Market rises for 4th day; Nifty tops 11,450

Key benchmark indices ended higher on Wednesday, tracking positive Asian cues and decent Q2 earnings. The key barometers advanced for fourth straight session even though the market breadth was titled in favour of sellers.

The barometer index, the BSE Sensex, rose 92.90 points or 0.24% to 38,598.99. The Nifty 50 index rose 43.25 points or 0.38% to 11,471.55.

On the BSE, 1152 shares rose and 1317 shares fell. A total of 198 shares remain unchanged.

The broader market was mixed. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.14%, but the S&P BSE Smallcap index rose 0.21%.

The Sensex rose 1.9% while the Nifty gained 2.11% in past four trading sessions.

The Nifty 50 index opened higher and extended gains to hit an intraday high of 11,480 in morning trade. The index pared gains and traded below the day's opening in mid-morning session. The 50-unit index firmed up once again in afternoon session before giving up profits and hitting the day's low in mid-afternoon session. Buying in last half hour of the trade pushed the Nifty above 11,450 mark.

Among the sectoral indices on BSE, the S&P BSE Oil & Gas index (up 1.2%), the S&P BSE Realty index (up 1.09%) and the S&P BSE IT index (up 0.69%) outperformed the Sensex.

The S&P BSE Power index (down 1.06%), the S&P BSE Utilities index (down 0.88%) and the S&P BSE Metal index (down 0.42%) underperformed the Sensex.

Meanwhile, the yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 6.764% compared with 6.660% in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee edged higher and was hovering at 71.4, compared with its close of 71.545, during the previous trading session.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for December 2019 settlement was down 22 cents at $58.52 a barrel. The contract fell 61 cents or 1.03% to settle at $58.74 a barrel during the previous trading session.

On the macro front, India's trade deficit narrowed 27.4% to seven month low of $10.86 billion in September 2019 from $14.95 billion in September 2018. Oil imports declined 18.3% to $8.98 billion, while the non-oil imports dipped 12.3% to $27.91 billion in September 2019 over September 2018. The share of oil imports in total imports was 24.3% in September 2019, compared with 25.7% in September 2018.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reduced India's growth forecast for FY20 by 90 basis points to 6.1%, down from the 7% estimated in July. Meanwhile, the growth forecast for FY21, which stood at 7.2% in July, was slashed by 20 bps to 7%.

The downward revision in India's growth forecast by the IMF reflects a weaker-than-expected outlook for domestic demand. Monetary policy easing and the recent corporate tax rate cuts are to support growth with a lag, the IMF said. Government programs to support rural consumption will also aid growth, it added.

Overseas, most European stocks edged lower Wednesday as investors looked for cues on the likelihood of an imminent Brexit deal between the U.K. and the EU.

Asian shares ended higher. South Korea's central bank cut its interest rate for the second time in three months on Wednesday, following its first cut in July.

US stocks gained on Tuesday on strong US corporate results and a possible deal to avoid a disorderly British exit from the European Union.

Back home on the equity front, Bajaj Auto rose 0.38% after the two-wheeler company launched a Bajaj Chetak Chick, which is the first ever all-electric scooter of the company and would be sold under its Urbanite brand that will solely sell electric vehicles (EVs).

Shares of Bajaj Consumer Care were locked in an upper circuit of 20% at Rs 234.65 on bargain hunting after a recent steep slide. Shares of Bajaj Consumer have slumped 19.41% in two trading sessions to end at Rs 195.55 yesterday, from a recent closing high of Rs 242.65 on Friday, 11 October 2019.

Bajaj Consumer Care's promoter, Bajaj Resources, sold 3.22 crore shares, representing 22% stake, of Bajaj Consumer Care at an average price of Rs 194.56 on Tuesday, 15 October 2019. Fund houses like Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund, ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund, HDFC Mutual Fund and Steinberg India Emerging Opportunities Fund, were among the buyers of shares.

ONGC rose 2.05%. ONGC Videsh, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ONGC, recorded discoveries of oil in its onshore exploration block CPO-5, Colombia in the Llanos basin and major gas in the deep offshore exploration block BM-SEAL4, Brazil in the Sergipe Alagoas Basin. The announcement was made after trading hours yesterday, 15 October 2019.

Bharat Electronics (BEL) rose 1.36%. BEL reported that President of India, acting through Ministry of Defense, Government of India sold 1.61 crore shares of the company through off market. The Government sold its shares to ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company under Further Fund Offer of Bharat 22 ETF launched by the AMC. Post disposal of shares, Government's stake in the company reduced from 55.93% to 55.27%.

IT major Wipro rose 2.11%. The company's consolidated net profit rose 6.91% to Rs 2552.70 crore on a 1.98% rise in total income to Rs 15875.40 crore in Q2 September 2019 compared with Q1 June 2019. The result was announced after trading hours yesterday, 15 October 2019.

ACC gained 1.50%. The company's consolidated net profit rose 44.68% to Rs 302.53 crore on a 3.28% rise in total income to Rs 3582.16 crore in Q3 September 2019 compared with Q3 September 2018. The result was announced after trading hours yesterday, 15 October 2019.

SBI Life Insurance surged 4.50%. On standalone basis, the company's net profit declined 48.2% to Rs 129.84 crore while total income rose 32.1% to Rs 12889.78 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 September 2018.

New Business Premium (NBP) jumped 40% to Rs 7,820 crore in the first half of the year ending March 2020 (H1 FY2020) over Rs 5,570 in H1 FY2019. The company said it attained leadership position in Individual NBP amongst private life insurers with a growth of 30% and market share of 22.3%.

Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) rose 1% after consolidated net profit surged 99.69% to Rs 71.75 crore on a 54.96% rise in total income to Rs 144.53 crore in Q2 September 2019 compared with Q2 September 2018. The result was announced after trading hours yesterday, 15 October 2019.

Karnataka Bank fell 2.62%. The bank's net profit fell 5.3% to Rs 105.91 crore on a 17.2% increase in total income to Rs 1938.40 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 September 2018. Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) stood at Rs 2594.27 crore as on 30 September 2019 as against Rs 2437.53 crore as on 30 June 2019 and Rs 2371.62 crore as on 30 September 2018. The ratio of gross NPAs to gross advances stood at 4.78% as on 30 September 2019 as against 4.55% as on 30 June 2019 and 4.66% as on 30 September 2018

Federal Bank fell 2.78%. The bank's net profit rose 56.63% to Rs 416.7 crore on a 19.02% increase in total income to Rs 3675.17 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 September 2018. The bank's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) stood at Rs 3612.11 crore as on 30 September 2019 as against Rs 3394.69 crore as on 30 June 2019 and Rs 3184.53 crore as on 30 September 2018. The ratio of gross NPAs to net advances stood at 3.07% as on 30 September 2019 as against 2.99% as on 30 June 2019 and 3.11% as on 30 September 2018.

DB Corp jumped 4.51%. On consolidated basis, the company's consolidated net profit soared 63.61% to Rs 75.57 crore on a 9.17% decline in net sales to Rs 533.56 crore in Q2 September 2019 compared with Q2 September 2018. Total income fell 9.17% to Rs 533.56 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 September 2018. The company's Advertising Revenue stood at Rs. 367 crore in Q2 September 2019 as against Rs. 413.2 crore in Q2 2018. The board has also declared an interim dividend of Rs 6.5 per equity share.

Aditya Birla Money jumped 5.11%. The company reported a 23.15% rise in net profit to Rs 2.90 crore in Q2 September 2019 as against Q2 September 2018. Total income decreased 8.63% to Rs 40.27 crore in Q2 September 2019 over Q2 2018.

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