 "Markets trim losses, Nifty holds 7,700; BSE Midcap index up 0.5%")
Markets have trimmed most of their intra-day losses and have turned flat after gains in financial shares helped offset most of the losses in IT majors and select index heavyweights.
At 2:30pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 28 points at 25,234 and the Nifty50 was down 6 points at 7,730. In the broader market, the BSE Midcap index was up 0.4% while the Smallcap index was trading flat with negative bias. Market breadth was weak with 1,300 losers and 1,090 gainers on the BSE.
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Banking stocks are in focus after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued draft guidelines on granting licences on a continuous basis for setting up of universal banks in the private sector.
ICICI Bank was up nearly 2%. The company's insurance arm ICICI Prudential Life Insurance is set to hire Bank of America Merrill Lynch and ICICI Securities for its planned $600 million to $700 million initial public offering (IPO), IFR reported on Friday citing two sources close to the plans. SBI was also up 2%.
Bharti Airtel was up over 1% has entered into an agreement with Helios Towers Africa (HTA) for divestment of about 950 towers in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
IT majors which earn most of their revenues from exports to the US were trading with marginal losses ahead of the US jobs data later today. Infosys, TCS and Wipro were down 0.3%-1.3% each.
Among others, V-Guard Industries was trading higher by 7% to Rs 1,268, extending its previous day’s 20% surge on the BSE, after the company reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter ended March 31, 2016 (Q4FY16).
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(Updated at 1:14pm)
Markets have recovered from day’s low led by buying among banking shares. However, weakness among global markets along with consistent sell off by FIIs has dampened investors’ sentiments.
At 13:14 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex lost 29 points to trade at 25,237 and the Nifty50 shed 8 points to quote at 7,728. Broader markets are outperforming the benchmark indices- BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up 0.1%-0.5%.
Among overseas markets, Asian shares wallowed at one-month lows on Friday as investors braced for the US April payrolls report after jobless claims data raised doubts over the seemingly rosy employment picture.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.9%, set for a weekly decline of 3.2%, the biggest drop in 12 weeks.
Japan's Nikkei, which resumed trading after being closed for holidays since Tuesday, pared earlier losses to close down 0.25%, as the yen's strength renewed concerns about corporate profits.
China's Shanghai Composite index was down 1.6%, erasing most gains for the week. Hong Kong shares retreated 1.2%, bringing their weekly loss to 4.1%.
Oil prices dipped on Friday, dragged down by a surging dollar that at least temporarily outweighed supply disruptions in North America, where a massive wildfire was threatening Canada's huge oil sands operations.
Back home, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 388.51 crore yesterday as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges.
Among stocks, Dr Reddy’s Labs, Adani Ports, Wipro, Lupin and Hero Moto have slipped between 1%-2%.
Hero MotoCorp posted a 71% growth in net profit for the March quarter at Rs 814 crore against Rs 477 crore in the year-ago period. Turnover for the quarter increased to Rs 7,512 crore from Rs 6,794, an increase of around 11%.
Banking stocks are in focus after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued draft guidelines on granting licences on a continuous basis for setting up of universal banks in the private sector. ICICI Bank, SBI and Axis Bank are trading in positive zone.
MD & CEO of ICICI Bank Chanda Kochhar and President of New Development Bank K V Kamath during a MoU signing ceremony between the two bank in Mumbai.
ITC shut its plants from May 4 to comply with a new stipulated pictorial warnings rule issued by the federal government, the company said in a statement. ITC has gained marginally.
Bharti Airtel has entered into an agreement with Helios Towers Africa (HTA) for divestment of about 950 towers in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The stock gained by 1%.
Among other shares, Xchanging Solutions is locked in 20% upper circuit Rs 60.10 on BSE after the company engaged in information technology (IT) services business announced voluntary delisting plan.
Diamond Power Infrastructure is locked in upper circuit of 10% at Rs 44.85 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) after the company announced that the board will meet on Monday, May 16, 2016, to evaluate various debt re-alignment options including stake sale to strategic investor and re-organization of company’s various businesses.
ABG Shipyard has tanked 18% to Rs 31.40, also its lifetime low on the BSE, after ECL Finance sold more than one million shares of the company in the open market.
With Reuters input
