Sensex jumps 249 pts on late buying, Nifty tops 18,400; Airtel, ICICI lead

CLOSING BELL: A late rally in the market, helped the benchmark indices end the rather lacklustre day with notable gains. Debutant Fusion MicroFinance ended at a 12 per cent discount to issue price.

STOCK MARKET HIGHLIGHTS

After exhibiting lacklustre movement for major part of the trading session, the key benchmark rallied smartly in late deals on the back of buying support in select index heavyweights like ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel and Infosys.

The S&P BSE Sensex, which, touched a low of 61,437 earlier, surged to a high of 61,956 – up 519 points from the day’s low. The BSE benchmark finally settled with a gain of 249 points at 61,873.

The NSE Nifty ended 74 points higher at 18,403.

Among the Sensex 30 shares, PowerGrid and ICICI Bank surged over 2 per cent each. Bharti Airtel gained 1.8 per cent. UltraTech Cement, SBI, Mahindra & Mahindra, Dr.Reddy's, Asian Paints and Titan were the other prominent gainers. On the flip side, ITC and Reliance ended with losses of around 0.5 per cent each.

The broader indices ended on a flat note. The breadth, however, was marginally negative, with around 1,830 declining shares versus 1,679 advancing stocks on the BSE.

Sectorally, the BSE Oil & Gas index advanced a per cent. The Bankex was the other significant gainer. Wheras, the Metal index slipped 0.6 per cent.

Among individual stocks, debutant Fusion MicroFinance ended at Rs 325, a discount of nearly 12 per cent to its issue price of Rs 368. READ MORE

Oil explorer - ONGC hit a 4-month high in intraday trades after the company announced its Q2 results and declared a 135 per cent interim dividend. The stock eventually ended with a gain of 2.4 per cent at Rs 142.50. READ MORE

Apollo Tyres gained over 4 per cent recorded a multi-year high at Rs 303.40 after the company reported a double digit growth in revenue, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) in the September quarter (Q2FY23) despite challenging environment.

Primary Market Update

INOX Green Energy Services IPO managed to sail through on the final day of the offer period. The issue was subscribed up 1.53 times as of 03:45 PM. The QIBs portion was subscribed just 1 time, while the retail quota saw bidding up to 4.54 times.

Keystone Realtors' issue continued to receive lukewarm response on Day 2 of the offer period. The issue was subscribed just 26 per cent so far, with some interest seen by non-institutional investors.

4:07 PM

MARKET COMMENT :: 'Financials lent support to indices after range-bound trade'

Indian markets opened on positive note following positive overall Asian markets. However the markets couldn't sustain the gains post morning session. During the afternoon session, the markets traded volatile with weakness in Metal and Capital Goods shares dragged key gauges lower, while buying in Auto and Telecom stocks helped markets to trade near neutral lines.

Traders were cautious after India’s exports dip to $29.78 billion in October 2022 from $35.73 billion a year ago. Besides, trade deficit widened to $26.91 billion as against $17.91 billion a year ago.

During the closing session, some support also came from financial stocks which helped in markets to firmly trade in green.

Views by: Narendra Solanki - Head Fundamental Research- Investment Services, Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers

4:01 PM

MARKET COMMENT :: 'For trend followers, 18,300 would be the sacrosanct support'

Rally gathered pace towards the closing hours after trading range-bound for a major part of the trading session. Majority of the European and Asian indices logged gains, which had a rub-off effect on the local benchmarks.

Sharp fall in the crude oil prices and the strengthening rupee against the dollar boosted investors' confidence. With domestic inflation showing signs of cooling, traders are hoping that the RBI in next month's policy meeting may take a dovish stance in its rate setting decision.

For the trend following traders, 18,300 would be the sacrosanct support level. Above which, the index could rally till 18,500-18,600. On the flip side, if the index trades below 18,300, the chances of hitting 18,230-18,200 would turn bright.

Views by: Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities Ltd

3:57 PM

COMMENT :: What all moved the markets today?

Following gains in global equities, early losses in the domestic market were reversed with banking stocks steering the recovery. Food and commodity price declines have helped to keep domestic inflation below 7%. Although the CPI has continued to remain above the RBI's tolerance limit of 6%, it is estimated that it will begin to fall within the range from Q1 FY24.

Views by: Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

3:55 PM

Currency check :: Rupee ends higher at 81.10/$

>> This comes against Monday's close of 81.26/$

Source: Bloomberg

3:54 PM

IPO Update :: Keystone Realtors receives 26% subscription so far on day 2

3:52 PM

IPO Update :: Inox Green sails through on second day, garners 1.5x subscription till 3:30 PM

3:50 PM

BSE stats :: Market breadth negative despite benchmarks rising in late deals

3:48 PM

Buzzing stock :: ONGC rises 2%; hits 4-month high intra-day

>> Shares of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) hit an over four-month high at Rs 143.20, on gaining 3 per cent in Tuesday’s intra-day trade in an otherwise range-bound market after the oil explorer reported a standalone net profit of Rs 12,826 crore in September quarter (Q2FY23). The state-owned oil exploration & production company had posted profit of Rs 18,348 crore in a year ago quarter.

3:46 PM

Buzzing stock :: Globus Spirits ends off lows, still down 9% post weak Q2

>> Shares of Globus Spirits slumped 13 per cent to hit a fresh 52-week low of Rs 700 on the BSE in Tuesday’s intra-day trade as the company reported a weak set of numbers for the quarter ended September (Q2FY23).

3:44 PM

Buzzing stock :: Apollo Tyres leaps 4% post Q2 result

>> Shares of Apollo Tyres hit a multi-year high of Rs 303.40 as it surged 6 per cent on the BSE in Tuesday's intra-day trade, in an otherwise subdued market, after the company reported a double digit growth in revenue, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) in the September quarter (Q2FY23) despite challenging environment.