Domestic equity benchmarks ended with minor cuts after a volatile session. The barometer S&P BSE Sensex lost 58.81 points or 0.16% at 37,871.52. The Nifty 50 index shed 29.65 points or 0.27% at 11,132.60.
Traders booked profits after the Sensex and the Nifty jumped about 5.25% in the past five sessions. Sentiment was also impacted by US-China tensions. The media reported that China is considering ordering the closure of the US consulate in the central city of Wuhan, after Washington told China to shut its consulate in the city of Houston.
In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.19% and the BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.23%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1164 shares rose and 1481 shares fell. A total of 156 shares were unchanged.
COVID-19 update:
India reported 4,11,133 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 28,732 deaths while 7,53,049 patients have been cured, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. Total coronavirus cases worldwide stood at 14,952,328 with 616,577 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Numbers to Watch:
The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 5.817% as compared with 5.829% at close in the previous trading session.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 74.7550, compared with its close of 74.7475 during the previous trading session.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for September 2020 settlement fell 41 cents at $43.91 a barrel. The contract rose $1.04, or 2.40% to settle at $44.32 a barrel in the previous trading session.
Foreign Markets:
The US Dow Jones futures was down 100 points, indicating a weak opening in US stock market today.
European market fell across the board while Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday as concerns over the coronavirus outweighed optimism over the European Union's recovery fund.
A report by the US Centers for Disease Control suggested that the number of coronavirus cases in some states is much higher than has been reported, due to issues with testing and data collection.
The US stock market finished session marginal higher on Tuesday, 21 July 2020, thanks to a relatively better than expected second-quarter earnings reports and guidance from companies including IBM and Coca-Cola. Market cut gains in the final hour of trading after hopes faded for a fresh round of fiscal stimulus in the coming week to prop up an economy reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Market hopes for a fresh round of fiscal stimulus in the coming week faded after Senator Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters that Congress would most likely not pass a new fiscal stimulus bill this week, before the $600 jobless benefit boost runs out for millions of Americans.
Buzzing Indian Segments:
The Nifty IT index fell 1.14% to 17,076.05 amid profit booking. The index spurted over 9% in the past one week.
Wipro (down 1.90%), Infosys (down 1.85%) and TCS (down 1.60%) declined.
The Nifty Auto index fell 1.26% to 7,203.95. The index rose 5.49% in the past five sessions.
Hero MotoCorp (down 3.47%), Tata Motors (down 3.09%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 2.06%), Ashok Leyland (down 1.53%), TVS Motor Company (down 1.49%) and Eicher Motors (down 1.16%) declined.
Bajaj Auto fell 0.62% after the two wheeler major's net profit dropped 53% to Rs 528.04 crore on 60% decline in revenue from operations to Rs 3079.24 crore in Q1 June 2020 over Q1 June 2019.
Profit before tax (PBT) stood at Rs 681.67 crore in Q1FY21, tumbling 57% from Rs 1578.78 crore in the same period last year. Total tax expense declined 66% year on year to Rs 153.63 crore in Q1FY21. EBITDA stood at Rs 441 crore in Q1FY21, falling 65% from Rs 1250 crore in Q1FY20. EBITDA margin declined to 14.3% in Q1FY21 from 16.1% in Q1FY20.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 1.64% to Rs 2004.10. It hit an intraday high of Rs 2010.
RIL's board will consider Q1 results on 30 July instead of Friday, 24 July, as intimated earlier.
Hindustan Unilever (HUL) fell 3.06%. The FMCG major reported standalone net profit of Rs 1,881 crore in Q1 June 2020 as against net profit of Rs 1,755 crore in Q1 June 2019. Revenue from operations stood at Rs 10,560 crore in Q1 June 2020 as against Rs 10,114 crore in Q1 June 2019. Underlying domestic consumer business sales impacted by COVID disruptions declined by 7% in the quarter.
HUL's standalone EBITDA for the quarter was flat at Rs 2,644 crore compared with Rs 2,647 crore in Q1 June 2019. EBITDA margin declined by 110 bps YoY to 25% Q1 FY21.
CRISIL rose 1.48%. The ratings agency's consolidated net profit was flat at Rs 66.3 crore on a 13.5% rise in income from operations to Rs 471.8 crore for the quarter ended 30 June 2020 compared to the corresponding period last year.
Ashu Suyash, managing director & CEO, CRISIL, said: "Our businesses demonstrated strong resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic and the attendant lockdowns. Ratings continued its growth trajectory and we saw good demand for our global risk & analytics offerings. The acquisition of Greenwich enabled acquisition of new clients and strengthened our presence in the global benchmarking analytics space."
Alembic Pharmaceuticals gained 0.47% after the company reported a 144% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 301.46 crore on a 41.3% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 1341.32 crore in Q1 June 2020 over Q1 June 2019.
The drug maker's international formulations grew 70% year on year (YoY) to Rs 771 crores in Q1 June 2020. The US Generics grew 73% YoY to Rs 596 crores in Q1 June 2020. The company's India formulations business for the quarter ending 30 June 2020 de-grew by 6% to Rs 306 crore.
EBITDA margin improved to 31% in Q1 June 2020 from 21% in Q1 June 2019. R&D spends in Q1 June 2020 stood at Rs 141 crore, up 2% from Q1 June 2019. The company received 6 ANDA approvals in Q1 June 2020 while it filed 8 ANDAs in same quarter.
IndiaMART InterMESH jumped 4.85% after the company's consolidated net profit jumped 128.7% to Rs 74.1 crore in Q1 June 2020 from Rs 32.4 crore posted in Q1 June 2019. Net sales rose 3.94% year on year (y-o-y) to Rs 153.10 crore in Q1 June 2020. EBITDA margins increased to 48% in Q1FY21 from 25% in Q1FY20 primarily driven by various cost optimization measures leading to sustained and temporary rationalization of expenses.
Mahindra CIE Automotive fell 3.46% after the company reported consolidated net loss of Rs 128.74 crore in Q2 June 2020 compared with net profit of Rs 126.22 crore in Q2 June 2019. Net sales slumped 65.7% to Rs 735.47 crore in Q2 FY21 over Q2 FY20. Pre-tax loss stood at Rs 147.06 crore in Q2 June 2020 compared with pre-tax profit of Rs 173.44 crore in Q2 June 2019. Consolidated net financial debt stood at Rs 1,454.10 crore as on 30 June 2020 as compared to Rs 1,148.80 crore as on 31 December 2019.
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