The movement for key benchmark indices remained range bound in early afternoon trade. At 12:19 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 17.89 points or 0.07% at 26,156.20. The 50-unit Nifty 50 index was currently up 1.45 points or 0.02% at 7,944.15. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was strong. On BSE, 1,478 shares rose and 864 shares fell. A total of 189 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.29%. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.8%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
Earlier, the Sensex and the Nifty, both, hit their highest level in more than three weeks amid initial volatility. The Sensex rose 102.86 points or 0.39% at the day's high of 26,231.06 in early trade, its highest level since 6 November 2015. The barometer index fell 32.11 points or 0.12% at the day's low of 26,096.09 at the onset of the trading session. The Nifty rose 21.15 points or 0.26% at the day's high of 7,963.85 in morning trade, its highest level since 6 November 2015. The index dropped 15.30 points or 0.19% at the day's low of 7,927.40 at the onset of the trading session.
Cipla rose 0.92% after the company announced during market hours its readiness to supply its combinations Tenofovir/Emtricitabine/Efavirenz and Tenofovir/Lamivudine/Efavirenz with a dose of 400 mg of Efavirenz as a first-line initial therapy for HIV infection on the eve of World AIDS day.
Shares of oil exploration and production (E&P) companies fell along with drop in global crude oil prices. Oil India (down 1.6%), ONGC (down 0.81%), Reliance Industries (RIL) (down 1.03%) and Cairn India (down 1.93%) declined. Lower crude oil prices would result in lower realizations from crude sales for oil exploration firms.
Shares of public sector oil marketing companies (PSU OMCs) rose as crude oil prices fell. BPCL (up 1.53%), HPCL (up 2.99%), and Indian Oil Corporation (up 1.01%) gained. Lower crude oil prices could reduce under-recoveries of PSU OMCs on domestic sale of LPG and kerosene at controlled prices. However, a weakness in rupee against the dollar will restrict the benefit of falling global crude oil prices to that extent. A weak rupee raises the cost of imports. The government has already freed pricing of petrol and diesel.
In the global commodities markets, Brent for January settlement was currently off 10 cents at $44.76 a barrel. The contract had fallen 60 cents or 1.31% to settle at $44.86 a barrel during the previous trading session.
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In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee was currently hovering at 66.815, compared with its close of 66.76 during the previous trading session.
Most telecom stocks declined. Bharti Airtel (down 1.6%), Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (down 1.15%) and Idea Cellular (down 2.08%) declined. Reliance Communications rose 0.07%.
IDBI Bank jumped 8.33% after media reports suggested that the government is in talks with the International Finance Corporation to sell a 15% stake in the bank. The Government of India holds 76.5% stake in IDBI Bank (as per the shareholding pattern as on 30 September 2015).
Meanwhile, the opposition Congress party has said that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) should not exceed 18% so that the tax rate is kept moderate and does not impose a burden on the consumer. The Congress also said that the proposed extra 1% interstate tax is against the very idea of having a uniform GST. Considering that there will be 100% compensation for state governments for five years, this extra levy will be market distorting, the principal opposition party said. The Dispute Mechanism of the GST council should be made independent of political parties, the Congress party said.
The Congress' stand on GST comes as the Indian industry keenly awaits the progress on the ambitious indirect tax reform. On Friday, 27 November 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in an effort to break the impasse over the passage of the GST constitutional amendment bill in parliament. The constitutional amendment bill for the implementation of GST, which subsumes all indirect taxes to create a unified market across the country, has been cleared by the Lok Sabha and is awaiting legislative passage in the Rajya Sabha. The government has listed GST constitutional amendment bill for its passage in the Rajya Sabha during the ongoing winter session of the parliament. A constitutional amendment bill requires a majority of two thirds in the house for its passage. The BJP-led NDA has a comfortable majority in Lok Sabha, but lags in numbers in the Rajya Sabha. GST, touted as the single biggest indirect taxation reforms since independence, will simplify and harmonise the indirect tax regime in the country. Central taxes like Central Excise Duty, Additional Excise Duties, Service Tax, Additional Customs Duty (CVD) and Special Additional Duty of Customs (SAD), etc. will be subsumed in GST. At the state level, taxes like VAT/Sales Tax, Central Sales Tax, Entertainment Tax, Octroi and Entry Tax, Purchase Tax and Luxury Tax, etc. would be subsumed in GST.
In overseas equity market markets, Asian stocks edged lower. US stocks finished slightly lower during an abbreviated, post-Thanksgiving trading session on Friday, 27 November 2015.
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