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Indian benchmark share indices retreated from the record highs and settled lower on Wednesday led by losses in RIL, ITC and Infosys.
The 30-share BSE Sensex snapped 10-day winning streak and settled at 48,174.06, down 263.72 points or 0.54%. Similarly, NSE Nifty closed 53.25 points or 0.38% lower at 14, 146.25.
Power Grid, closing over 4% higher, was the top Sensex gainer followed by Bharti Airtel, ONGC, Ultratech Cement and ICICI Bank. ITC, RIL, Bajaj Finance and Axis Bank were among the laggards. Of 30 Sensex shares, 18 closed lower.
State-owned Coal India Ltd (CIL) on Wednesday said it is optimistic of closing the current financial year with auction bookings of 120 million tonnes (MT).
CIL's concentrated efforts to book increased volumes of coal under e-auction to bolster sales revenue, especially in view of the narrowed margins in add-ons during the covid-19 pandemic period, paid off with the company scoring a strong 76.2% growth during April-December of the current fiscal, the PSU said in a statement.
Business activity in India’s services sector lost momentum in December. Data released by IHS Markit showed the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the services sector dropped to 52.3 in December from 53.7 in November. A figure above 50 indicates expansion, while below this threshold indicates contraction.
According to the survey report, input costs increased to the greatest extent since February. Survey participants reported higher prices for a number of items, including cleaning products and fuel, said the report. For manufacturers, the PMI sub-index tracking input cost hit a 26-month high in December. (Full report)
Coal India Ltd, which had seen some uptick in sales volumes during the last few months, has failed to impress the Street with its December sales numbers. Sales volumes declined 2.1% year-on-year, albeit on a high base.
The power sector demand revival holds key for driving sales, say analysts. Coal India under Fuel Supply Agreements (FSA) supplies most of its produce to thermal plant capacities. (Full report)
The revenue momentum of top IT companies like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) Ltd, Infosys Ltd, HCL Technologies Ltd, and Wipro Ltd, is expected to continue in the quarter ended December, despite being a seasonally weak quarter due to increased holidays and furloughs in the US and Europe, key markets for these firms.
The companies are likely to report steady sequential revenue growth on the back of broad-based demand recovery, ramp-up of large deals, strong deal wins and continued traction in digital, according to brokerage firm Emkay Research.
“Indian IT companies are poised to turn in the best Q3 in a decade given highest-ever order books, marked revenue acceleration, margin expansion, and ongoing outlook upgrades," Edelweiss Securities said in pre-earnings note.
Private lender Bandhan Bank has signed an agreement with the Indian Army to provide banking services to the personnel of the force. The bank got the mandate to maintain zero-balance salary accounts of the Army personnel, the lender said in a statement.
The company has bagged orders worth around ₹758 crore to supply high mobility vehicles from Ministry of Defence.
The board of directors of the company has in-principally agreed to explore demerger of film business of Tips Industries Limited into separate entity.
Care Ratings has placed bank facilities worth ₹600 crore of Dish TV India Limited (DTIL) on ‘Credit watch with negative implications’ based on disclosure by the company regarding demand letter from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for the disputed license fee including interest accrued thereon amounting to Rs.4164.05 crore, which is to be remitted within 15 days.
FMCG player Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) expects to deliver "close to low double-digit sales growth" in the domestic market during the October-December 2020 quarter, led by soaps and household insecticides segments.
Life Insurance Corp Raises Stake the country’s largest two-wheeler maker by 2.021% to 9.166%.
The Reserve Bank of India has fined non-bank financier Bajaj Finance ₹2.5 crore for failing to ensure that its recovery agents did not harass borrowers on the pretext of debt recovery.
Titan Co. Ltd released its quarterly update for the December quarter and investors are visibly thrilled. The stock touched a new 52-week high on Wednesday in early deals on NSE.
Titan’s commentary on the trends seen in the December quarter are encouraging. The company has said its jewellery business has recorded close to 15% year-on-year growth (excluding sale of raw gold worth about Rs334 crore) for the December quarter. Recall that Titan had already announced that growth in the 30-day festive period from Dussehra to Diwali was 15%. (Full report)
Indian pharma companies’ sales are rebounding after clinic and doctor visits normalise. Although, it is still early, the Indian Pharma Market's year-on-year growth acceleration is encouraging, coming in at 8.5% in December against a mere 1% growth in November. The Nifty Pharma index is up 1.6% year-to-date despite it being the top gainer last year.
One positive is that anti-infective sales are back, rising about 5.2% y-o-y, compared to sluggish sales in November. Besides, some critical segments such as cardiac and gastro posted good year-on-year increases in December. (Full report)
'Ride the elephant to steer through the patchy road ahead,' says Emkay Research for State Bank of India. The current market price of SBI is ₹281 per share. The brokerage gives a buy rating for the stock with a target price of ₹340, 21% upside in the next 12 months. "SBI is well-positioned to ride the economic recovery and further consolidate market share. Over the years, SBI has gained market share vs. other PSBs in credit and deposits given its unparalleled franchise network/outreach, better management pedigree with strategic focus on key business/profit drivers and disruptive pricing power," says Emkay research. (Full report)
The largest private sector lender, HDFC Bank Ltd, has managed to grow its loan book sharply despite a pandemic. That streak continued in the December quarter with loan growth coming at 16%, an early update by the lender showed. HDFC Bank had reported a similar growth in the September quarter as well. To be sure, there is deceleration from the pre-pandemic levels but the damage is hardly visible.
In contrast, IndusInd Bank Ltd reported a stagnant loan book with no growth year-on-year. Analysts expect loan growth to remain muted in FY21 given the adverse economic conditions and caution from the management. Unlike its big peer HDFC Bank, IndusInd Bank seems to closely reflect the industry trend in growth. The bank reported a flat loan book year-on-year. To be sure, sequentially loan book expanded by 3.2% which points to steady improvement post pandemic. (Full report)
Growth in India's dominant services industry continued to lose momentum in December as a resurgence in coronavirus infections weighed on new business and employment, a private survey showed on Wednesday.
Asia's third-largest economy has been gradually recovering from a coronavirus-induced recession but is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels soon, especially within the service industry - the engine of economic growth and jobs in the country.
The Nikkei/IHS Markit Services Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 52.3 in December from November's 53.7 but held above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction for a third straight month.
The private sector lender witnessed a loan growth of 19% to ₹10,82,000 crore during the third quarter ended 31 December 2020, it said in a statement. The Bank’s CASA ratio stood at around 43% as of 31 December 2020, as compared to 39.5% as of 31 December 2019 and 41.6% as of 30 September 2020, it added.
Rupee opens on flat note, up 1 paisa at 73.16 against US dollar.
Bharti Airtel Ltd has moved the Supreme Court over “arithmetical errors" in the department of telecommunications’ (DoT) calculation of adjusted gross revenue (AGR)-related dues to be paid by the telecom major, said a person aware of the matter.
According to the DoT’s calculation, Airtel owes a total of ₹43,980 crore in AGR dues including principal, interest, penalty and interest on penalty. However, the telco as per its self-assessment owes to the government ₹13,004 crore. Airtel has already paid ₹18,004 crore to the DoT. (Full report)
"14200-14250 can pose as a resistance patch for the Nifty. If we can keep above 14250, we could travel to 14350. Since we are in unchartered territory, traders should trade cautiously and update their stops on a continuous basis. 13950-14000 is a good support," said Manish Hathiramani, proprietary index trader and technical analyst, Deen Dayal Investments.
The country’s largest mortgage lender is planning to raise up to ₹5,000 crore by issuing secured redeemable non-convertible debentures on private placement basis.
Avenue Supermarts-owned D-Mart chain of retail stores, on Wednesday crossed ₹2 trillion in market valuation after the stock surged nearly 17% in the last three weeks.
The stock has gained in 11 out of 13 sessions tracking gains in the broader market. The scrip was trading at a record high of ₹3,094 on the BSE, up 3% with a market cap of ₹2.01 trillion.
Indian benchmark equity indices opened higher on Wednesday led by gains in index majors HDFC Bank, Titan and ONGC.
Sensex opened at 48,616.66, up 178.88 points or 0.37%, while Nifty opened 41.45 points or 0.29% higher at 14,240.95.
ONGC, rising over 3%, was the top Sensex gainer followed by HDFC Bank, IndusInd Bank, SBI, NTPC and HCL Tech. Nestle India, Bajaj Auto, ITC and Axis Bank were among the laggards.
Indian stocks traded higher in the pre-opening session on Wednesday. At 9:05am, Sensex was at 48,694.41, up 0.5% or 256.63 points, while Nifty climbed 74.45 points or 0.5% at 14,273.95.
HDFC twins, Bajaj Finance, Hero MotoCorp and Dish TV are among the top ten stocks that may be in news on Wednesday. (Full report)
After a negative opening on Tuesday, Indian benchmark share indices recouped losses in the afternoon trade and settled at record highs led by gains in financial and IT stocks.
Extending its rally to the tenth straight session, the 30-share BSE index ended at 48,437.78, up 260.98 points or 0.54%. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty jumped 66.60 points or 0.47% to a lifetime high of 14,199.50.
Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday as investors anxiously awaited results of US runoff elections that would determine the legislative balance of power in the world's largest economy while oil prices rose on news of planned output cuts.
Japan's Nikkei 225 declined 0.14%.
China's Shanghai Composite was little changed, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 0.5%.
South Korea's main KOSPI index rose 0.2%, briefly breaking above 3,000 for the first time.
Australia's ASX200 fell 1.2%.
Singapore's SGX Nifty was flat.
Shares on Wall Street ended higher on Tuesday in choppy trading, as investors took advantage of the previous session's slump to buy them back, ahead of the outcome of the Senate runoff elections in the battleground state of Georgia, which will determine the balance of power in Washington.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 167.71 points, or 0.55%, to 30,391.6, the S&P 500 gained 26.21 points, or 0.71%, to 3,726.86 and the Nasdaq Composite added 120.51 points, or 0.95%, to 12,818.96.
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