Nifty above 17,700; Sensex adds 113 pts; European stocks decline

The frontline indices traded in a narrow range with minor gains in the afternoon trade. The Nifty climbed above the 17,700 level. Metal, realty and oil & gas shares advanced while IT and FMCG stocks declined.

At 13:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 113.2 points or 0.19% to 59,657.16. The Nifty 50 index gained 46.25 points or 0.26% to 17,702.60.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.36% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.29%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,780 shares rose and 1,578 shares fell. A total of 133 shares were unchanged.

Weak future revenue guidance from corporates across the globe fuelled fears of a worldwide economic slowdown. However, the Bank of Canada's lower-than-expected interest rate hike added hopes that the US Fed would go easy on the magnitude of rate hike at its upcoming policy meeting.

Gainers & Losers:

JSW Steel (up 4.52%), Hindalco Industries (up 3.21%), Tata Steel (up 3.16%), Sun Pharma (up 1.88%) and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (up 1.86%) were the top Nifty 50 gainers.

Bajaj Finance (down 2.22%), Nestle India (down 1.65%), Bajaj Finserv (down 1.62%), Asian Paints (down 1.46%) and Tech Mahindra (down 0.99%) were top Nifty 50 losers.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Gland Pharma slumped 14.28% after the pharma company's consolidated net profit tumbled 20.1% to Rs 241.24 crore on 3.3% decline in net sales to Rs 1,044.40 crore in Q2 FY23 over Q2 FY22.

Punjab Alkalies & Chemicals jumped 8.21% after Quant Mutual Fund acquired 1.88% stake in the company via bulk deal on the BSE Tuesday, 25 October 2022. As per the bulk deal data on the BSE, Quant Mutual Fund purchased 45,56,962 shares, or 1.88% equity, of Punjab Alkalies & Chemicals at Rs 79 each on Tuesday, 25 October 2022. Meanwhile, Paramone Concepts sold 21,00,000 shares, or 0.87% equity, of the company at Rs 79.18 each.

Dabur India rose 2.99%. The FMCG major announced that it has signed definitive transaction agreements to acquire 51% shareholding of Badshah Masala Private Limited, which is engaged in the business of manufacturing, marketing and export of ground spices, blended spices and seasonings. Dabur is acquiring 51% stake in Badshah for Rs 587.52 crore, less proportionate debt as on the closing date, with the Badshah enterprise being valued at Rs 1,152 crore.

Separately, Dabur reported consolidated net profit of Rs 490.86 crore for the second quarter ended September 30 from Rs 505.31 crore reported in Q2FY22. Total income rose to Rs 3109.77 crore during Q2FY23 against Rs 2930.02 crore recorded in Q2FY22.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe were trading mostly lower while Asian stocks were trading mixed on Thursday on growing expectations that major central banks could start slowing the pace of interest rate hikes in coming months.

The Bank of Japan begins its two-day meeting on monetary policy Thursday.

South Korea's third-quarter GDP grew 0.3% from the previous quarter, according to official advance data the slowest growth since the third quarter of 2021. China's industrial profits for January to September fell 2.3% compared to a year ago, the National Bureau of Statistics reported.

U.S. stocks dropped on Wednesday as investors parsed fresh economic data and disappointing earnings while mulling the Federal Reserve's path after the Bank of Canada announced a smaller-than-expected rate hike of 50 basis points.

Meanwhile, the European Central Bank (ECB) is expected to roll out another super-size rate hike Thursday to combat runaway inflation, despite concerns higher borrowing costs could deepen the pain of a looming eurozone recession. The ECB's 25-member governing council is likely to lift its key interest rates by 75 basis points for the second consecutive time, as per reports.

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