Nifty reclaims 14,600 mark; breadth remains weak

The benchmark indices pared losses in afternoon trade as buying emerged at lower levels. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, dropped 956.03 points or 1.91% at 49,073.80. The Nifty 50 index skid 264.05 points or 1.78% at 14,603.30. A spike in domestic coronavirus cases and fresh curbs imposed by the state government dented investors' sentiment.

ICICI Bank (down 3.70%), HDFC (down 3.15%) and HDFC Bank (down 2.37%) were major drags.

Selling was broad based. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 1.40%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 1.26%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 834 shares rose and 1,988 shares fell. A total of 186 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,13,34,009 with 28,53,360 deaths. India reported 7,41,830 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,65,101 deaths while 1,16,82,136 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Meanwhile, in the wake of rising COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray-led state government on April 4 imposed new curbs to control the transmission rate of the contagion. As part of the new rules, a night curfew would be in place across the state from 8 pm to 7 am and a weekend lockdown will be effective from 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday. The restrictions, which come into effect from today (April 5), also include a ban on gatherings of five or more people throughout the day. Essential and medical services are exempt from this.

Economy:

The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell from 57.5 in February to a seven-month low of 55.4 in March. However, the latest reading was indicative of a substantial improvement in the health of the sector that outpaced the long-run series average.

Meanwhile, GST Revenue collection for March 2021 has set a new record with highest ever collection of Rs 1,23,902. The GST revenue collected in the last month is 27% higher than that collected in March last year.

The Finance Ministry has informed that GST revenues of March are the highest since the introduction of Goods & Services Tax in the country. During the month, revenue from import of goods was 70% higher and the revenues from domestic transaction are 17% higher than the revenues from these sources during the same month last year.

Further, India's merchandise exports in March 2021 increased an impressive 58.23% to $34 billion as against $21.49 billion in March last year.

Exports during April-March 2020-21 were $290.18 billion, as compared to $313.36 billion during the same period of last year, exhibiting a negative growth of 7.40%.

India's merchandise imports in March 2021 were $48.12 billion as compared to $31.47 billion in March last year. This is an increase of 52.89%. Merchandise imports during April-March 2020-21 were $388.92 billion, as compared to $474.71 billion during the same period of last year, exhibiting a negative growth of 18.07%.

India is thus a net importer in March 2021, with a trade deficit of $14.11 billion, as compared to trade deficit of $9.98 billion. This is an improvement by 41.4%.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Ordinance, 2021:

The government has amended the insolvency law to provide for a pre-packaged resolution process for micro, small and medium enterprises. An ordinance was promulgated to amend the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) on Sunday, 4 April 2021.

As per the ordinance, it is considered necessary to urgently address the specific requirements of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) relating to the resolution of their insolvency, due to the unique nature of their businesses and simpler corporate structures. It is considered expedient to provide an efficient alternative insolvency resolution process MSMEs to ensure a quicker, cost-effective and value maximising outcomes for all stakeholders, in a manner which is least disruptive to the continuity of their businesses and which preserves jobs.

Gainers & Losers:

HCL Technologies (up 2.28%), Britannia Industries (up 2.17%), Infosys (up 1.41%), Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) (up 1.36%) and Wipro (up 1.01%) were major gainers in Nifty 50 index.

IndusInd Bank (down 5.62%), Bajaj Finance (down 5.56%), Bajaj Finserv (down 5%), State Bank of India (SBI) (down 4.69%) and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) (down 4.47%) were major losers in Nifty 50 index.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Maruti Suzuki India declined 2.02%. Suzuki Motor Gujarat (SMG), a 100% subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation for the production of automobiles in India, has completed construction of the Plant C in Gujarat and started production from April 2021. Suzuki established SMG in March 2014, aiming to secure production ability in preparation for the automobile market growth in India, as well as for expansion of exports from India.

Steel Authority of India (SAIL) advanced 3.46% after the company recorded its best ever quarterly performance in both production and sales during Q4 FY21. The Maharatna PSU's crude steel production rose 6% to 4.55 million tonnes (MT) in Q4 FY21 from 4.31 MT recorded on in Q4 FY20. The company's steel production has improved by 4% as compared to 4.37 MT steel produced in Q3 FY21. SAIL recorded 14% jump in steel sales at 4.27 MT in Q4 FY21 as against 3.74 MT in Q4 FY20. Sequentially, the company's steel sales rose 3% in Q4 FY21 from 4.15 MT in Q3 FY21.

Federal Bank dropped 3.55%. The private lender on Monday announced that its total deposits increased by 13% to Rs 1,72,655 crore as of 31 March 2021 compared to Rs 1,52,290 crore reported on 31 March 2020. At the end of the March 2021, the private lender's customer deposits were at Rs 163,620 crore (up 12% YoY), interbank deposits were at Rs 3,050 crore (up 39% Y-o-Y) and certificates of deposit stood at Rs 5,985 crore (up 35% Y-o-Y).

Its gross advanced grew by 9% to Rs 1,34,876 crore as of 31 March 2021 from Rs 1,24,153 crore posted on 31 March 2020. The bank's liquidity coverage ratio was at 206.91% as on 31 March 2021, improving from 196.65% posted on 31 March 2020.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) slipped 1.67%. APSEZ announced the acquisition of the residual 25% stake in Adani Krishnapatnam Port for Rs 2,800 crore from Vishwa Samudra Holdings. Together with the 75% ownership acquired in October 2020, the acquisition implies an enterprise value of Rs 13,675 crore implying an EV/ FY21 EBITDA multiple of 10.3x. This will result in APSEZ increasing its stake from 75% to 100% in Krishnapatnam Port.

Global Markets:

Asian shares rallied across the board on Monday as investors cheered a strong bounce in U.S. job growth last month amid accelerating vaccine rollout. Markets in mainland China and Hong Kong are closed today for holidays.

Investors monitored the progress of debate over U.S. President Joe Biden's $2.25 trillion infrastructure proposal, as Republicans reportedly expressed guarded support for a more limited plan.

The response so far in bond markets has been muted, with inflation concerns easing amid doubts over the viability of more-generous spending, even as central banks remain reportedly committed to keeping interest rates lower for longer.

China is reportedly ramping up its COVID-19 vaccination push, aiming to be twice as fast as the U.S., and a leader of the World Health Organization's program has reportedly said the rollout of shots will be expanded to 100 countries in the next couple of weeks, from 84 at present.

In US, the S&P 500 surged on Thursday to its first-ever close above the 4,000 mark, lifted by gains in Microsoft, Amazon and Alphabet, as well as optimism about a recovering U.S. economy.

The Labor Department reported Friday that nonfarm payrolls increased by 916,000 in March, the highest since August 2020, while the unemployment rate fell to 6%.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News