IT stocks nudge higher

Market hovered firmly in positive terrain in early afternoon trade. At 12:15 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 167.09 points or 0.52% at 32,195.98. The Nifty 50 index was up 45.80 points or 0.46% at 9,961.05. Both the Sensex, and the Nifty, had hit record high in mid-morning trade.

Indices opened on a positive note and later traded firm in positive terrain so far. Market has got a boost from the reported comments by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya that India is likely to clock a 7.5% economic growth in FY 2018.

Among secondary barometers, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.45%, underperforming the Sensex. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index advanced 0.64%, outperforming the Sensex.

The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1,409 shares rose and 1,032 shares declined. A total of 142 shares were unchanged.

IT stocks nudged higher. Wipro (up 1.92%), Infosys (up 0.85%), TCS (up 0.75%), Tech Mahindra (up 0.63%) and HCL Technologies (up 0.07%) gained. Persistent Systems (down 2.64%) declined.

Auto stocks were mixed. Maruti Suzuki India (down 0.03%) and Eicher Motors (down 0.01%) edged lower. Hero MotoCorp (up 0.61%), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 0.43%) and Bajaj Auto (up 0.04%) edged higher.

Tata Motors was down 0.3%. The company said it is holding a meeting of its duly constituted committee of the board on 26 July 2017, to consider issue of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) aggregating to Rs 1000 crore in one or more tranches. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 21 July 2017.

Tata Sponge Iron rose 1.85% after net profit surged 189.76% to Rs 30.57 crore on 57.69% rise in total income to Rs 185.39 crore in Q1 June 2017 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 21 July 2017.

IIFL Holdings gained 2.95% after consolidated net profit jumped 59% to Rs 252 crore on 57% rise in income to Rs 907 crore in Q1 June 2017 over Q1 June 2016. The company announced its results on Saturday, 22 July 2017.

Overseas, Asian stocks witnessed a mixed trend. The Nikkei Flash Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, dropped to an eight-month low of 52.2 in July from 52.4 in June. A reading above 50 signals an improvement, while one below 50 points to a contraction in activity.

US equities fell on Friday, 21 July 2017, as General Electric led industrial stocks edged lower. Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision on Wednesday, 26 July 2017. The Federal Reserve had raised the target range for its federal funds rate by 25 basis points to 1% to 1.25% during its June 2017 meeting.

On the macro front, NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya reportedly said that India is likely to clock a 7.5% economic growth in FY 2018, even as he acknowledged that creation of "good jobs" in the country remains a big challenge. With the Indian government implementing the big ticket reform of the Goods and Services Tax, Panagariya reportedly said while there could be some teething troubles as the country embraces the ambitious financial reform, he does not see it significantly impacting economic growth going forward.

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