tenth of the $118 billion received in Q1. READ MORE

3:03 PM

Sebi in final stages of allowing futures trading in petrol and diesel

Over 60,000 retail petrol pump and hundreds and thousands of small and big transporters, bulk users and diesel-consuming industries will soon be able to hedge the price risk in petrol and diesel, as Sebi is in final stages of allowing futures in these two commodities. READ MORE

Petrol, Diesel futures

2:45 PM

This stock in Rakesh Jhunjhunwala's portfolio zooms 200% in one year

Shares of VIP Industries have moved higher by 10% to Rs 538 per share, also their record high on the BSE, after the company reported a strong 55% year on year (yoy) jump in its consolidated net profit at Rs 634 million in June quarter (Q1FY19). The company, which is engaged in manufacturing and marketing of luggage and bags, had a profit of Rs 410 million in the same quarter year ago. READ MORE

2:35 PM

Gold hits one-year low, headed for fourth weekly loss

Gold prices fell to their lowest in over a year on Friday amid a resilient US dollar and were headed for a fourth straight weekly loss.

Spot gold was down 0.1 per cent at $1,206.05 an ounce, after earlier dropping to the lowest since July 2017 at $1,204.91. For the week, the precious metal was down about 1.4 per cent. US gold futures were 0.5 per cent lower at $1,214.10 an ounce on Friday. READ MORE

Gold

2:19 PM

Jet Airways nears 52-week low; stock skids 9%

Shares of Jet Airways (India) have slipped 9% to Rs 302 per share on the BSE in intra-day trade after the media reports suggested that the airline will be unable to fly beyond 60 days unless cost-cutting measures including pay cuts are put in place. The stock was trading close to its 52-week low of Rs 297 touched on July 19, 2018 in intra-day trade. READ MORE

2:02 PM

Market Check

INDEX	LATEST	PREVIOUS	CHANGE	CHANGE(%)
	37484.40	37165.16	319.24	0.86
	15344.64	15219.82	124.82	0.82
	16201.35	16057.60	143.75	0.90
	16829.03	16639.81	189.22	1.14
	4401.12	4367.22	33.90	0.78

1:47 PM

Q1 results: Power Grid offers value, despite tariff concerns, stock gains

Even as Power Grid posted in-line performance for the June quarter (Q1), its stock gained a little over three per cent in the past two trading sessions despite the markets falling. All-round growth in Q1, improving visibility in the core power transmission business and, stock price correction of 20 per cent in the past two months that now factors in concerns over new tariff norms are all keeping analysts positive. READ MORE

1:31 PM

Trade war effect? Japan beats China as world's second-biggest stock market

China just lost its ranking as the world’s number two stock market. After a Thursday slump, Chinese equities were worth $6.09 trillion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with $6.17 trillion in Japan. The US has the world’s largest stock market at just over $31 trillion. READ MORE

1:12 PM

Venky's India zooms 44% in two days after exclusion from ASM list

Shares of Venky’s India have surged 20% to Rs 3,240 per share on the BSE in early morning trade on Friday on back of heavy volumes. The stock zoomed 44% in past two trading sessions from Rs 2,250 after the company got excluded from the additional surveillance measures (ASM) list with effect from Thursday. READ MORE

1:01 PM

MFs with exposure to RInfra stare at losses on downgrade of debt paper

Mutual fund (MF) schemes exposed to Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) are staring at mark-to-market losses, following the downgrade of the debt paper of the Anil Ambani-led firm. Rating agencies have assigned a ‘D’ (default) status to RInfra’s debentures due to non-payment of debt obligations within the due date. READ MORE

12:47 PM

Inflationary pressure weighs on Marico; sales up by 21%, net profit by 10%

Marico’s June quarter (Q1) numbers, announced on Thursday, were in line with analysts’ expectation. Sales and net profit grew 20.5 per cent over a year to Rs 20.3 billion and 10.3 per cent to Rs 2.6 billion, respectively. However, operating profit was a disappointment, amid high inflationary pressure. READ MORE

12:29 PM

MONSOON WATCH India set to receive average rainfall in August-September: IMD

India is set to receive average rainfall during the last two months of the crucial monsoon season that stretches between June and September, the country's weather office said on Friday. READ MORE

12:17 PM

Stocks of logistics firms in focus; TCI Express hits 52-week high

Shares of logistics companies were in focus and rallied by up to 8% on the BSE on expectations of impressive growth in the current financial year 2018-19. TCI Express, Sical Logistics, Patel Integrated Logistics, Allcargo Logistics, Transport Corporation of India and VRL Logistics were up in the range of 2% to 8% on the BSE. READ MORE

12:01 PM

Markets at noon

INDEX	LATEST	PREVIOUS	CHANGE	CHANGE(%)
	11309.80	11244.70	65.10	0.58
	9649.20	9588.80	60.40	0.63
	19054.65	18926.45	128.20	0.68
	7544.10	7475.60	68.50	0.92
	12.31	12.56	-0.25	-1.99

11:45 AM

BS Special Inflation, twin deficits are concerns for India's growth momentum

 

Amid a closing of the output gap, inflationary risks prompted the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to hike the repo rate by 25 bps in the August 2018 policy review. The Committee expects GDP growth to improve from 6.7 per cent in FY2018 to 7.4 per cent in FY2019 and 7.5 per cent in Q1 FY2020. At the same time, its inflation projections forecast a rise from 4.6 per cent in Q2 FY2019 to 4.8 per cent for H2 FY2019 and 5.0 per cent in Q1 FY2020, despite the back-to-back rate hikes. READ MORE

11:30 AM

Torrent Pharma rallies 8% on good Q1 results

 

Torrent Pharmaceuticals has rallied 8% to Rs 1,652, also its 52-week high on the BSE after the company reported a better-than-expected 37% year-on-year (YoY) growth in its consolidated revenues at Rs 18.72 billion in June quarter (Q1FY19). The company’s India business recorded 79% YoY growth and US business posted 23% YoY growth during the quarter.

 

“The company’s net profit during the quarter under review declined by 13.3% YoY at Rs 1.63 billion as against Rs 1.88 billion during the same period last year due to amortisation impact of branded business of Unichem Laboratories in Dec'2017 and lower foreign exchange gains,” Torrent Pharma said in a statement. READ MORE

11:15 AM

Morgan Stanley sells most of its shares in Shriram City Union Finance

 

Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) has sold a majority of its shares in Shriram City Union Finance (SCUF) for an aggregate amount of Rs 2.53 billion, while East Bridge Capital Master Fund has increased its stake in the company by acquiring almost the same number of shares for around Rs 2.55 billion.    

 

According to bulk deal data from the National Stock Exchange, Morgan Stanley has sold 1.3 million shares at Rs 1922.25 per share, from its total 1.4 million equity shares in the company, which accounts to around 2.25 per cent of the shares. East Bridge Capital, which has around 2.5 million shares in the company (3.88 per cent), has acquired 1.33 million shares for Rs 1922.25 per share. READ MORE

11:03 AM

Bank of Baroda: Reduction in credit costs, loan growth to boost earnings

 

The Bank of Baroda (BoB) stock, like those many public sector lenders, was under pressure after the bank posted losses in the March quarter. However, it has gained 30 per cent from early July on hope that the worst in terms of asset quality might be over for public sector banks (PSBs) and, importantly, its own good performance in the June 2018 quarter (Q1), reported last Friday.

 

With Q1 numbers showing asset quality improvement and pointing to better prospects, many analysts are positive on the bank.  READ MORE

10:53 AM

L&T divests stake in L&T Tech to meet 25% minimum public shareholding

 

Larsen & Tourbo (L&T) on Thursday divested its stake in L&T Technology Services to comply with the 25 per cent minimum public shareholding requirement. The engineering giant is offering up to 6.6 million shares, representing 6.6 per cent stake, through the so-called offer for sale (OFS) route.

 

So far, the offering has garnered bids for 5.34 million shares from institutional investors. Retail bidding -- for those investing up to Rs 200,000 -- will take place on Friday. The base price for the share sale has been set at Rs 1,400 apiece. Most of the bids in the OFS have come at Rs 1,402. READ MORE

10:41 AM

Services PMI expands for second consecutive month

The Indian service sector remained in expansion territory for the second consecutive month in July. Moreover, the latest upturns in business activity and new orders were the fastest since October 2016 and June 2017 respectively. Amid reports of improved demand conditions, business confidence towards the 12-month outlook picked up from June’s recent low. Subsequently, firms raised their staffing levels at the strongest pace since April. However, inflationary pressures remained marked during July.

The seasonally adjusted Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index posted above the neutral 50.0 threshold for the second consecutive month in July. Moreover, rising from 52.6 in June to 54.2, the latest reading signalled the strongest rate of output growth since October 2016. Favourable demand conditions were cited by panellists as the key factor behind the latest upturn. The headline seasonally adjusted Nikkei India Composite PMI Output Index rose from 53.3 in June to 54.1 in July, driven by output growth in both the manufacturing and service sectors. The latest rise in overall output was marked and the strongest seen since October 2016.

10:30 AM

Mphasis gains 4% as board mulls share buyback proposal

 

Shares of information technology (IT) company Mphasis is trading 4% higher at Rs 1,225 on the BSE in early morning trade after the company said that its board will consider a share buyback proposal on Tuesday, August 7, 2018.

 

The stock was trading close to its record high of Rs 1,237 recorded on July 25, during intra-day trade. READ MORE

10:15 AM

Q1FY19 earnings review Key takeaways from the top 10 sectors

 

The June 2018-quarter result season has been a mixed bag thus far. A recent study by Motilal Oswal of the 105 companies under their coverage suggest 62 per cent companies have posted profit after tax (PAT) and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) that are either in line with or above their estimates. For the 32 Nifty50 companies, this number stands at 69 per cent, the findings suggest. READ MORE

10:00 AM

Market Check

INDEX	LATEST	PREVIOUS	CHANGE	CHANGE(%)
	37434.17	37165.16	269.01	0.72
	15328.75	15219.82	108.93	0.72
	16188.34	16057.60	130.74	0.81
	16778.42	16639.81	138.61	0.83
	4397.19	4367.22	29.97	0.69

9:45 AM

WEB EXCLUSIVE Pakistan is value investor's mkt; India a classic growth story: Chris Wood

 

Imran Khan – led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) victory in the recently concluded general elections could see the country getting a bailout package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), writes Christopher Wood, managing director, equity strategist at CLSA in his weekly note GREED & fear.

 

An IMF bailout however, Wood cautions, has political implications given Pakistan’s role in recent years as the major guinea pig, or laboratory experiment, for China’s 'Belt and Road Initiative'. READ MORE

9:30 AM

Mutual funds load large-caps, reduce small-caps in first quarter

 

Expensive valuations and re-categorisation norms have led to churn in mutual fund (MF) holdings, with money flowing out of mid- and small-caps and moving into large-caps, an analysis of latest shareholding data shows. In the June quarter, MFs’ ownership of large-caps rose 120 basis points (bps) from the levels they held in the September quarter, before the market regulator issued a circular on re-categortisation.

 

Meanwhile, ownership levels in mid-caps inched up 90 bps, while that in small-caps reduced 10 bps. READ MORE HERE

9:20 AM

Nifty sectoral trend