Key benchmark indices edged lower in early trade on weak Asian stocks. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 158.40 points or 0.84%, up about 15 points from the day's low and off close to 105 points from the day's high. Index heavyweight and cigarette maker ITC edged lower in early trade. Another index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) also edged lower. The market breadth was weak. All the 13 sectoral indices on BSE were in the red. Realty stocks edged lower.
The market sentiment affected adversely by data showing that foreign funds remained net sellers of Indian stocks on Wednesday, 3 April 2013. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 368.39 crore on Wednesday, 3 April 2013, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
At 9:30 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 158.40 points or 0.84% to 18,643.24. The index fell 174.34 points at the day's low of 18,627.30 in early trade. The index declined 68.02 points at the day's high of 18,733.62 in early trade.
The CNX Nifty was down 50.70 points or 0.89% to 5,622.20. The index hit a low of 5,620.45 in intraday trade. The index hit a high of 5,643.45 in intraday trade.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On BSE, 704 shares fell and 341 shares rose. A total of 29 shares were unchanged.
Among the 30-share Sensex pack, 22 stocks declined while rest of them rose.
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Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) fell 1.22% at Rs 767.35. Shares of Reliance Communications rose 1.24%, with the stock gaining for the third straight day. Reliance Jio Infocomm and Reliance Communications (RCom) on Tuesday, 2 April 2013, announced the signing of a definitive agreement for approximately Rs 1200 crore as one time indefeasible right to use (IRU) fees for sharing RCom's nationwide inter-city fiber optic network infrastructure. Reliance Jio Infocomm will utilize multiple fiber pairs across RCom's 1.2 lakh kilometres inter-city fiber optic network to provide a robust and future proof backbone for rolling out its state-of-the-art 4G services. As per the agreement, RCom will in turn have reciprocal access to optic fiber infrastructure to be built by Reliance Jio Infocomm in the future.
The agreement provides for joint working arrangements to be put in place immediately for upgradation of the optic fiber network, to ensure seamless delivery of next generation services.
Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC declined 0.68% to Rs 305.95 on profit booking. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 310.75 on 4 February 2013. The government raised the excise duty on cigarettes by about 18% on all cigarettes except cigarettes of length not exceeding 65 mm in Union Budget 2013-14, which was unveiled on 28 February 2013.
Realty stocks edged lower. D B Realty, Sobha Developers, DLF, HDIL, and Unitech dropped by 1.3% to 3.23%.
Adani Power rose 1.15%. The company said after market hours on Wednesday, 3 April 2013 that it had filed a petition with CERC to review the tariff in the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Govt. utilities of Gujarat and Haryana. CERC has issued an order, by virtue of the power vested to the Hon. Commission and the statutory responsibility to balance the interest of the consumers and the project developers, while regulating the tariffs of the generating companies. Hon. Commission has therefore seen "a need to direct the parties to set down a consultative process to find out an acceptable solution in the form of compensatory tariff over and above the tariff decided under the PPAs to mitigate the hardship arising out of absence of full domestic coal linkage and the need to import coal at benchmark price on account of Indonesian Regulation.
As per the order of the Hon. Commission, the stakeholders viz. the Petitioners, Respondents and the respective State Govts. have been directed to constitute a Committee within one week. Further, the Committee has been directed to go into the impact of the price escalation "and suggest a package for compensatory tariff which can be allowed to the Petitioner over and above the tariff in the PPAs". The Committee is required to provide its recommendations keeping certain parameters in consideration, by 30 April 2013.
The Order by Hon. Commission clearly affirms the need for adequate return on the investment made which would improve the quality and supply of electricity to the consumers. Thus the Hon. Commission has achieved the twin objective of contribution to consumer interest and recovery of cost of services provided by the generating Companies. The order passed by the Hon. Commission is in line with its responsibility to intervene in the matter in the interest of the consumers, investments and the power sector as a whole.
The Q4 March 2013 corporate earnings season will begin around mid-April 2013. Infosys announces Q4 results on 12 April 2013. IndusInd Bank announces Q2 results on 18 April 2013. HDFC Bank announces Q4 results on 23 April 2013. Axis Bank will announce its Q4 March 2013 results on 24 April 2013. ICICI Bank announces Q4 results on 26 April 2013.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will announce the Monetary Policy Statement 2013-14 on 3 May 2013. The RBI cut its key policy rate viz. the repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.5% after a mid-quarter monetary policy review on 19 March 2013. The key macroeconomic priorities are to raise the growth rate, restrain inflation pressures and mitigate the vulnerability of the external sector, RBI said at that time.
Reduction of promoter stake to meet the Securities & Exchange Board of India (Sebi) mandated minimum public shareholding of 25% for private companies and 10% for state-run firms will result in supply of equity in the market over the next few months. As per the Sebi mandated minimum public shareholding rule, private-sector companies must cut founders' stake to adhere to the rules by 30 June 2013, while the deadline for state-run firms is 31 August 2013. PSU divestment will also add to share sale glut in FY 2014. The government has set a target of Rs 40000 crore from divestment of government stake in state-run firms and Rs 14000 crore from divestment of stake in non-government companies for FY 2014.
The India Meteorological Department will issue its first forecast of 2013 southwest monsoon in this month.
The second half of the Budget session of the Parliament begins on 22 April 2013. The Budget Session of the Parliament ends on 10 May 2013. The government has lined up a number of key bills for consideration and passing during the Budget session of the parliament, which include The Forward Contracts (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2010, The Pension Fund Regulator and Development Authority Bill, 2011, The Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011, The National Food Security Bill, 2011 and The Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2008.
Assembly elections will be held in Karnataka on 5 May 2013 and the counting of votes and results of the election will be declared on 8 May 2013.
Asian markets traded lower Thursday, tracking a negative lead from Wall Street, with the Japanese market underperforming amid a stronger yen. Key benchmark indices in Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea fell by 0.28% to 1.81%. Markets in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan were shut for holidays.
The Bank of Japan (BOJ) will end its two-day policy meeting today, 4 April 2013, the first under the new governor Haruhiko Kuroda. Market expectations have been running high for Kuroda to announce at his inaugural policy meeting an increase in bond purchases and a lengthening in the maturities of bonds the BOJ intends to buy.
Stronger manufacturing and services output in China helped lift emerging market business confidence in March, masking slower growth in Brazil, Russia and India, a monthly purchasing managers' survey showed. The HSBC Emerging Market Index (EMI) survey, which collects data from purchasing managers at about 7,500 firms in 16 emerging markets, showed on Thursday that strong manufacturing output from China helped boost growth in neighbouring south-east Asian economies including Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia and Vietnam.
HSBC's composite manufacturing and services PMI for the world's second-largest economy increased in March to 53.7 from 51.4 the previous month. That helped lift the HSBC EMI index to 52.6, from 52.4 the previous month.
North Korea barred entry to a joint industrial complex it shares with the South for a second day on Thursday, telling the association of companies that operate factories in the Kaesong industrial zone to complete pulling out by April 10.
The United States said on Wednesday it would soon send a missile defense system to Guam to defend it from North Korea, as the U.S. military adjusts to what Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has called a "real and clear" danger from Pyongyang.
US stocks fell on Wednesday following lower-than-expected readings on the U.S. non-manufacturing sector and private-sector jobs growth. Private-payrolls processor ADP reported private-sector job growth of 1,58,000 in March, below expectations of 2,15,000 and versus an upwardly revised gain of 2,37,000 in February. U.S. services sector, with the Institute for Supply Management's non manufacturing index in March fell to 54.4 from 56 the month before.
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