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Benchmark indices rallied in the last 30 minutes of trade to end higher for the second consecutive day on Thursday. Gains were led by advances in IT, pharma and banking stocks.
The Sensex closed 419.87 points or 1.16% higher at 36471.68, and the Nifty rose 121.80 points or 1.15% to settle at 10740. About 1,058 shares advanced, 1,512 shares declined, while 158 were unchanged.
Infosys, BPCL, Cipla, M&M and Britannia Industries were among the top gainers on the Nifty, while Bharti Infratel, Tech Mahindra, ITC, Zee Entertainment and Indian Oil lagged.
All sectoral indices ended higher. BSE Midcap Index rose 0.7%, while BSE Smallcap index ended marginally lower.
NTPC Ltd on Thursday said the company has entered into a pact with National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), acting through National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIFL), to explore opportunities for investments in areas like renewable energy, power distribution among other areas of mutual interest in India.
Marico's board has approved the scheme of amalgamation between Marico Consumer Care and Marico Limited and their respective shareholders and creditors.
The scheme is subject to the requisite statutory/regulatory approval.
Pawan Agrawal will replace Vivek Karve as Marico CFO.
The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) on Thursday refused to stay the sector regulator’s order asking Vodafone Idea to put on hold its RedX plan offering faster data speeds and priority services to higher-paying postpaid customers. Vodafone Idea had approached the appellate tribunal on Monday.
The hearing will continue on 16 July.
The Indian rupee has ended at 75.19 a dollar compared with the previous close of 75.14. The unit had opened at 75.23 per dollar and touched a day's low of 75.29.
European equities were weak on Thursday as risk appetite took a hit due to worsening US-China relations and weaker-than-expected consumer retail data out of China.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dipped 0.9%, and Germany’s DAX Index declined 0.7%. London's FTSE 100 also fell 0.9%.
The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 49 countries, was down 0.5%, and MSCI's main Europe Index was down 0.8%.
Shares of Wipro Ltd fell on Thursday, erasing gains from previous day. The stock had surged 13% on Wednesday following better-than-expected June quarter earnings from the company even as the pandemic-induced crisis continued to take a toll on operations.
Wipro reported a 3% sequential rise in net profit to ₹2,411 crore for the June quarter. According to analysts polled by Bloomberg, net profit was estimated at ₹2,069 crore.
Total revenue fell 5.3% to ₹14,922 crore, again higher than the estimated ₹14,414 crore. IT service margin expanded to 19% from 16.1%. Operating profit rose 1.3% to ₹2,573 crore.
Gold prices eased on Thursday due to a stronger dollar, although concerns over rising coronavirus cases and simmering US-China tensions kept bullion close to a near nine-year high, Reuters reported.
Spot gold was down 0.3% to $1,805.62 per ounce, just $12 shy of its highest since September 2011 hit last week. US gold futures fell 0.3% to $1,807.90.
Senior commanders of India and China discussed moves to take forward
the disengagement and de-escalation process along the Line of Actual Control border during a meeting earlier this week, a person familiar with the matter said Thursday.
The two also reviewed the first phase of disengagement at three points along the Ladakh border that took place last week during their talks on Tuesday.
“The two sides remain committed to the objective of complete disengagement," the person said adding a note a caution that the “process is intricate and requires constant verification."
Kotak Special Situations Fund, managed by Kotak Investment Advisors Ltd, on Thursday said it has invested ₹500 crore in Nirma Group unit Nuvoco Ltd to help finance the latter's acquisition of Emami Cements Ltd.
This financing is a timely investment for achieving financial closure for Nuvoco to consummate the acquisition and consolidate its position as a leading cement manufacturer in Eastern India, Kotak said in a statement. The investment will help fuel the growth of the consolidated cement business of Nuvoco, with an eventual foray into the primary capital market, it added.
On Wednesday, Emami informed stock exchanges that it has completed the transfer of 100% shares of Emami Cement shares to Nuvoco.
Anglo American Plc’s De Beers diamond business sold almost no gems in the second quarter, highlighting how badly the sector has been hit by coronavirus-enforced lockdowns.
The world’s biggest producer sold $56 million of rough diamonds, down about 96% from a year earlier when sales totaled $1.3 billion. With jewelry stores closed, cutters and polishers stuck at home and global travel at a standstill, the entire diamond industry essentially came to a halt in the period.
Housing sales in top eight cities fell a massive 54% year-on-year to a decadal low of 59,538 units during H1 2020. New launches also declined 46% to 60,489 units, according real estate consultant Knight Frank.
The pricing environment has weakened with developers either offering a straight price discount or some form of a financial benefit scheme to prospective homebuyers, it added.
In the office market space, transactions in H1 2020 fell 37% YoY to 1.6 mn sq m (17.2 mn sq ft), also a decadal low. New completions that were expected to make an impressive presentation this year fell by 27% YoY.
India's pharmaceutical industry will be able to produce covid-19 vaccines not just for the country but also for the entire world, according to Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates.
A lot of "very important things have been done" in India and its pharma industry is doing work "to help make the coronavirus vaccine building on other great capacities that they have used for other diseases", said the Co-Chair and Trustee of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Speaking in a documentary -- COVID-19: India's War Against The Virus -- to be premiered on Discovery Plus this (Thursday) evening, Gates said India also faces a huge challenge due to the health crisis because of its gigantic size and urban centres with a lot of population density.
SBI Cards and Payment Services today announced that the company's board has accepted the resignation of its managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) Hardayal Prasad. The State Bank of India has nominated Ashwini Kumar Tewari as the new MD and CEO, who will take charge from August 1.
The ₹12,450-crore capital injection in three state-run insurance companies is "credit positive" as their capital had been significantly depleted over the last few years, Moody's Investors Service said on Thursday.
Last week the Union Cabinet had decided to put on hold the merger of National Insurance, The Oriental Insurance and United India Insurance and approved a ₹12,450 crore capital infusion into these three general insurers.
Tata Power Green Energy Ltd has received a letter of award from Tata Power Mumbai Distribution to develop a 225 megawatt hybrid renewable project. Power from the project will be supplied to Tata Power Mumbai Distribution under a power purchase agreement valid for a period of 25 years from scheduled commercial operation date, the Tata Power subsidiary said in a statement.
The global economy continues to face challenges, including the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus infections, and governments should keep their support programmes in place, IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said Thursday.
Activity "has started to gradually strengthen... But we are not out of the woods yet," Georgieva said in a message to G20 finance ministers ahead of their weekend meeting in Saudi Arabia.
US crude oil shed 32 cents to $40.88 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It had risen 91 cents to settle at $41.20 per barrel on Wednesday.
Brent, the global benchmark, gave up 24 cents to $43.55 per barrel. It had added 89 cents to settle at $43.79 per barrel overnight.
Zydus Cadila has received approval for its supplemental Abbreviated New Drug Application (SANDA) for Doxycycline Injection USP, 100 mg/Vial from the US Food and Drug Administration. The product will be manufactured at Cadila Healthcare Ltd’s injectable facility at Jarod, Vadodara, the company informed the stock exchanges.
Doxycycline USP is the first product approval at the second combined liquid plus Lyophilised Vials Injectable line at the Jarod facility.
The group now has 293 approvals and has so far filed over 390 ANDAs since the commencement of the filing process in FY 2003-04.
Shares of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) were weak on Thursday, having ended off highs on Wednesday, as a delay in the deal with Saudi Aramco dampened the excitement from a series of announcements made at the oil-to-telecom conglomerate's 43rd annual general meeting.
Addressing the annual general meeting virtually, chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani said that due to unforeseen developments in the energy sector and the virus outbreak, the $15-billion Saudi Aramco deal has not progressed as per the original timeline.
The US has indicated that it may take a decision on banning Chinese mobile applications, including TikTok, within weeks after a campaign to bar them gained momentum in the country following India's decision.
India last month banned 59 Chinese apps, including TikTok and UC Browser, saying they were prejudicial to the sovereignty, integrity and security of the country.
Yes Bank's ₹15,000 crore follow-on public offer was subscribed 24% on Wednesday, the first day of the offering, according to data from stock exchanges.
While the portion of shares reserved for institutional investors was subscribed 66%, the non-institutional portion was subscribed 4%. Retail portion was subscribed 9% times and that for employees was subscribed 5%.
The issue price has been fixed at ₹12-13 per share.
Indian rupee extends losses, down at 75.27 against US dollar. The unit had opened at 75.23 a dollar compared with previous close of 75.14.
Snehasish Ganguly, elder brother of the Board of Control for Cricket in India president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Cricket Association of Bengal secretary, on Wednesday tested positive for coronavirus, news agency ANI reported.
Federal Bank was the lone gainer on the Nifty Pvt Bank index after it reported a marginal 4.3% rise in its standalone net profit to ₹400.77 crore for the quarter ended June.
Lenders have proposed to set up a power-sector focussed asset reconstruction company, CNBC TV-18 said citing sources.
New entity to manage stressed power companies will likely be called 'SPARC'. NTPC, REC, PFC, Power Grid, SBI expected to participate in SPARC.
To check the surge in coronavirus cases, total lockdown has been imposed in Bihar from today till 31 July.
The state reported its sharpest rise in covid-19 deaths with 14 casualties within a span of 24 hours, while 1,320 fresh cases caused the state's tally to breach the 20,000-mark, according to the state health department.
Amazon.com Inc. will allow corporate employees work from home until January and will continue restricting business travel, echoing growing fears that the pandemic will linger until at least next year, Bloomberg reported.
“We continue to prioritize the health of our employees and follow local government guidance," the company said in a statement. “Employees who work in a role that can effectively be done from home are welcome to do so until January 8."
"The Nifty is still within the range of 10550 and 10850. We would enter a trend in full throttle when either level triggers. If we manage to cross either price points, we could get a 200-300 point move on the index. Until then, we would need to track the markets patiently. A hasty trade decision would result in a skewed risk to reward ratio and should be avoided," said Manish Hathiramani, proprietary index trader and technical analyst, Deen Dayal Investments.
Indian rupee opened lower at 75.23 per dollar on Thursday compared with previous close of 75.14.
At 1001am, the Sensex was up 0.59% at 36262.96, while the Nifty rose 50.60 points or 0.48% at 10668.80.
Bandhan Bank on Wednesday reported a 31.6% year-on-year fall in its net profit to ₹550 crore for the June quarter due to additional provision on standard assets--amounting to ₹750 crore--for covid-19.
Net interest income (NII) for the quarter rose nearly 15% year-on-year (YoY) to ₹1,811 crore while non-interest income grew 16.9% to ₹387 crore.
Net interest margin during the quarter was at 8.15% compared with 8.13% during January-March. Provisions and additional standard assets provision in the micro-banking portfolio totalled ₹1,769 crore.
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