Key benchmark indices settled marginally lower after alternately swinging between positive and negative zone throughout the trading session. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 16.01 points or 0.08%, up about 60 points from the day's low and off close to 65 points from the day's high.
The Sensex has lost 457.31 points or 2.16% in this month so far (till 9 January 2014). From a 52-week low of 17,448.71 on 28 August 2013, the Sensex has risen 3,264.66 points or 18.71%. From a record high of 21,483.74 hit on 9 December 2013, the Sensex is off 770.37 points or 3.58%.
Coming back to today's trade, Reliance Industries (RIL) edged higher in volatile trade on reports the company has started producing gas from the MA-8 well in the Krishna-Godavari basis from 1 January 2014. Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC edged lower in volatile trade. Shares of state-run coal miner Coal India extended Wednesday's gains triggered by speculation that the company may announce a hefty interim dividend next week. ONGC rose on rumours that the company will announce a hefty interim dividend.
In the IT pack, Infosys edged higher in volatile trade ahead of Q3 results tomorrow, 10 January 2014. HCL Technologies hit record high. Among pharma stocks, Dr Reddy's Laboratories hit record high. Cadila Healthcare jumped after the company said it has received final approval from the US drug regulator to market Sirolimus Tablets 0.5 mg in the United States with 180 days of marketing exclusivity.
The S&P BSE Sensex lost 16.01 points or 0.08% to settle at 20,713.37, its lowest closing level since 7 January 2014. The index fell 76.69 points at the day's low of 20,652.69 in afternoon trade. The index gained 48.75 points at the day's high of 20,778.13 in early trade.
The CNX Nifty lost 6.25 points or 0.1% to settle at 6,168.35, its lowest closing level since 7 January 2014. The index hit a low of 6,148.25 in intraday trade. The index hit a high of 6,188.05 in intraday trade.
Also Read
The BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.79%. The BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.71%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.
The BSE Oil & Gas index (up 0.76%), BSE PSU index (up 0.82%), BSE Metal index (up 1.06%), BSE Power index (up 0.16%), BSE IT index (up 0.47%) and BSE HealthCare index (up 0.46%) outperformed the Sensex.
The BSE Auto index (down 0.57%), BSE Realty index (down 2.31%), BSE Bankex (down 0.74%), BSE Capital Goods index (down 2.03%), BSE FMCG index (down 0.56%) and BSE Consumer Durables index (down 0.5%), underperformed the Sensex.
The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 2167 crore, lower than Rs 2354 crore on Wednesday, 8 January 2014.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. On BSE, 1,389 shares dropped and 1,164 shares rose. A total of 139 shares were unchanged.
Among the 30-share Sensex pack, 17 stocks declined and rest of them gained.
Sesa Sterlite jumped 4.57%. The stock was the biggest gainer from the Sensex pack.
Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC shed 0.41% to Rs 315.50, with the stock trimming losses in late trade. The stock hit a high of Rs 316.80 and low of Rs 313.
Shares of state-run coal miner Coal India extended Wednesday's gains triggered by speculation that the company may announce a hefty interim dividend next week. The stock rose 2.75%. The scrip had surged 4.77% on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, after the company said during trading hours on that day that a meeting of the board of directors of the company will be held on 14 January, 2014, to consider payment of interim dividend, if any, for the year ending 31 March 2014.
The market has been abuzz with rumours that the government may force cash rich state-run firms to declare hefty interim dividend to enable the government to meet the fiscal deficit target for the current year.
Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 0.55% to Rs 852.90 in volatile trade. The stock hit a high of Rs 853.10 and low of Rs 844.95. RIL, which operates the Krishna-Godavari basin's D6 block off the east coast, has reportedly started producing gas from the MA-8 well from 1 January 2014. The well has potential to produce 1 million to 2 million standard cubic metres per day (mscmd) of gas from the well.
ONGC edged higher on rumours that the company will announce a hefty interim dividend. The stock was up 2.65% at Rs 280.40. The stock hit a high of Rs 281.40 and low of Rs 271.25.
Bank stocks edged lower. Among private sector banks, AXIS Bank (down 2.3%), HDFC Bank (down 0.24%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 0.41%) and ICICI Bank (down 0.24%) declined.
IndusInd Bank fell 1.16%. The private sector bank unveils Q3 earnings tomorrow, 10 January 2014.
Dhanlaxmi Bank fell 1.37% to Rs 39.60. Shares allotted by the private sector bank to qualified institutional buyers (QIB) under qualified institutional placement (QIP) conducted last month were admitted for trading on the bourses today, 9 January 2014. Dhanlaxmi Bank had raised about Rs 67.22 crore last month from the QIP issue. A total of 1.75 crore shares were issued to QIBs at an issue price of Rs 38.25 per share.
Among PSU bank stocks, Canara Bank (down 2.48%), Punjab National Bank (down 0.88%) and Bank of India (down 3.45%) edged lower.
State Bank of India dropped 0.98%. The state-run bank on 2 January 2014 said that the Executive Committee of the Central Board of the bank at its meeting held on 2 January 2014 has accorded its approval for the issuance and allotment of 1.12 crore equity shares at an issue price of Rs 1,782.74 per share to the Government of India (GoI) on preferential basis. The committee also approved the allotment of Basel III compliant Tier 2 bonds of Rs 2000 crore, issued for 120 months (10 year bullet), at an annually payable coupon of 9.69%, by way of private placement.
Union Bank of India fell 2.63%. The bank said after market hours on Wednesday, 8 January 2014 that the board of directors of the bank at its meeting held on 8 January 2014 have declared an interim dividend of 27% or Rs 2.70 per share for the financial year ending 31 March 2014 (FY 2014). The bank has fixed 21 January 2014 as the record date for the purpose of payment of interim dividend. The date of payment of interim dividend shall be 29 January 2014.
Oriental Bank of Commerce shed 3.19%. The bank said after market hours on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, that a meeting of the board of directors of the bank will be held on 11 January 2014, to consider declaration of interim dividend on the paid up equity capital of the bank for the financial year ending 31 March 2014 (FY 2014).
Syndicate Bank fell 3.27%. Syndicate Bank's board meets today, 9 January 2014, to consider payment of interim dividend for the year ending 31 March 2014.
Allahabad Bank fell 3.43%. Allahabad Bank's board will meet on 11 January 2014 to consider payment of interim dividend for the year ending 31 March 2014.
IDBI Bank declined 3.07%. IDBI Bank's board will meet on 13 January 2014 to consider payment of interim dividend for the year ending 31 March 2014.
Indian Bank declined 0.63%. Indian Bank's board will meet tomorrow, 10 January 2014 to consider payment of interim dividend for the year ending 31 March 2014.
Bank of Baroda shed 1.54%. The state-run bank said during market hours that a meeting of the board of directors of the bank will be held on 15 January 2014, inter alia, for considering a proposal to declare/pay interim dividend for the year ending 31 March 2014. The bank also said that 21 January 2014 has been fixed as the record date for the purpose of payment of interim dividend, if declared.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories advanced 2.29% at Rs 2,590. The stock hit record high of Rs 2,596.95 in intraday trade.
Cadila Healthcare jumped after the company said it has received final approval from the US drug regulator to market Sirolimus Tablets 0.5 mg in the United States with 180 days of marketing exclusivity. The stock jumped 5.29% to Rs 890.45, with the scrip extending Wednesday's gains. As per IMS data in 2013, the sales of Sirolimus was approximately $203.8 million in the United States.
Cadila Healthcare also said that the company has received approval from the USFDA for Duloxetine delayed release capsules in different strengths of 20 mg, 30 mg and 60 mg. Duloxetine had US sales of about $5.5 billion in 2013.
While Sirolimus tables are immunossuppresssant drugs used to prevent rejection in organ transplantation, Duloxetine delayed release capsules fall in the anti-depressants segment. The Cadila group now has 86 approvals and has so far filed 216 abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs) since the commencement of the filing process in 2003-04, the company said.
Ranbaxy Laboratories edged higher in choppy trade after the company announced the signing of a licensing agreement with EPIRUS Switzerland GmbH, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Boston-based EPIRUS Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (EPIRUS), for BOW015 -- a biosimilar version of infliximab. The stock rose 0.02% at Rs 474.10. The scrip hit high of Rs 482.55 and low of Rs 465.20. Under the terms of the agreement, EPIRUS will develop and supply the product, and upon regulatory approval Ranbaxy will market the product in India and other emerging markets.
Aurobindo Pharma shed 3.22%. In clarification to news reports about a boiler blast at one of Aurobindo Pharma's units, the company during market hours today, 9 January 2014, clarified that there has been no such incidence and cautioned all shareholders and investors not to take cognizance of these unverified reports.
Suven Life Sciences rose 3.2% after the firm said it has secured 3 product patents one each from Australia, Sri Lanka and South Korea for NCE's for the treatment of disorders associated with neurodegenerative diseases. The announcement was made during trading hours today, 9 January 2014.
Suven Life Sciences (Suven) announced today, 9 January 2014, the grant of three product patents one each from Australia, Sri Lanka and South Korea corresponding to the new chemical entities (NCEs) for the treatment of disorders associated with neurodegenerative diseases and these Patents are valid through 2029.
Capital goods stocks declined. Bhel (down 0.31%), Crompton Greaves (down 1.7%), L&T (down 2.68%) and Punj Lloyd (down 3.29%) dropped.
IT stocks rose on positive economic data in US. US is the biggest outsourcing market for the Indian IT firms. TCS rose 0.48%.
Infosys rose 0.68% to Rs 3,451.90. The stock hit high of Rs 3,481.95 and low of Rs 3,417.30. Infosys announces its Q3 December 2013 results tomorrow, 10 January 2014. At the time of announcement of Q2 September 2013 results in October 2013, Infosys had raised its revenue guidance in both dollar and rupee terms. The increase in revenue growth guidance in rupee terms was driven by weakness in rupee against the dollar. At that time, the company had issued a forecast of 21% to 22% growth in revenue in rupee terms based on the assumption of rupee dollar conversion rate of 62.61 for the rest of the fiscal year. The company had at that time forecast 9% to 10% growth in revenue in dollar terms for the year ending 31 March 2014 (FY 2014).
HCL Technologies gained 3.43% to Rs 1,292, also its record high.
Wipro (down 1.02%) and Tech Mahindra (down 0.57%) declined.
Mastek rose 1.28% to Rs 201.55 after the company said its board approved buyback of shares. The company made the announcement after market hours on Wednesday, 8 January 2014. Mastek said its board approved buyback of maximum of 32 lakh equity shares and minimum of 9.50 lakh equity shares from the open market at a price not exceeding Rs 250 per equity share for an aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 54.50 crore. The buyback offer size represents 14.92% of the aggregate of the company's paid up equity capital and free reserves as on 31 March 2013, the company said in a statement.
PSU OMCs edged higher as US crude oil futures traded near the lowest level in six weeks after Energy Information Administration data showed fuel stockpiles increased more than forecast in the US, the world's biggest oil consumer. HPCL (up 1.27%), and Indian Oil Corporation (up 1.76%) gained.
US crude oil futures for February delivery were at $92.79 a barrel, up 46 cents. The contract fell $1.34 to settle at $92.33 yesterday, 8 January 2014, the lowest close since 27 November 2013.
Oil secretary Vivek Rae today, 9 January 2014, said that the oil ministry is considering a partial rollback of bulk diesel prices as sales have dropped significantly. "We are circulating the Kirit Parikh report for inter-ministerial consultation," Rae told reporters on the sidelines of an industry event. He also said there is a need to review the subsidy sharing mechanism to ensure that upstream companies get about $65 a barrel on sale of crude oil.
PSU OMCs, or public sector oil marketing companies, suffer under recoveries on domestic sale of diesel, LPG and kerosene at controlled prices. In January 2013, the government allowed PSU OMCs to raise diesel prices in small measures at regular intervals while completely deregulating diesel prices sold to institutional or bulk buyers. The government has already freed pricing of petrol.
Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) rose 2.62%. Manali Petrochemicals rose 4.59%. BPCL clarified at the fag end of the trading session that there is no proposal of partnering with Manali Petrochemicals (MPL). BPCL issued the clarification after news reports said that BPCL and MPL have joined hands to set up a Rs 3000-crore polyurethane project in Kerala.
Tata Steel lost 0.34%. Tata Steel on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, said it has won a two-year contract to supply more than 200,000 tonnes of track to French rail operator SNCF. The contract will see Tata Steel supply the majority of SNCF's rail requirements in lengths of up to 108 metres from its plant in Hayange, Northern France, the company said in a statement. The order was secured following a euro 35 million investment by Tata Steel in 2011 which allowed the Hayange mill to produce 108 metre lengths of rail that SNCF will use throughout France's standard and high-speed networks. The new order is an extension of a previous contract with SNCF, Tata Steel said.
Henrik Adam, Tata Steel's Chief Commercial Officer, said: "We know that by working with customers we are able to innovate and develop products they want. We made a significant investment in Hayange to be able to produce the 108 metre long rail required by SNCF. Our heat-treatment facility means we are also now able to produce highly wear-resistant rail in lengths up to 108 metre - a key requirement of most of our European customers."
The Hayange rolling mill is supplied with steel from Tata Steel's Scunthorpe steelworks in the UK.
Gard Glas, Rail Sector Head, Tata Steel, said: "We are committed to serving the needs of our customers and SNCF is Hayange's largest and most important customer. We have worked closely with SNCF to understand their requirements and have invested in both our plant and technical areas to ensure we can continue to meet their needs. This contract helps to justify the confidence Tata Steel placed in the Hayange mill when the company invested in 108m rail and more recently in 108m 'stress-free' heat-treated rail."
Realty stocks edged lower. DLF (down 2.03%), HDIL (down 5.44%), Unitech (down 1.68%), and Sobha Developers (down 0.94%) declined.
United Spirits rose 0.14%. United Spirits before market hours said that the board of directors of the company at its meeting held on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, has approved a proposal to initiate a process to explore potential sale of Whyte and Mackay (W&M) -- an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of the company. The board proposes to initiate a process, based on the outline timetable provided under UK law in connection with the decision of the Office of Fair Trading, to explore a potential sale of W&M, United Spirits said in a statement.
NHPC dropped 1.85%. The company said after market hours on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, that a memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed on 6 January 2014 between the company and Government of Kerala for the development of Wind Power project by NHPC in Kerala. As per the agreement, NHPC will take up the grid interactive wind energy project with proposed installed capacity of 82 megawatts (MW) in Palakkad District of Kerala.
Shares of gold loan financing companies hit the roof after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, relaxed norms for non-banking finance companies' (NBFCs) lending against gold jewellery.
Manappuram Finance rose by maximum permissible 20% upper circuit at Rs 18.15.
Muthoot Finance rose by maximum permissible 20% upper circuit at Rs 129.10.
The central bank on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, hiked loan-to-value ratio (LTV) to up to 75% for loans against the collateral of gold jewellery from 60% with immediate effect. The central bank further said the value of the jewellery for the purpose of determining the maximum permissible loan amount will be only the intrinsic value of the gold content therein and no other cost elements should be added thereto. The intrinsic value will continue to be arrived as per way suggested by RBI. However, RBI clarified that the need to give a certificate on the purity of gold cannot be dispensed with.
The certified purity shall be applied for determining the maximum permissible loan and the reserve price for auction. The NBFCs can, however, include suitable caveats to protect themselves against disputes on redemption, RBI said.
It is also clarified that the ownership verification need not necessarily be through original receipts for the jewellery pledged but a suitable document may be prepared to explain how the ownership was determined, particularly in each and every case where the gold jewellery pledged by a borrower at any one time or cumulatively on loan outstanding is more than 20 grams. NBFCs shall have an explicit policy in this regard as approved by the board in their overall loan policy, RBI said in a statement.
Jubilant FoodWorks fell 3.01% after the central bank put restrictions on purchases of additional shares of the company by foreign institutional investors (FIIs). The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, notified that the aggregate net purchases of equity shares in Jubilant FoodWorks by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) in primary/secondary markets under portfolio investment scheme (PIS) have reached the trigger limit. Hence, further purchases of equity shares of the company by FIIs would be allowed only after obtaining prior approval of the RBI, the central bank said in a statement.
FII investment cap in Jubilant FoodWorks is 49%. As at 30 September 2013, FIIs held 45.35% stake in Jubilant FoodWorks.
Motherson Sumi Systems gained 7.3% to Rs 212.50 after hitting a record high of Rs 218 in intraday trade.
Aban Offshore lost 3.71% to Rs 416.10, with the stock sliding on profit booking after recent rally. Shares of Aban Offshore had rallied 17.19% in three trading sessions to settle at Rs 432.15 on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, from a recent low of Rs 368.75 on 3 January 2014.
The next major trigger for the stock market is Q3 December 2013 corporate earnings. Investors and analysts will closely watch the management commentary that would accompany the result to see if there is any revision in their future earnings forecast of the company for the current year and/or the next year. The Q3 earnings season begins tomorrow, 10 January 2014, the day when IT major Infosys and private sector bank IndusInd Bank unveil their earnings.
The Reserve Bank of India's Third Quarter Review of Monetary Policy for 2013-14 is scheduled on 28 January 2014.
European stock markets shook off early losses and edged higher on Thursday, 9 January 2014, as the wait began for policy decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England. Key benchmark indices in UK, France and Germany were up 0.33% to 0.43%.
The European Central Bank (ECB) holds a monetary policy meeting today, 9 January 2014. The ECB is seen retaining its key interest rate at a record low of 0.25%. The ECB last cut its rate in November 2013.
UK's central bank -- Bank of England -- also undertakes monthly monetary policy review today, 9 January 2014. The Bank of England is expected to keep the key rate unchanged at 0.5% and maintain the asset-purchase target at 375 billion pounds ($617 billion).
Asian stocks edged lower on Thursday, 9 January 2014, as better-than-expected US private sector jobs numbers strengthened the case for further tapering of the Federal Reserve's bond-buying program. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan were off 0.17% to 1.5%. In Indonesia, the Jakarta Composite rose 0.01%. Fed's bond-buying program has been a source of liquidity for most Asian and emerging markets over the past few years.
China's consumer-price inflation slowed in December 2013, according to government data out Thursday. China's consumer-price index rose 2.5% in December from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said in Beijing. That compares with 3% increase in November. The producer-price index fell 1.4% from a year earlier to record its longest series of losses since the Asian financial crisis in 1997.
A member of the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) policy board said the central bank should move quickly to step up its monetary easing if the country's economy or prices diverge from their predicted paths. "I believe that we should take additional easing measures without hesitation to avoid jeopardizing the Bank of Japan's credibility if it becomes clear that economic and price conditions have sharply diverged downward from our baseline scenario," Sayuri Shirai said in the text of speeches released Thursday by the BOJ. Ms. Shirai indicated she had doubts about the likelihood the BOJ will achieve its inflation goal in two years, saying "there may be high uncertainty regarding the duration in which to achieve the target." That is because it could take "some time" before the full impact of the BOJ's current easing program is felt, considering consumer worries about a rapid decline in real disposable income as well as firms' caution over raising sales prices.
She also said the BOJ needs to achieve stable 2% inflation paired with sustainable economic growth, "rather than merely achieving 2% in a specific year and failing to meet the target in subsequent years."
South Korea's central bank left its key interest rate unchanged at 2.5% for an eighth straight month after a monetary policy review today, 9 January 2014.
Trading in US index futures indicated that the Dow could advance 56 points at the opening bell on Thursday, 9 January 2014. US stocks closed mostly lower on Wednesday, 8 January 2014, after minutes from the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting showed that a majority of officials judged the effects of the monthly asset purchases to be diminishing over time. Federal Reserve officials saw diminishing economic benefits from Fed's bond-buying program and voiced concern about future risks to financial stability during their last meeting, when they began to cut the pace of purchases, according to minutes from their last meeting released Wednesday, 8 January 2014. The minutes didn't describe a set schedule for reductions in bond purchases, although a few officials mentioned the need for a more deterministic path. By a 9-to-1 vote, the Fed on 18 December 2013 decided to trim its asset-purchase program by $10 billion to $75 billion per month starting in January 2014.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) holds a two-day monetary policy meeting on 28 and 29 January 2014. The US central bank is poised to continue winding down its stimulus measures gradually this year.
Automatic Data Processing (ADP) said on Wednesday that private employers created 238,000 jobs in December.
The US government will unveil the influential non-farm payroll report for December 2013 tomorrow, 10 January 2014.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News