MARKET WRAP: Indices settle lower on weak rupee; TCS m-cap at Rs 8 trillion

In individual stocks, banking shares such as HDFC Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), IndusInd Bank and ICICI Bank fell in the range of 1 per cent to 3.3 per cent.

12:53 PM

COMMENT Gaurang Somaiyaa, Currency Analyst- Commodities, Motilal Oswal

This month, rupee could continue to trade with high volatility, and with emerging market currencies like Mexican Peso and Turkish Lira having fallen sharply against the US dollar, gains for the rupee could be restricted. In the near future, market participants will also be keenly keeping an eye on Brent crude prices that rallied by over 15% (YTD) and which could further inflate India’s import bill. We expect the rupee to remain under pressure and test levels of 72 in the near term and on the higher side 70.30 will be an important resistance.

12:44 PM

Reply to show cause notice in 3 weeks: Sebi to Motilal Oswal on NSEL scam

Markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has ordered commodity broking firm Motilal Oswal Commodities Broker, an arm of India's leading equity broking and financial services firm Motilal Oswal Securities Ltd, to reply in three weeks to the regulator's show cause notice in the Rs 56 billion payment default at National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL). READ MORE

12:29 PM

FMCG shares under pressure; HUL falls 9% in two days

Shares of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies were under pressure for the second straight day with the sector major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) slipping 9% in past two trading sessions.
 

Jubilant FoodWorks, Dabur India, Nestle India, Britannia Industries, Godrej Consumer Products, Marico, and ITC were trading lower in the range of 2% to 5% on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). READ MORE

12:17 PM

Mutual fund managers churn portfolios, go slow on purchase of equities

With benchmark indices hovering near record highs, mutual fund managers have slowed down their equity purchases. Fund houses bought shares worth Rs 38.1 billion in August, the lowest since February 2017.

 

This is similar to purchases of Rs 39 billion made last month. Net investments dropped 58 per cent over June’s purchases of Rs 92 billion, and 67 per cent lower than the one-year monthly average of Rs 103 billion. READ MORE

12:00 PM

Markets at noon

Index	Current	Pt. Change	% Change
S&P BSE SENSEX	38,316.82	+4.30	+0.01
S&P BSE SENSEX 50	12,116.19	-16.58	-0.14
S&P BSE SENSEX Next 50	34,784.04	-575.13	-1.63
S&P BSE 100	11,876.53	-43.52	-0.37
S&P BSE Bharat 22 Index	3,682.76	-27.27	-0.74

11:45 AM

Devangshu Dutta Growth picks up, but concerns remain

 

Indian investors ignored the threat of escalation in the trade war as they pushed indices to new highs. There’s been no headway in US-China talks and the US may impose punitive tariffs on an additional $200 bn of Chinese exports. China will retaliate.

 

The beleaguered Trump administration is also threatening to scrap NAFTA as it tries to renegotiate trade terms with Canada and Mexico. This would mean an increase in global inflation and a downtrend in trading activity. While metals may soften on lower demand, crude prices will stay high as Iran sanctions bite and Venezuela collapses. READ MORE

11:30 AM

No love for Indian rupee as technicals point to oversold currency

 

India’s rupee, Asia’s worst-performing currency this year, has slumped so much recently that a little respite may be in store.

 

Technical charts for the dollar-rupee show the pair’s relative strength index (RSI), a widely-followed momentum indicator, surpassed 76 on Monday after the rupee weakened to a new record low. The reading is highest since the spike in May to 77.78, which presaged a 1.5 percent advance in the Indian currency over the next three days. READ MORE

11:15 AM

L&T Infotech surges 7% on strong response for OFS

 

Shares of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Infotech surged 7% to Rs 1,888 on the BSE in early morning trade on Tuesday after the company’s offer for sale (OFS) on Monday got a strong response from the institutional investors. The stock was trading close to its 52-week high of Rs 1,911 touched on August 21, 2018, on the BSE in intra-day trade.

 

The share sale saw bids for 29.8 million shares as against 9.5 million on offer. The clearing price of Rs 1,751 fixed for non-retail bidding in L&T Infotech, the BSE data shows. READ MORE

11:00 AM

Nifty FMCG index down nearly 2%

10:45 AM

NSE in talks with Sebi, seeks inspection of documents in co-location case

 

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has requested the markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to provide access to documents based on which charges are being framed in the co-location case.

 

On July 4, Sebi had served fresh show cause notices to NSE and over 20 others for alleged violation of the Securities Contract Regulation Act and the Prevention of Unfair Trading Practices norms. READ MORE

10:30 AM

Hikal hits 52-week high after Ashish Kacholia buys 1.6% stake

 

Shares of Hikal hit a 52-week high of Rs 192, up 4% on Tuesday, extending its previous day’s 15% surged on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), after investor Ashish Kacholia bought nearly 2% stake in the pharmaceutical company via open market.

 

On Monday, September 3, 2018, Ashish Kacholia purchased two million shares, or 1.6% of the Hikal’s equity at price of Rs 166.50 through bulk deal, the NSE data shows. The investor bought these shares for total consideration of Rs 333 million. READ MORE

10:16 AM

Infosys turns ex-date for 1:1 bonus; stock hits new high

Shares of Infosys hit a new high of Rs 737, up 3% (adjusted to bonus issue) on the BSE. The stock of the country's second-largest information technology (IT) services company is trading ex-date for 1:1 bonus issue.
 

The board of directors of Infosys has fixed Wednesday, September 5, 2018, as the record date for the purpose of allotment of bonus shares/stock dividend. READ MORE

10:00 AM

Market Check

Index	Current	Pt. Change	% Change
S&P BSE SENSEX	38,271.28	-41.24	-0.11
S&P BSE SENSEX 50	12,111.41	-21.36	-0.18
S&P BSE SENSEX Next 50	35,029.85	-329.32	-0.93
S&P BSE 100	11,885.44	-34.61	-0.29
S&P BSE Bharat 22 Index	3,681.64	-28.39	-0.77

9:48 AM

MCLR hike may not be sufficient for banks

 

The stock of State Bank of India (SBI) announced 20 basis points hike in marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) from September 1. The hike, which was decided upon due to rising cost of funds and the hardening of policy rates, was not limited to India’s largest bank.

 

Other banks such as ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, too, increased their MCLR. Though the rise in MCLR should add to the topline and profitability of banks, there are couple of factors that would impact this, say experts. READ MORE

9:35 AM

WEB EXCLUSIVE Why Sebi's new KYC norm may lead to the exit of many legitimate investors

 

A SEBI circular will cause a lot of market turmoil unless it is reviewed and reworded. On April 10, SEBI modified the KYC norms applicable to Foreign Portfolio Investors. NRIs, OIC s and PIOs are now prevented from being "Beneficial Owners", or "in control", via the FPI route.

 

This was done with the intent of preventing money-laundering and round-tripping, maybe with an eye to reduce hawala funding before the General Elections of 2019. Hence, FPIs are being told to disclose Beneficial Owners (BO). The threshold is set at 25 per cent for controlling ownership for companies, and 15 per cent for partnerships. The threshold is lower, at 10 per cent, for "high-risk" nations with a history of money-laundering and terrorism, etc. READ MORE