Cement shares in demand

Key benchmark indices came off the day's high levels and were hovering in a narrow range in early afternoon trade. At 12:16 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 249.64 points or 0.73% at 34,391.79. The Nifty 50 index was up 74.05 points or 0.71% at 10,565.10. Shares held firm in positive terrain as positive global cues boosted investors' sentiment.

The market opened on a positive note and extended gains as the session progressed. Indices, however, trimmed gains in early afternoon trade as profit booking emerged at higher levels. The Sensex rose 292.91 points, or 0.86% at the day's high of 34,435.06 in mid-morning trade, its highest level since 16 February 2018. The index rose 83.57 points, or 0.24% at the day's low of 34,225.72 in early trade. The Nifty rose 87.65 points, or 0.84% at the day's high of 10,578.70 in mid-morning trade, its highest level since 16 February 2018. The index rose 29.15 points, or 0.28% at the day's low of 10,520.20 in early trade.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On BSE, 1,618 shares rose and 853 shares fell. A total of 151 shares were unchanged.

Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.89%. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.86%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

Cement shares were in demand. ACC (up 1.38%), Ambuja Cements (up 0.89%) and UltraTech Cement (up 0.48%), edged higher.

Grasim Industries was up 2.96%. Grasim has exposure to cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.

Most telecom shares rose. Reliance Communications (up 5.99%), Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (up 0.65%) and Idea Cellular (up 0.36%), edged higher. MTNL was down 2.96%.

Telecom major Bharti Airtel was down 0.13%. Telecom tower infrastructure provider Bharti Infratel was up 1.88%.

Shares of Aster DM Healthcare were trading at Rs 183.75 on BSE, at a discount of 3.29% to its initial public offer price of Rs 190 per share on its debut on the bourses today, 26 February 2018. Shares of Aster DM Healthcare were listed on the bourses at Rs 182.10, a discount of 4.16% to its offer price of Rs 190 per share. The stock had hit a high of Rs 187.80 and a low of Rs 176.45 so far during the day. On the BSE, 10.29 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far.

The initial public offer (IPO) of Aster DM Healthcare had received bids for 4.88 crore shares, as against 3.73 crore shares on offer. The issue was subscribed 1.31 times. The issue opened for subscription on 12 February and closed on 15 February 2018. The price band for the issue was fixed at Rs 180 to Rs 190 per share. The offer comprised of IPO of Rs 725 crore. The offer also comprised offer for sale (OFS) of 1.34 crore shares.

Sterlite Technologies was up 6.02% after the company said it has been awarded a Rs 3500-crore advance purchase order to design, build and manage the Indian Navy's communications network. The announcement was made before market hours today, 26 February 2018.

Sterlite Technologies said that this is the first time that an integrated naval communications network at such a scale is being built in India. The Navy's communications network has been envisioned as a smarter network infrastructure with enhanced throughput, high-quality secure services and ease of network management. The scope requires Sterlite Tech to design, build and manage the communications network for over a decade through its system integration capabilities.

Overseas, Asian shares were trading higher. US stocks rallied on Friday, 23 February 2018, to end a bumpy week with slight gains, as falling bond yields provided a reprieve for investors concerned about rising inflation.

The focus this week is on the US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell's congressional testimony on monetary policy and the economy. Powell will testify on the central bank's semi-annual report on monetary policy and the economy on Tuesday, 27 February 2018, before the US House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee.

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