PremiumBenchmark Indian equity indices closed lower on Wednesday tracking their Asian peers. Asian stocks plunged as optimism over recovery from covid-19 fizzled out amid rising caseloads and renewed lockdowns across the world. Oil prices rebounded, with Brent crude futures rising 2% to $62.13 a barrel, after tumbling 5.9% to a low of $60.50 on Tuesday. Meanwhile gold prices climbed to $1,732.5 an ounce.
The Sensex ended at 49,180.31, declining 871.13 points or 1.74%, while the Nifty was at 14,549.40, down 265.35 points, or 1.79%. The broader indices ended in red with the BSE midcap and smallcap plunging 1.69% and 1.60%, respectively. The Nifty midcap 100 and smallcap 100 were 1.99% and 2.11%, respectively. Among sectors, metal was the biggest loser, followed by realty, bank, auto and media. Asian paints Power grid were the two stocks in green on the 30-share Sensex.
Privatisation of two public sector banks can impact their ratings as the government support to the two entities will disappear, India Ratings and Research said on Wednesday. (Read more)
Solar power tariffs are likely to rise in near term due to the impact of basic custom duty on equipment, though they would remain cost competitive for the off-takers, Icra Ratings said on Wednesday.
Icra's outlook for renewable energy (RE) sector is 'Stable' because of factors such as continued policy support from the Government of India, large growth potential, the presence of creditworthy central nodal agencies as intermediary procurers and tariff competitiveness, Icra Ratings said in a statement.
Despite the expected increase in solar power tariffs due to the impact of BCD (basic custom duty), the tariffs are expected to remain below ₹3 per unit and cost competitive, from the off-takers perspective. (PTI)
Adani Road Transport Ltd (ARTL) on Wednesday said it has won a ₹1,039.90 crore highway project from NHAI in Telangana.
"We are pleased to inform you that ARTL has received a letter of award (LOA) for ...four laning of NH-365A from Kodad to Khammam in the State of Telangana under Bharatmala Pariyojana on Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM)," the company said in a BSE filing.
The bid cost of the project is ₹1,039.90 crore, it added. (PTI)
A bill which seeks to amend the law governing the airports economic regulator was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.
The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (Amendment) Bill, 2021 proposes to tweak the definition of "major airport" so as to extend its scope to determine the tariff for a group of airports.
The move, the government believes, will encourage development of smaller airports.
The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India has been determining the tariffs of aeronautical charges at major airports in the country. (PTI)
The country's largest domestic airline, InterGlobe Aviation-operated IndiGo, on Wednesday said it has paid out refunds worth about ₹1,030 crore to passengers following a Supreme Court order which asked airlines to refund fares for bookings made during the government-imposed lockdown last year.
India’s government is considering resuming fresh bankruptcy filings after the current suspension expires on 25 March, people with knowledge of the matter said. The lifting of the halt would come even as a resurgence in virus cases threatens the nascent economic recovery. It could spark a wave of new insolvencies, pent up from last year when businesses were hurt by India’s first economic contraction in decades.
Prime minister Narendra Modi’s government last year halted the process of initiating most fresh insolvency proceedings to insulate cash-strapped borrowers hit by the pandemic for six months starting 25 March, and that was extended twice during the year.
The suspension is unlikely to be prolonged further because a return to normality is needed, the people said, asking not to be identified citing rules. finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman is considering a proposal to this effect. (Bloomberg)
Prestige Estates Projects Ltd will take over a Mumbai housing project from bankrupt Ariisto Developers Pvt. following a court decision Tuesday.
The Bengaluru-based developer plans to launch the first phase of the project by May and second phase toward the end of the year, Prestige’s chief executive Venkat K. Narayana said by phone on Wednesday. He estimates revenues of more than ₹10,000 crore ($1.4 billion) from the 7.5 million sq. ft under development.
“This will be our largest project in Mumbai," Narayana said. (Bloomberg)
BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Wednesday said it is not possible to bring petrol and diesel under the GST regime for the next eight to 10 years as it would cause an annual revenue loss of ₹2 lakh crore to all states.
Centre and states collectively collect over ₹5 lakh crore tax on petroleum products, Modi told the Rajya Sabha while participating in a discussion on the Finance Bill 2021. The statement assumes significance in view of the rise in petrol price for the past over one year which even touched ₹100 per litre in some states. (PTI)
Rail Vikas Nigam was trading at ₹27.85 apiece, down 2.55 points or 8.39% at 1:10 pm. The government will sell 15% stake in Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd via offer for sale to raise nearly ₹755 crore. The issue will be opened on Wednesday for non-retail investors and on Thursday for retail investors. The floor price has fixed at ₹27.50 a share, 9.54% discount from its today’s closing. At the floor price, a 15% stake would fetch nearly ₹755.52 crore to the exchequer.
"Tesla is using only internal & open source software & operates Bitcoin nodes directly. Bitcoin paid to Tesla will be retained as Bitcoin, not converted to fiat currency," Musk said. Payment via Bitcoin will be available outside the US later this year, the Tesla co founder tweeted.
Hero MotoCorp Ltd and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd will raise prices of their vehicles in April. The reason is simple. Input costs are rising and companies will have to take price hikes to protect their profit margins. Maruti has said the price increase will vary for different models, while Hero has maintained that hikes across its range of two-wheelers will be up to ₹2,500. (Read more)
Asian stocks and European equity futures declined Wednesday after setbacks to the recovery from the pandemic weighed on U.S. shares and crude oil, and drove haven trades into Treasuries and the dollar.
A gauge of Asia-Pacific shares fell the most in about two weeks, with value and cyclical sectors struggling. Hong Kong equities underperformed, nearing a correction, amid the city’s decision to temporarily suspend BioNTech SE vaccines. The S&P 500 fell Tuesday and reopening favorites like the small-cap Russell 2000 slumped. S&P 500 futures edged lower and Nasdaq 100 contracts rose. (Bloomberg)
Grasim Industries said its board agreed to raise funds upto ₹10,000 crore via term loans as well as NCDs in more than one tranches.
State Bank of India (SBI), in charge of collating and settling compound interest waiver reimbursement claims by lenders in the last round of the scheme, has declined to provide information on the quantum of claims it received. Responding to a Right to Information (RTI) query filed by Mint, the bank first said in January that the information sought is exempted under Section 8(1)(d) of the RTI Act 2005.
Cadila Healthcare Ltd and its unit Zydus Pharmaceuticals (USA) Inc. said announced that they have reached an agreement with Celgene Corp. (Celgene), a wholly owned unit of Bristol Myers Squibb relating to patents for Revlimid (lenalidomide).
An Indian drug manufacturer has been sentenced to pay $50 million in fines and forfeiture after pleading guilty to concealing and destroying records prior to a 2013 US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plant inspection, the US Department of Justice said. Fresenius Kabi Oncology Ltd (FKOL) was previously criminally charged by the United States with violating the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act by failing to provide certain records to FDA investigators.
FKOL owned and operated a manufacturing plant in Kalyani, West Bengal, that manufactured active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) used in various cancer drug products distributed to the US. (PTI)
Shares of Indian banks have gotten their final booster shot after the Supreme Court lifted the standstill on bad loan recognition. So far banks couldn’t declare defaulters since the 6-month moratorium ended in August.
The Bank Nifty has gained a massive 98% since the case on compound interest was filed at the apex court on 27 March last year. The rise gathered pace from October onwards last year and the index has outpaced the broad market since then. The question is whether bank balance sheets are priced to truth.
Headline bad loan ratios have not been reflecting the true extent of trouble so far because of the standstill. To be fair, most lenders have already been giving their slippages through proforma bad loan metrics which investors have appreciated. As such bank shares reflect these numbers today, according to analysts.
Shares of Anupam Rasayan made a muted stock markets debut on Wednesday, listing at ₹520 apiece, 6.3% lower than its issue price of ₹555. The ₹760-crore issue, with a price band of ₹553-555 per share, was subscribed 44 times. (Read more)
Adani Green Energy Ltd has entered into a share purchase agreement with Sterling and Wilson Pvt. Ltd (SWPL) for the purchase of 2 SPVs with 75 MW of solar assets valued at ₹ 446 crore. SWPL will receive net sale consideration of about ₹250 crore, which will be utilised towards repayment of part of the outstanding loans due to the company by its promoters.
Benchmark Indian equity indices opened lower on Wednesday based on negative cues from Asian peers. The Sensex opened at 49,786.47, down 264.97 points, or 0.53%, while the Nifty was at 14,712.45, 102.30 or 0.69% lower. Auto, banks, financials and metals stocks were the top drags at opening. Twenty six of the 30 stock Sensex were in red at market opening.
Sales of electric vehicles especially in the two and three-wheeler segment in India could increase significantly over the next few years a price gap with internal combustion engine vehicles have been reducing over the last few years and government subsidies would make it more affordable for customers, said sector analysts.
Increase in prices of combustion engine vehicles especially two and three wheelers due to introduction of new emission and safety regulations have also been responsible for reduction in prices, they added.
The Sensex was at 49,925.65, down 125.79 points, or 0.25% at pre-opening, while the Nifty was at 14,814.75, up 78.35 points, or 0.53%. The SGX Nifty was in red. Meanwhile, Asian markets were down, tracking Wall Street as oil prices rose and bond yields climbed owing to fears around rising covid cases, and inflation fears.
Barbeque Nation Hospitality Ltd said it raised ₹202 crore from 15 anchor investors ahead of its initial public offering. The issue will open on today, with the issue price fixed at ₹498-500 per share. The offer will close on 26 March.
The company informed the bourses that it has allocated 4.06 million equity shares at ₹500 per share on March 23, to the anchor investors.
Hero MotoCorp, Rail Vikas Nigam, JK Tyre, banks, Suzlon and M&M, are among the stocks that could be in focus today. (Read here)
Government and corporate bonds around the world have tumbled in their worst start to a year this century, as markets spooked by the prospect of resurgent inflation turn increasingly volatile.
The notes have lost about 3.7% so far in 2021, even after dip-buying in recent days, according a Bloomberg Barclays index of investment-grade securities across currencies going back to 1999. That’s worse than for similar periods in previous years. An unprecedented confluence of events has triggered concerns that faster inflation will increasingly eat into fixed-income returns. (Bloomberg)
Markets are likely to be on the edge following weakness in global peers on Wednesday. Trends in SGX Nifty indicate Indian benchmark indices may see a weak start. On Tuesday the BSE Sensex ended at 50,051.44, up 280.15 points 0.56%. The Nifty closed at 14,814.75, up 78.35 points or 0.53%.
Asian stocks were lower on Wednesday as the cost of the U.S. stimulus and infrastructure plans and new pandemic curbs limited investors’ risk appetite.
India must phase out its coal-fired power plants by the middle of this century to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by that time, according to a new report on the challenges that’ll be posed in setting more ambitious climate targets. The nation will need to progressively reduce coal’s share in electricity generation, currently at about 65%, and remove it altogether by 2050, according to the report published by The Energy and Resources Institute, a New Delhi-based think-tank, and Royal Dutch Shell Plc. The share of renewables in the power mix needs to climb to 90%, a more than eight-fold increase from now. (Bloomberg)
Treasury secretary Janet Yellen and Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell told Congress on Tuesday that more must be done to limit the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic.
Powell also reiterated that he does not expect programs aimed at reviving the economy will trigger unwanted inflation.
Both officials struck upbeat notes about the US economy's outlook in their appearances Tuesday before the House Financial Services Committee. They said that, while there are encouraging signs of a rebound, it is important that government support continue in order to make sure the millions of people who have lost jobs can return to the labor market. (AP)
Gold prices eased on Wednesday, as the dollar touched a more than two-week high after US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell reassured Congress that inflation would not spiral out of control. Spot gold was slightly down at $1,726.78 per ounce by 01:29 GMT. US gold futures rose 0.1 % to $1,726.70 per ounce.
Oil prices edged higher on Wednesday as investors looked for bargains following the previous day's plunge, but gains were capped as pandemic lockdowns in Europe and a build in US crude stocks curbed risk appetite and raised oversupply fears.
Brent crude futures rose 27 cents, or 0.4%, to $61.06 a barrel by 01:08 GMT, after tumbling 5.9% and hitting a low of $60.50 the previous day.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures climbed 19 cents, or 0.3%, to $57.95 a barrel, having lost 6.2% and touched a low of $57.32. (Reuters)
Asian stocks were mostly weaker Wednesday after setbacks to the recovery from the pandemic weighed on U.S. equities and oil, and drove haven trades into Treasuries and the dollar.
MSCI Inc.’s index of Asia-Pacific stocks edged lower, with Japan’s benchmark leading regional declines. Shares in China fluctuated, and fell in Hong Kong. In U.S. equity futures, Nasdaq 100 contracts outperformed. The S&P 500 Index fell in U.S. hours and shares favored in the reopening trade slumped, with the small-cap Russell 2000 dropping 3.6%
The SGX Nifty was at 14,874.20, down 12.55 points, or 0.08%, at 7:23 am.
S&P 500 futures were steady as of 10:30 a.m. in Tokyo. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4%. The S&P 500 Index fell 0.8%.
Topix Index fell 1.8%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.5%.
South Korea’s Kospi Index fell 0.1%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.8%.
CSI 300 Index fell 0.6%.
Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.5%.
Stocks closed broadly lower on Tuesday and gave back nearly all of their gains from a day earlier as technology, industrial and bank stocks fell. The S&P 500 fell 30.07 points, or 0.8%, to 3,910.52. Technology stocks were the biggest drag on the market and pushed the Nasdaq 149.85 points lower, or 1.1%, to 13,227.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 308.05 points, or 0.9% to 32,423.15. The yield of the 10-year Treasury note fell to 1.63%. The yield was well above 1.70% last week, which had put some pressure on the stock market. US treasury secretary Janet Yellen and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told Congress on Tuesday that more must be done to limit the economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic. Powell also stressed that he does not expect programs aimed at reviving the economy will trigger unwanted inflation.
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