MARKETS: Sensex ends volatile session 133 pts higher ahead of F&O expiry

All that happened in the markets today

A decent recovery in the final hour of the trade helped the Indian markets extend their winning streak to the sixth straight day, ahead of tomorrow's December series derivative contracts expiry. 

The benchmark indices opened higher for the sixth straight session, logging their fresh all-time highs, before quickly paring the gains and spending rest of the session fluctuating between gains and losses.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended the session 133 points, or 0.28 per cent, higher at 47,746. The index hit an intra-day high and low of 47,808 and 47,358, respectively. The broader Nifty50 index ended the session at 13,981. The index came close to hitting the 14,000-mark in intra-day, but could only hit a high of 13,997.

Out of the 30 Sensex constituents, 18 ended the day in green. UltraTech Cement (up 4%) was the top Sensex gainer, followed by Bajaj Finance and Maruti Suzuki (both up 2%). On the other hand, IndusInd Bank and Sun Pharma fell 1 per cent each.

The Nifty sectoral indices ended mixed, with Nifty Metal and Nifty Auto indexes, both up 1 per cent, leading the list of gainers.

In the broader markets, the S&P BSE MidCap and SmallCap indexes ended 0.5 and 0.37 per cent higher, respectively.

Global markets

European stocks edged higher on Wednesday as Britain approved a COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University, while bets of more U.S. fiscal aid and massive vaccination efforts spurred hopes of a strong global economic recovery next year.

The pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.1 per cent, hovering near a 10-month high hit in the previous session. Most markets in the region were subdued due to thin volumes in a holiday-shortened week. The German DAX was flat, while French and Spanish stocks slipped 0.1 per cent each.

In Asian trading, MSCI’s gauge of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan rose 1.2 per cent to hit a record high, led by gains in Chinese shares. Japan’s Nikkei share average, however, lost 0.45 per cent on its last trading day of 2020.

(with inputs from Reuters)

4:09 PM

MARKET QUOTE || S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities

Bulls stepped on the Accelerator in Wednesday Trade to end the day just shy of the 14k mark led by Cement & Steel stocks on hopes of higher spend on Infrastructure. Vaccine Approval in the UK and hopes of approval back home led strength to the rally despite profit booking seen across several stocks

4:06 PM

MARKET QUOTE || Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial services

Domestic sentiment is upbeat, expecting a nod for Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine usage in India. Growth sectors like Auto, Realty and Metal led the rally while defensives like pharma continued to remain under pressure. Although the market is at its most expensive valuation level, FPIs continue to pump in funds and roll the Indian market higher on a daily basis

3:58 PM

Most active stocks by volume

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	CHG(%)
VODAFONE IDEA	10.18	-1.07
PUNJAB NATL.BANK	32.65	-1.66
SUZLON ENERGY	6.24	4.87
CANARA BANK	129.70	2.65
COROMANDEL INTER	802.25	-5.79

3:55 PM

Heatmap: Sensex gainers and losers at close

3:54 PM

Nifty sectoral indices at close

3:53 PM

MARKETS AT CLOSE

3:39 PM

CLOSING BELL | The S&P BSE Sensex ends 133 points, or 0.28 per cent, higher at 47,746

-- , Nifty ends at 13,981

3:22 PM

CABINET BRIEFING | Govt approves modified scheme for ethanol distillation

-- Approves Rs 4,573 crore for ethanol distillery loan support

3:18 PM

NEWS ALERT | Govt extends suspension of scheduled commercial international flights till Jan 31, 2021

-- Restrictions not to apply on special flights and international air cargo operations

3:12 PM

MARKET UPDATE:: Sensex at day's high

3:04 PM

Realty stocks rise in an otherwise rangebound market

COMPANY NAME	LATEST	HIGH	LOW	CHG(%)
HEMISPHERE PROP	88.30	88.30	72.60	19.97
UNITECH	1.82	1.85	1.78	1.11
INDBULL.REALEST.	79.00	79.75	74.70	3.00
H D I L	7.02	7.02	6.41	4.93

2:51 PM

MARKET UPDATE:: Nifty Bank index off day's low

2:44 PM

Stocks that hit 52-week high on BSE today

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	52 WK HIGH	CHG(%)
ADANI GAS	383.00	390.00	2.28
APL APOLLO TUBES	812.00	833.20	-1.00
ASIAN PAINTS	2721.00	2725.15	0.91
ASTRAL POLY TECH	1695.10	1698.70	5.69
BAJAJ AUTO	3437.05	3472.35	0.17

2:33 PM

India Cements advances 13% on heavy volumes; stock hits 34-month high

Shares of India Cements zoomed 13 per cent, hitting 34-month high of Rs 163.80 on the BSE on Wednesday on the back of heavy volumes in an otherwise range-bound market. The stock of the cement manufacturer surpassed its previous high of Rs 164, hit on November 26, 2020. It was trading at its highest level since February 2018. READ MORE

2:23 PM

Economy to recover in 2021, but output may take another year to regain loss

There is broad consensus among experts that the economy will revert to marginal growth in the first quarter of the coming calendar year 2021, though opinions are varied on whether the economy will continue to contract or expand to a small extent in the fourth quarter of Calendar 2020. That the economy is on a recovery path was substantiated by a better-than-expected performance in the third quarter of Calendar 2020 (second quarter of FY21). READ MORE