Market Wrap Podcast, June 21: Here's all that happened in the markets today

Market bulls were back on Dalal Street on Monday, reversing the steep losses logged in the morning trade, amid broad-based buying. Barring the auto and IT pack, investors bought stocks from across sectors as bond yields in the US fell to 1.35 per cent while US stock futures indicated a healthy session on Wall Street later in the day.

Around 4:30 PM, Dow Jones Futures were up nearly 200 points, or 0.58 per cent, suggesting a positive start on Wall Street after sharp decline in the past week. The S&P 500 Futures and Nasdaq Futures, too, were up 19 points and 66 points, respectively.

That said, global mood elsewhere was subdued. The pan-European STOXX 600 index erased early losses to trade flat on the day while Britain’s FTSE 100 was off 0.05 per cent.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei led declines with a 3.6 per cent drop and dipped below 28,000 for the first time in a month, and MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.4 per cent. Chinese blue chips lost 0.7 per cent.

Given weak Asian cues, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex and the Nifty50 indices hit the day's low of 51,740 and 15,506, respectively in early morning trade. However, low-level buying emerged quickly to recoup losses. By close, the Sensex index was at 52,574 levels, up 230 points or 0.44 per cent. On the NSE, the Nifty50 index was at 15,746 levels, up 63 points or 0.4 per cent.

Adani Ports (up 5 per cent) was the top Nifty gainer today, trailed by NTPC, Titan, SBI, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finserv, Grasim, and HDFC. On the downside, UPL (down over 4 per cent), Wipro, Hindalco, Tata Motors, TCS, Maruti Suzuki, and Tech Mahindra were the top laggards.

Broader markets, meanwhile, outperformed the large-caps today with the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices gaining 0.8 per cent each.

Sectorally, the Nifty PSU Bank index ended 4 per cent higher amid reports that Central Bank of India and Indian Overseas Bank might be privatised. The two lenders might see 51 percent sale in the first phase of disinvestment, a report by TV channel CNBC Aawaz said.

Individually, the two banks hit their respective 20 per cent upper circuits while Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) Bank and Punjab & Sind Bank from the index rallied 20 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively. Bank of Maharashtra, Union Bank of India, Bank of India and Uco Bank were up in the range of 6 per cent to 8 per cent.

Besides, the Nifty Realty index was up 2 per cent and the Nifty Metal, Private Bank, Bank, and FMCG indices gained up to 1 per cent each. On the contrary, the Nifty IT and Auto indices slipped 0.2 per cent and 0.36 per cent, respectively.

Buzzing stocks

>> Shares of Bandhan Bank surged 8.5 per cent to Rs 343 on the BSE in intra-day trade on Monday after the Assam government on Friday inked an agreement with microfinance institutions (MFIs) to regularise stressed borrowers and repay the entire loans of highly stressed borrowers.

Also, as an incentive to good borrowers who did not default, the government will repay for each account Rs 25,000, or the loan amount, whichever is lower, to the MFIs. The stock settled 8 per cent higher.

>> Meanwhile, shares of Adani group companies were in focus in Monday's session as four out of the six listed stocks were locked in the upper circuit of 5 per cent, bouncing back up to 11 per cent from their respective intra-day lows on the BSE.

Adani Green Energy, Adani Transmission, Adani Total Gas, and Adani Power were locked in 5 per cent upper circuit on the BSE. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) and Adani Enterprises rallied 7 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively, in intra-day trade.

>> Furthermore, shares of Centrum Capital rallied 16 per cent and hit a 52-week high of Rs 58.50 on the BSE in intra-day trade today after Centrum Financial Services Limited (CFSL) received an “in-principle” approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to set up a Small Finance Bank (SFB). CFSL is a step down subsidiary of Centrum Capital.

Centrum Group, on Friday, also said it has received approval from the RBI to take over the troubled cooperative lender Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative Bank Limited (PMC Bank).

>> On the downside, shares of PNB Housing Finance were locked in the lower circuit of 5 per cent at Rs 702.40 on the BSE after the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) directed the company to halt its proposed Rs 4,000 crore deal with Carlyle group. The market regulator has also directed the company to undertake the valuation of shares by an independent registered valuer as per the provisions of applicable laws.

>> The country's largest automobile maker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Monday said it will hike prices of its cars in the second quarter of the current fiscal due to increase in the input costs. The company didn't specify the quantum of price hike. Stock of the firm ended 0.8 per cent lower on the BSE.