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PremiumSensex Crash Today | Market Closing Highlights: India's benchmark indices ended lower for the third straight day, as a decline in bank, financial stocks weighed on the market. Broader markets, however, outperformed.
Asian shares struggled to make headway on Thursday, weighed down by a murky economic outlook in China and expectations the global rate easing cycle may not come as early as some had initially thought.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.3%, but was still languishing near Wednesday's two-month low of 490.45 points.
The repricing of expected Fed cuts alongside underwhelming economic reports from China have wiped 2% from global stocks this year — including a 10% drop for Chinese stocks alone and more than 6% for emerging markets, according to MSCI indexes. Fresh weakness in the yen against the backdrop of strength in the greenback has nudged the Japanese currency within arm’s reach of 150 per dollar.
Treasuries suffered a second day of selling, concentrated on the short end of the curve. The policy-sensitive two-year yield rose 14 basis points, its biggest one-day increase since June. The 10-year rose four basis points to above 4.1% for the first time in more than a month. Australian and New Zealand yields also traded higher early Thursday.
The drop in bond prices reflected a shift in investor expectations for a Fed rate cut in March. Swaps pricing shows the chances of such a cut slipped below 60% on Wednesday for the first time since the middle of December. That is down from 80% on Friday.
The decline followed comments from Fed officials this week pushing back against market expectations for imminent cuts and stronger-than-expected retail sales data Wednesday. Bumper consumer spending helped propel the economy in recent weeks, the Fed said in its Beige Book survey.
India's benchmark indices closed in the red for the third consucutive day. The Sensex touched a low of 70,655.50 during the day, but pared losses to close 313.90 points, or 0.44%, down at 71,186.86. Meanwhile, the Nifty 50 touched a low of 21,285.55, and closed at 21,462.25, down 109.70 points, or 0.51%.
Banking and financial stocks were among the worst performers of the day, however, pharma stocks shined. Bucking the downtrend, the midcap index ended marginally higher.
The FMCG major is expected to see muted earnings growth during the third quarter of FY24 as weak festive demand and price cuts are likely to weigh on volume and revenue growth of the company.
Hindustan Unilever, set to release its Q3 results on Friday, January 19, is likely to report a marginal rise of 2.2% in its net profit for Q3FY24 at ₹2,638 crore as compared to ₹2,581 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal, as per average estimates of 5 brokerage houses.
At 3 pm, Sensex was down 345.15 points, or 0.48%, at 71,155.61, and the Nifty was down 119.70 points, or 0.55%, at 21,452.25.
Ajmera Realty & Infra India and Keystone Realtors on Thursday announced a tie-up to undertake a redevelopment project in Mumbai and are expecting ₹760 crore revenue from the project.
Ajmera Luxe Realty Pvt Ltd (ALRPL), a joint venture between Ajmera Realty & Infra India and Keystone Realtors, will execute the redevelopment project in Bandra West, according to press release. Both companies will hold a 50 per cent stake in the JV that will develop premium luxury residential apartments with an estimated carpet area of about 1,30,000 square feet for sale.
Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved raising the state advised price of sugarcane by ₹20 per quintal, possibly impacting the shares of sugar manufacturing firms.
At 2 pm, Sensex was down 372.05 points, or 0.52%, at 71,128.71, and the Nifty was down 121.65 points, or 0.56%, at 21,450.20.
India's largest bus manufacturer, Hinduja Group-owned Ashok Leyland announced that it has bagged orders for 1225 fully built Viking buses from the Karnataka State Transport Undertakings, to be delivered by April 2024.
Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is racing towards starting New Energy-chain production with its strategic deals, PLI-wins and plant progress. Given its fully backward integrated 20GW module capacity, Reliance Industries needs a valuation re-rating for its New Energy business, analysts said in a research note.
Nuvama Institutional Equities raised its target price on Reliance Industries shares by 5% to ₹3,105 per share by rolling forward RIL’s New Energy valuation to FY26E sales. It has a ‘Buy’ rating on the RIL shares.
Sanghi Industries share price dropped nearly 10 per cent on Thursday, January 18, to trade at ₹120.95, extending the losses into the third consecutive session, on lingering concerns over profitability after its cement supply agreement with Ambuja Cements.
Ambuja Cements acquired 54.51 per cent of Sanghi Industries. After the acquisition, Sanghi Industries signed a Master Supply and Service Agreement (MSA) with Ambuja Cements and ACC wherein they will bulk purchase clinker and cement from the company at cost plus 10 per cent and sell them under the Ambuja and ACC brands. This has raised concerns over the profitability of Sanghi Industries. The company has called for an extraordinary general meeting on February 8 to seek approval for this supply agreement.
At 1 pm, Sensex was down 367.58 points, or 0.51%, at 71,133.18, and the Nifty was down 124.70 points, or 0.58%, at 21,447.25.
Japan's Nikkei share average pared early gains to end almost flat on Thursday, as investors turned cautious about the recent sharp gains of the index.
The Nikkei inched down 0.03% to close at 35,466.17, after rising as much as 0.7% earlier in the session.
The broader Topix edged 0.17% lower at 2,492.09.
Indian brands are pushing the bar in terms of global reconition, with Tata, Infosys, LIC, HDFC, Reliance Group, Airtel, HCL Tech, SBI, Wipro, Mahindra Group, Jio, L&T, Indian Oil, Crédit Agricole, and Bajaj Group emerging as the Indian companies that have made their place in the Brand Finance Global 500 2024 report.
Leading the charge are Jio and SBI, claiming the titles of 17th and 24th strongest brands globally, respectively, while the Tata brand rose a substantial 5 ranks. Tata Group was highlighted as the most valuable brand from South Asia, with an 8.5 per cent increase in brand value, now standing at USD28.6 billion. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a part of the Tata Group, finds mention as a leading global IT services brand.
Infosys marked the list with its brand value of USD14.2 billion, with a 9.2 per cent increase, and a brand strength index score of 83.5, ranked at 98th position. Indian IT firms have made significant strides in the global market, with several prominent players leading the industry. Notably, Accenture, TCS, and Infosys have emerged as key players in the IT services sector. Accenture holds the top position as the world's most valuable IT services brand, with a brand value of USD 40.5 billion.
Shares of Oracle Financial Services Software jumped over 20% to hit a fresh 52-week high at ₹6,269 on Thursday, on the BSE. The firm reported a 69.4% year-on-year (YoY) growth in net profit at ₹740.8 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2023.
Gold prices hovered near five-week lows on Thursday, as hawkish remarks from Federal Reserve officials and robust data dampened investors' expectations for deeper and early interest rate cuts in the U.S. this year, Reuters reported.
Spot gold edged 0.1% higher to $2,008.17 per ounce Thursday noon, a day after it fell to $2,001.72 - its lowest since Dec. 13.
At 12 pm, Sensex was down 148.80 points, or 0.21%, at 71,351.96, and the Nifty was down 60.80 points, or 0.28%, at 21,511.15.
Yes Securities, in a research note, said it is bullish on the prospects of the oil and gas sector. Citing conducive factors such as modest crude and LNG prices, higher sourcing of discounted crude, and greater domestic gas supplies, the brokerage firm said Indian refiners’ GRMs could come stronger to hold premiums to the benchmark, while possible lower crude prices and unchanged petrol and diesel retail prices could spell better marketing margins for OMCs. Within the sector, the brokerage highlighted a set of 14 stocks, including BPCL, HPCL, CPCL, IGL, IOCL, RIL, MAHGL and GUJGA as having upside potential. It added a cautionary note on the upside, saying "We expect brighter prospects in FY25/FY26, but only after a potential downhill journey over FY24".
Brent crude futures gained 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $78.09 a barrel on Thursday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 40 cents, or 0.6%, to $72.96.
Shares of the company were up over 2% after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inaugurated a 310-metre-long new dry dock (NDD) and an international ship repair facility (ISRF) at Cochin Shipyard. The New Dry Dock at CSL, costing around ₹1,800 crore, can accommodate future aircraft carriers and large commercial vessels. The ISRF, built at a cost of about ₹970 crore, will modernize CSL's ship repair capabilities and help transform Kochi into a major ship repair hub.
At 11 am, Sensex was down 284.04 points, or 0.40%, at 71,216.72, and the Nifty was down 103.75 points, or 0.48%, at 21,468.20.
Asian Paints share price declined nearly 3% on Thursday, a day after the company reported its third quarter results for FY24. Its shares were down 2.82% to ₹3,150 apiece on the BSE.
Kotak Institutional Equities in a research note said it remains cautious on the company, given the deceleration in underlying demand and the potential impact of Grasim’s launch on industry profitability, likely resulting in negligible FY2024-26E EPS CAGR. It has a ‘Reduce’ rating on the stock and revised target price to ₹3,100 per share.
Shares of India’s sixth largest IT services company, LTIMindtree fell over 12%, after it reported disappointing third quarter results after markets on Wednesday. The company saw its operating margin drop below its full-year guidance of 17-18% as higher than expected furloughs and less working days in the December quarter dented its profitability.
It reported operating margin of 15.4%, down 60 basis points from September quarter, and posted a 0.8% sequential growth in operating revenue to $1.08 billion for the December quarter. Its net profit grew by a slim 10 basis points to $140.5 million. Both revenue and profit missed Street expectations—Bloomberg estimates based on analyst polls expected $1.09 billion in revenue, and $143.8 million net profit.
Shares of Indian Railway Finance Corp (IRFC) fell on Thursday, after they hit a fresh 52-week high of ₹146.80 apiece on Tuesday.
Shares of India's ICICI Prudential Life Insurance fell 10% on Thursday as weak demand led to a sharp fall in its new business margins.
The life insurer, which reported third-quarter results the previous day, said its expected profit margin from new policies declined to 26.7% for the nine months to 31 December from 32% a year earlier.
India’s sixth largest IT services company, LTIMindtree Ltd, saw its operating margin drop further below its full-year guidance of 17-18% as higher than expected furloughs and less working days in the December quarter dented its profitability.
In its December quarter earnings filed after market hours on Wednesday, LTIMindtree reported operating margin of 15.4%, down 60 basis points from September quarter.
The Mumbai-based IT company posted a 0.8% sequential growth in operating revenue to $1.08 billion for the December quarter, and net profit grew by a slim 10 basis points to $140.5 million. Both revenue and profit missed Street expectations—Bloomberg estimates based on analyst polls expected $1.09 billion in revenue, and $143.8 million net profit.
Revenue from its biggest revenue-generating vertical—banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI), as well as hi-tech, media and entertainment—dropped 1.6% and 3.1% sequentially, due to spending pressure for clients.
Indian shares opened lower, led by financials as top private lender HDFC Bank extended its post-earnings decline, while the latest US data dampened expectations of an early rate cut and weighed on sentiment.
In opening deals, the blue-chip Nifty50 shed 0.63% to 21,424.70 points, while thBSE Sensex lost 0.71% to 70,977.60.
In pre-open, the Sensex was down 34.92 points at 71,465.84, and the Nifty fell 106.50 points to 21,465.50.
HDFC Bank's US-listed shares shed 9.14% overnight extending its post-earnings decline to the second session, and added to worries of further slide.
BANK NIFTY broke on the downside from its resistance with sharp profit booking in across the sector to close at 6 weeks low.
The 100 day average at 45,280 and gap levels will be the key supports from current levels while multiple resistances in range of 46,800-47,200 levels.
RSI has moved to the lower end of the range at 38 levels and oversold on daily and hourly charts.
Bank Nifty 47,000 CE has the highest OI while on the downside 46,000 for the put OI for the monthly expiry.
NIFTY-50 witnessed a complete reversal from its inside range with sustained sell off to close near the low point of the month at 21,500 levels.
On the higher side crossover of 21,800 will give a upward positive momentum while on the downside 21,250-21,400 will act as support.
RSI has trending below the average line and could weaken further with other key technical indicators from current levels.
Highest call OI is at 21,800 strike while on the downside the highest put OI has moved higher to 21,300 for the weekly expiry.
Life Insurance Corp. of India (LIC) sold shares in three Adani group companies totalling ₹3,816 crore in the December quarter amid volatility in the stocks of the ports-to-renewable energy conglomerate, according to data from stock exchanges.
Despite this sale, the value of LIC’s investment in Adani group companies has risen almost 54% from ₹36,470 crore on 30 January 2023 to ₹56,073.64 crore on 17 January 2024, as shares gained during the period. During the third quarter, LIC also bought shares in Ambuja Cements Ltd worth ₹20.3 lakh.
In Q3, LIC sold a little more than 37 million shares across flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) and Adani Energy Solutions Ltd (AESL). The insurer’s stake dipped from 4.23% in the September quarter to 3.93% in December in Adani Enterprises, from 9.07% to 7.86% in APSEZ, and from 3.68% to 3% in AESL.
IndusInd Bank, Finolex Industries, Jindal Stainless, Polycab India, Poonawalla Fincorp, Ramkrishna Forgings, Shoppers Stop, South Indian Bank, Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy, and Tata Communications are among companies that will announce their quarterly earnings on 18 January.
IndusInd Bank, Asian Paints, Nazara Tech, LTIMindtree, NHPC, are among the stocks that will be in focus today.
GIFT Nifty traded 158 points, or 0.73%, lower at 21,421, in early deals in Thursday, indicating a negative start for Indian benchmarks.
On Wednesday, Sensex tanked 1,628 points or 2.23% to settle at 71,500, while the Nifty plunged 460 points or 2.09% to end at 21,572 on Wednesday. It was the worst single-day fall in the Sensex in percentage terms in the last 18 months.
Asian equities traded on a mixed note in opening deals on Thursday mixed after US stocks and Treasuries fell as strong retail sales data cast fresh doubt on the prospect the Federal Reserve will cut rates in March.
Australian shares fell while South Korean equities were little changed and Japanese shares edged higher, helped along by a weaker yen. Hong Kong futures were slightly higher and US futures traded within a narrow range early Thursday after the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 both slipped 0.6% Wednesday.
Wall Street stocks finished lower on Wednesday after upbeat December US retail sales data eroded expectations the Federal Reserve will kick off its rate-cut campaign as early as March.
The benchmark S&P 500 fell to its lowest in over a week, declining 0.56% to end at 4,739.21 points.
The Nasdaq fell 0.59% to 14,855.62 points, while Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.25% to 37,266.67 points.
