Indices pare some losses; pharma shares slides

The domestic equity benchmarks pared some losses in early afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 24,250 level. Pharma shares declined after advancing in three consecutive trading sessions.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 130.04 points or 0.16% to 79,883.95. The Nifty 50 index slipped 56.65 points or 0.23% to 24,282.50.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.58% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.42%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,753 shares rose and 1,947 shares fell. A total of 156 shares were unchanged.

Economy:

According to the monthly report by the finance ministry, the outlook for the Indian economy is good, underpinned by a stable external sector, positive agricultural outlook, expected improvements in demand supported by the festive season, and the likelihood of an increase in Government spending, which will boost investment activity. However, at the margin, demand conditions in the economy bear watching. Given the overall subdued inflation, barring a few food items, the real price of money may have gone up.

The finance ministry maintains that the Indian economy will grow between 6.5% and 7.0% in the current fiscal year. However, risks stem from global factors such as geopolitical conflicts, rising geo-economic fragmentation, uncertainties about the trade policies of major economies and consequent financial market reactions, the report noted.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, gained 1.59% to 14.52. The Nifty 31 October 2024 futures were trading at 24,319.15, at a premium of 36.65 points as compared with the spot at 24,282.50.

The Nifty option chain for the 31 October 2024 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 104.4 lakh contracts at the 25,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 73.6 lakh contracts were seen at 24,000 strike price.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Pharma index slipped 1.51% to 22,512.95. The index gained 1.71% in past three consecutive trading sessions.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 4%), Alkem Laboratories (down 3.03%), Dr Reddys Laboratories (down 2.79%), Laurus Labs (down 2.66%), Cipla (down 2.23%), Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries (down 1.89%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 1.66%), Granules India (down 1.62%), Abbott India (down 1.61%) and Torrent Pharmaceuticals (down 1.61%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight :

Federal bank surged 7.53% to Rs 198.15 after the private lenders standalone net profit rose 10.78% to Rs 1,056.69 crore in Q2 FY25 as against Rs 953.82 crore posted in Q2 FY24. Total income jumped 21.91% year on year (YoY) to Rs 7,541.23 crore in the quarter ended 30 September 2024.

Indraprastha Gas advanced 2.87%. The companys consolidated net profit declined 17.69% to Rs 454.88 crore in Q2 FY25 as compared with Rs 552.67 crore in Q2 FY24. However, revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) rose 6.91% to Rs 3,697.6 crore in Q2 FY25 from Rs 3,458.51 crore posted in Q2 FY24.

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