MARKET WRAP: Record closing high for Sensex at 37,692; bank stocks rally

The benchmark indices settled at record closing highs on Monday, after rallying for the to a second consecutive session led by rise in financial stocks, especially the public sector banks (PSBs).

The S&P BSE Sensex settled at a record high of 37,692, up 136 points, while the broader Nifty 50 index settled at a new high of 11,387, up 26 points. In intra-day deals, the S&P BSE Sensex hit a fresh all-time high of 37,805.25 while the Nifty50 index touched its record high level of 11,427.65.

Among individual stocks, Axis Bank, State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank were among the top gainers in the BSE Sensex, settling higher in a range of 3 -4 per cent. The Nifty PSU Bank index settled over 2.5% higher led by rise in Indian Bank and SBI.

GLOBAL MARKETS

Asian shares pared gains on Monday as Chinese stocks swung into negative territory, dragged lower by the escalating Sino-US trade war, though Beijing’s efforts to stop sharp declines in the yuan helped support the currency.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan climbed 0.3 per cent, after having risen about 1 per cent earlier in the day. Chinese shares turned negative with the blue-chip share index CSI 300 and Shanghai's SSE Composite down more than 1 per cent each. Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's Kospi index slipped 0.1 per cent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.5 per cent.
 

MONSOON

The monsoon is also likely to play a key role in determining the direction the markets take during the week. The IMD has already forecast that rains will be normal in August and September, boosting growth prospects of the rural economy.

(with Reuters inputs)

3:49 PM

Nifty sectoral gainers and losers of the day

3:48 PM

BSE Sensex: Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI among top gainers of the day

3:46 PM

Market at close

The S&P BSE Sensex settled at a record high of 37,692, up 136 points, while the broader Nifty 50 index settled at a new high of 11,387, up 26 points.

3:18 PM

Vinati Organics hits upper circuit of 20% as Q1 profit doubles

Shares of Vinati Organics are locked in upper circuit of 20% at Rs 1,188 per share, also their new high on the BSE, after the company reported a more-than-double net profit of Rs 643 million in June 2018 quarter (Q1FY19). The company, which is engaged in commodity chemicals business, had profit of Rs 311 million in the same quarter last fiscal. READ MORE

3:03 PM

RCom gets SC nod to sell assets to Jio, agrees to pay Rs 5.5 bn to Ericsson

Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom) said on Monday it had received approval from the Supreme Court to proceed with the sale of its wireless assets to Reliance Jio after it agreed to pay 5.5 billion rupees ($80.06 million) to settle dues with Swedish telecom gearmaker Ericsson. READ MORE

2:47 PM

Gold extends rally from 17-month low, stronger dollar caps gains

Gold prices inched higher on Monday, extending their recovery from a 17-month low, amid lingering worries over the US-China trade conflict, while a stronger US dollar capped the safe haven's gains.

 

Spot gold was up 0.2 per cent at $1,215.71 an ounce, building on its 0.5 per cent gain on Friday. US gold futures were little changed at $1,223.7 an ounce. READ MORE

2:31 PM

Vedanta's quarterly core earnings rise; India copper output drops

Miner Vedanta Resources Plc, which is set to be taken private by Chairman Anil Agarwal, reported on Monday a 26.3 percent rise in first-quarter core earnings on higher commodity prices.

 

The London-listed company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose to $983 million, for the three months ended June 30, from $778 million a year earlier. READ MORE

2:13 PM

Multiplex companies look attractive post correction; PVR, Inox Leisure gain

Multiplex operators PVR and Inox Leisure were among the top gainers in the BSE 500 index on Friday, appreciating 7-14.5 per cent. The gains came after PVR entered into a three-year deal with ticketing aggregators bookmyshow and PayTM for a convenience fee of Rs4.1 billion, most of which it will receive upfront as advance payment in FY19. READ MORE

2:02 PM

Market Check

INDEX	LATEST	PREVIOUS	CHANGE	CHANGE(%)
	37729.37	37556.16	173.21	0.46
	15425.22	15361.14	64.08	0.42
	16283.63	16206.89	76.74	0.47
	16929.66	16833.52	96.14	0.57
	4424.31	4407.00	17.31	0.39

1:45 PM

ICRA gains 6% as board mulls share buyback proposal

Shares of ICRA have gained 6% to Rs 3,657 per share on the BSE in intra-day trade after the company- an Indian subsidiary of ratings agency Moody's, said it will consider share buyback proposal on Thursday, August 9, 2018. READ MORE

1:34 PM

Top gainers in BSE 500:

COMPANY	PRICE()	CHG()	CHG(%)
TRIDENT	70.85	6.75	10.53
ENDURANCE TECH.	1574.00	120.50	8.29
I D F C	50.90	3.85	8.18
TIME TECHNOPLAST	151.45	11.25	8.02
DHANUKA AGRITECH	600.00	41.65	7.46

1:15 PM

Pledged holdings for the BSE500 stocks decline in June 2018 quarter

Pledged holdings for the BSE500 stocks declined in the June 2018 quarter as against the preceding quarter. The percentage of pledged promoter holdings reduced to 6.8 per cent, from 7.4 per cent in the March quarter, according to Kotak Institutional Equities.

 

The value of pledged holdings stood at Rs1.82 trillion, 1.37 per cent of market capitalisation of the BSE500 stocks. The brokerage attributed the fall in pledged holdings to changes in the constituents of the BSE-500 index. READ MORE

12:59 PM

Defensives are on the radar

The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI’s) Monetary Policy Committee has hiked the policy rate for the second time in a row. It has also hinted that it will not be averse to hiking again, if inflation doesn't ease off. Pressure on the rupee might now lessen due to a couple of factors. READ MORE

12:44 PM

Indian markets can rise another 10%; focus on mid, small-caps: Mark Mobius

Indian benchmarks have rallied to record highs and have been among the top performers globally thus far in the calendar year 2018 (CY18). MARK MOBIUS, co-founder, Mobius Capital Partners tells Puneet Wadhwa that going ahead, investors should concentrate more on ‘value’ rather than momentum; and on the good small-and medium-sized companies rather than the large-caps. READ MORE

Mark Mobius

12:33 PM

Here are the reasons why FMCG valuations will remain high in coming days

A strong performance is always rewarded whether it’s a field of sport, movie or even the equity market. And, it is exactly what most fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies are likely to experience. READ MORE