Amid a divergent trend among various index constituents, key benchmark indices registered small losses. Index heavyweight and housing finance major HDFC edged lower. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 41.77 points or 0.15% to settle at 27,645.53.
Key benchmark indices today, 19 May 2015, snapped a two-day winning streak.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) edged higher in volatile trade after the company announced the pricing of its Regulation S offering of $200 million 5% Senior Unsecured Callable Notes due 2035. IT stocks rose. Most auto stocks edged lower. Realty stocks also edged higher. Bank stocks were mixed. Metal and mining stocks were mixed.
A bout of volatility was witnessed during the second half of the trading session as key benchmark indices reversed direction after extending intraday gains in mid-afternoon trade. The Sensex and the 50-unit CNX Nifty reversed direction after both these key benchmark indices surged to their highest level in almost four weeks in mid-afternoon trade on the back of a rally in European stocks.
Foreign portfolio investors sold shares worth a net Rs 96.71 crore into the secondary equity market yesterday, 18 May 2015, as per data released by the depositories. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 618.54 crore yesterday, 18 May 2015, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges.
In overseas markets, European stocks edged higher after European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board member Beno Coeursaid that the central bank would moderately front-load its purchases in its bond-buying program because of less market liquidity in the summer and that this move wasn't due to market conditions. Earlier during the global day, Chinese shares rose on signs of fresh investment from Beijing. US stocks edged higher yesterday, 18 May 2015, as both the Dow industrials and the S&P 500 reached all-time highs.
The S&P BSE Sensex fell 41.77 points or 0.15% to settle at 27,645.53, its lowest closing level since 15 May 2015. The index fell 113.23 points at the day's low of 27,574.07 in mid-afternoon trade. The index jumped 184.93 points at the day's high of 27,872.23 in mid-afternoon trade, its highest level since 23 April 2015.
The Nifty shed 8 points or 0.1% to settle at 8,365.65, its lowest closing level since 15 May 2015. The index hit a low of 8,335.20 in intraday trade. The index hit a high of 8,427.80 in intraday trade, its highest level since 23 April 2015.
The BSE Mid-Cap index fell 16.05 points or 0.15% to settle at 10,651.02. The the decline in the index was exactly the same as the Sensex's decline in percentage terms. The BSE Small-Cap index rose 39.81 points or 0.36% to settle at 11,187.73, outperforming the Sensex.
The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. On BSE, 1,453 shares rose and 1,289 shares fell. A total of 115 shares were unchanged.
The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 3434 crore, higher than turnover of Rs 3193.52 crore registered during the previous trading session.
Among the sectoral indices on BSE, the BSE Bankex (down 0.17%), the S&P BSE FMCG index (down 0.22%), the BSE Oil & Gas index (down 0.45%) and the BSE Auto index (down 0.77%) underperformed the Sensex. The S&P BSE IT index (up 0.73%), the BSE Teck index (up 0.73%), the BSE Consumer Durables index (up 0.54%), the BSE Realty index (up 0.47%), the BSE Metal index (up 0.43%), the BSE Capital Goods index (up 0.34%), the BSE Healthcare index (up 0.29%) and the BSE Power index (down 0.04%) outperformed the Sensex.
Index heavyweight and housing finance major HDFC fell 2.01% to Rs 1,237.50. The stock hit a high of Rs 1,260 and a low of Rs 1,233.25.
Index heavyweight Larsen & Toubro was up 0.16% at Rs 1,613.15. The stock hit a high of Rs 1,633.70 and a low of Rs 1,609.25.
Another index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) was up 0.51% at Rs 895. The stock hit a high of Rs 904.95 and a low of Rs 887.10. RIL today, 19 May 2015, announced that it has priced its Regulation S offering of $200 million 5% Senior Unsecured Callable Notes due 2035. The company made the announcement during market hours today, 19 May 2015. These notes, denominated in US dollars, have been issued primarily to Taiwanese life insurance companies and are proposed to be listed on Taipei Exchange (formerly known as GreTai Securities Market). Such notes are commonly known as Formosa Bonds. It is the first ever Formosa Bond issuance by an energy company globally and also the longest tenor Formosa Bond issuance by a corporate out of Asia. It is the first ever Formosa Bond issuance out of India. The notes are being issued at par and will bear a fixed interest rate of 5% per annum, with interest payable semi-annually in arrears and shall rank pari passu with all other unsecured and unsubordinated obligations of the company. The notes will also have an annual call option at par starting 5 June 2020. The funds will be utilized for the company's ongoing capital expenditure, the company said in a statement.
Meanwhile, with respect to media reports titled "Reliance Jio turns to China for cheap phones ahead of 4G rollout", Reliance Industries after market hours today, 19 May 2015, clarified that the company is working with multiple Indian and global manufacturers to test their devices on the company's network.
IT stocks edged higher. Tech Mahindra (up 1%), Hexaware Technologies (up 0.78%), Oracle Financial Services Software (up 0.72%), HCL Technologies (up 0.59%) and Persistent Systems (up 0.23%), edged higher. CMC (down 0.03%), TCS (down 0.33%), MindTree (down 0.61%) and MphasiS (down 2.45%) edged lower.
Wipro was up 1.65%. With respect to media reports titled "Wipro faces class action complaint in US," Wipro after market hours yesterday, 18 May 2015, clarified that the company complies with the laws of all of the countries in which it does business, but it is not immune to being sued. The company would not like to comment on this specific litigation, except to say it will vigorously defend itself against these allegations, Wipro said.
Infosys was up 1.29%. The company announced after market hours yesterday, 18 May 2015, that it has become the first Indian company to join RE100 -- a global platform for major companies committed to 100% renewable power. Infosys has taken great strides during the past seven years to become sustainable in its operations. As part of its commitment to RE100, Infosys aims to become carbon neutral by 2018. The company is already working to reduce its per capita electricity consumption by 50 per cent from its 2007-2008 levels and source all its electricity from renewable resources by 2018. During fiscal year 2015, Infosys met 29% of its electricity needs -- about 72.08 million units -- for its locations across India through green power. During the same period, Infosys generated over 2911 MWh of electricity through its onsite solar PV installations across India.
Most auto stocks declined. TVS Motor Company (down 0.76%), Eicher Motors (down 2.03%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 0.89%), Bajaj Auto (down 1.26%) and Ashok Leyland (down 0.42%) edged lower. Hero MotoCorp (up 2.27%) and Maruti Suzuki (India) (up 0.35%) edged higher.
Tata Motors was off 2.1% at Rs 509.35. The company today, 19 May 2015, announced the launch of all-new GenX Nano range, a new compact, feature-rich hatchback. The new GenX Nano comes with advanced technological features, making it the perfect city car, Tata Motors said in a statement. The GenX Nano will be available for sale across the country in over 450 Tata Motors sales outlets from today, 19 May 2015.
The GenX Nano has five variants viz. XE, XM, XT with Manual Transmission and XMA and XTA with Easy Shift Automated Manual Transmission (AMT). The GenX Nano comes with a starting price of Rs 1.99 lakh for the XE variant and goes up to Rs 2.49 lakh for the XT variant in manual transmission. The XMA variant with 'Easy Shift' Automated Manual Transmission will be made-to-order and will be available for sales from August 2015. The XMA variant is priced at Rs 2.69 lakh and the top-end XTA variant is priced at Rs 2.89 lakh and is available post the national launch. All prices are Ex-showroom, Delhi.
Bank stocks were mixed. Among private bank stocks, HDFC Bank (down 0.3%), IndusInd Bank (down 0.67%), Axis Bank (down 1.06%) and ICICI Bank (down 0.21%) declined. Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.97%), Federal Bank (up 1.17%) and Yes Bank (up 0.05%) rose.
Among PSU bank stocks, Punjab National Bank (up 0.71%), Indian Overseas Bank (up 0.94%), Bank of India (up 0.02%) and Union Bank of India (up 0.47%) rose. Bank of Baroda (down 1.02%), Canara Bank (down 0.25%) and State Bank of India (SBI) (down 0.1%) fell.
Metal and mining stocks were mixed. Vedanta (up 1.11%), Hindustan Zinc (up 0.8%), JSW Steel (up 1.13%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 0.22%), and Hindalco Industries (up 1.08%) edged higher. Steel Authority of India (down 0.22%), Hindustan Copper (down 0.16%), National Aluminum Company (down 1.1%) and NMDC (down 0.86%) edged lower.
Tata Steel rose 1%. With respect to news article titled, "Tata Steel nears UK plants sale to Swiss tycoon," Tata Steel clarified during trading hours today, 19 May 2015, that the company on 15 October 2014 informed the exchange that its European business had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Klesch Group to undertake detailed due diligence and negotiations for the potential sale of its Long Products Europe business and associated distribution activities. This process is continuing, Tata Steel said.
Tata Steel further said that the board and management of Tata Steel is committed to making disclosures at the appropriate time. The company has robust disclosure principles and follows a policy of not commenting on market speculation, the company said. Tata Steel further said that currently there has been no event that requires additional disclosure (apart from what has already been disclosed) under Clause 36 of the listing agreement.
Power generation stocks were mixed. NTPC (down 0.22%), Jaiprakash Power Ventures (down 4.28%), CESC (down 0.14%), GMR Infrastructure (down 0.6%), JSW Energy (down 2.22%) and Adani Power (down 0.24%) declined. Tata Power (up 1.13%), Reliance Infrastructure (up 3.51%), Reliance Power (up 0.56%), NHPC (up 0.79%) edged higher.
Earth System Science Organization, India Meteorological Department (ESSO-IMD), of the Ministry of Earth Sciences and Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Power Grid Corporation of India signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) yesterday, 18 May 2015, for optimum use of weather information/forecast in the power sector. As per the MoU, all weather information provided by ESSO-IMD shall be used by the power system operators across the India for better management of Indian power system and for the purpose of analysis, the Ministry of Earth Science said in a statement. ESSO-IMD and POSOCO have agreed to provide expert opinion and knowledge support in areas of weather information and its affect on power distribution system. The MoU is necessitated by the fact that energy sector is one of many spheres of human activity which are highly dependent on weather conditions. To increase the efficiency of power sector and to make them weather proof, it is not sufficient to act after they have taken place. Proactive steps are required to minimise the possible adverse impacts, Ministry of Earth Science said.
Cement shares declined. ACC (down 0.28%), Ambuja Cements (down 1.02%) and Shree Cement (down 1.8%) edged lower. UltraTech Cement rose 1.95%.
Grasim Industries rose 1.08%. Grasim has exposure to the cement sector through its subsidiary UltraTech Cement.
Colgate-Palmolive (India) shed 0.51%. The company's net profit rose 24% to Rs 163.60 crore on 11% growth in net sales to Rs 1022.20 crore in Q4 March 2015 over Q4 March 2014. The result was announced during market hours today, 19 May 2015. Colgate-Palmolive (India) said that it posted a robust volume growth of 5% both for Q4 March 2015 and for the year ended 31 March 2015 (FY 2015) in toothpaste. The company continued to enhance its leadership position in toothpaste category by registering a volume market share of 57.8% for the period January-April 2015, an increase of 70 basis points over the same period of the previous year. The flagship brands -- Colgate Dental Cream, Active Salt, Max Fresh and Visible White -- have contributed to this growth, the company said. Colgate-Palmolive (India) further maintained its leadership position in the Toothbrush category by registering a volume market share of 42.1% for the period January-April 2015.
Most realty stocks edged higher. DLF (up 0.98%), Housing Development and Infrastructure (up 1.71%), D B Realty (up 3.55%), Unitech (up 1.06%), Godrej Properties (up 0.27%), and Parsvnath Developers (up 2.17%) gained. Indiabulls Real Estate (down 0.96%), Sobha (down 0.09%) and Oberoi Realty (down 0.16%) fell.
Key benchmark indices today, 19 May 2015, snapped their two-day winning streak. The Sensex had gained 481.24 points or 1.76% in the preceding two trading sessions to settle at 27,687.30 yesterday, 18 May 2015, from recent low of 27,206.06 on 14 May 2015. The Sensex has risen 634.22 points or 2.34% in this month so far (till 19 May 2015). The Sensex has gained 146.11 points or 0.53% in this calendar year so far (till 19 May 2015). From a 52-week low of 23,873.16 on 16 May 2014, the Sensex has risen 3,772.37 points or 15.8%. The Sensex is off 2,379.21 points or 7.92% from a record high of 30,024.74 hit on 4 March 2015.
In overseas markets, European stocks edged higher today, 19 May 2015, after European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board member Beno Coeursaid that the central bank would moderately front-load its purchases in its bond-buying program because of less market liquidity in the summer and that this move wasn't due to market conditions. Key benchmark indices in UK, France and Germany were up 0.39% to 1.79%.
The text from the speech that Coeurdelivered in London yesterday, 18 May 2015, was released today, 19 May 2015. Coeursaid because of low liquidity levels usually seen during the summer period, the ECB will modestly raise purchases of euro-area assets in May and June.
Separately, ECB governing council member Christian Noyer today, 19 May 2015, said that the European Central Bank is ready to take additional steps to boost inflation if its current quantitative-easing program proves insufficient.
Meanwhile, German economic sentiment hit a five-month low in May, a survey of financial analysts and institutional investors showed today, 19 May 2015, suggesting the economic upswing in Europe's largest economy is losing momentum. The ZEW indicator of economic expectations dropped for the second straight month, to a reading of 41.9 in May from 53.3 in April and was the lowest since December 2014.
Consumer prices in the UK fell in April compared with a year earlier for the first time in more than half a century, underscoring the weakness of inflation throughout much of the developed world. Britain's Office for National Statistics said Tuesday that annual inflation in the U.K. was -0.1% in April, compared with zero a month earlier. That is the first time consumer prices have fallen on an annual basis since 1960, according to ONS estimates.
Chinese stocks led gains in Asian stocks today, 19 May 2015. Key benchmark indices in Japan, Indonesia, South Korea and Taiwan were up by 0.34% to 1.15%. Singapore's Straits Times was off 0.16%.
Chinese shares edged higher on signs of fresh investment from Beijing. In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite index jumped 3.13%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.37%. China yesterday, 18 May 2015, approved a batch of railway projects and said it would speed up reform in the finance sector. China's state-planning agency approved six rail projects with a total investment of 243.8 billion yuan ($39.3 billion).
Meanwhile, China's State Council yesterday, 18 May 2015, released guidelines on capital-market reform priorities, touching on areas such as the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect and further liberalizing interest rate and boosting the yuan's global status.
Further, China unveiled an ambitious plan to enhance the competitiveness of its manufacturing sector by encouraging innovation and raising efficiency in an effort to boost economic growth. The blueprint, titled "Made in China 2025," comes as China's factories are struggling with sluggish demand, increasing competition from other developing economies and a slowing domestic economy.
The manufacturing sector is facing new challenges: bigger constraints from the environment and resources, rising labor costs and a notable slowdown in investment and exports, the State Council, or cabinet, said on the main government website today, 19 May 2015.
The plan didn't give details of how Beijing would achieve these objectives but it shows the government's determination to revitalize a sector that was once a major growth engine.
US stocks edged higher yesterday, 18 May 2015, as both the Dow industrials and the S&P 500 reached all-time highs. At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 26 points, or 0.1%, to 18,299, a new closing peak. The S&P 500 index rose 6 points, or 0.3%, to 2,129, its ninth record close of the year. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 30 points, or 0.6%, to 5,078, still shy of its 24 April record of 5,092.
Investors will get a closer look at the US Federal Reserve's thoughts about interest rates and economic data when the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting from its meeting held in late April 2015 are released tomorrow, 20 May 2015.
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