Benchmark indices were hovering near the day's low with modest losses in early afternoon trade. Banks and auto shares declined while IT shares bucked weak market trend. At 12:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 78.04 points or 0.17% at 46,882.65. The Nifty 50 index slipped 25.05 points or 0.18% at 13,735.50.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.23% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 0.03%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,310 shares rose and 1,488 shares fell. A total of 154 shares were unchanged.
Derivatives:
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 4.65% to 19.49. The Nifty December 2020 futures were trading at 13,737, at a premium of 11.20 points compared with the spot at 13,725.80.
The Nifty option chain for 31 December 2020 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 22.47 lakh contracts at the 14,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 43.71 lakh contracts was seen at 13,000 strike price.
Farmer's Protest:
The government has asked farmers to choose a date for next round of talks. In a letter to farmer Unions, joint secretary in the Agriculture Ministry Vivek Agrawal urged them for a dialogue to resolve the issue. He said the centre is making all efforts to find an appropriate solution to resolve all the issues raised by the farmers with an open mind.
Agarwal said, government intends to convene the next meeting at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi for resolving the issue. He also mentioned that the government-held meetings with several other farmers' organisations and sought their suggestions on the matter.
The sixth-round talk between farmers and government was cancelled after farmers' leaders rejected the government's draft proposal to amend certain provisions of the farm laws and declined to participate in the meeting.
Primary Market:
The initial public offer (IPO) of Antony Waste Handling Cell received bids for 43.27 lakh shares as against 66.66 lakh shares on offer as on 21 December 2020, according to the National Stock Exchange (NSE) data at 11:45 IST. The issue was subscribed 0.65 times.
The issue opened for subscription today (21 December 2020) and closes on Wednesday (23 December 2020). The price band for the IPO is set at Rs 313-315 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 47 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
The issue comprises of a fresh issue worth Rs 85 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of 6,824,933 equity shares by existing shareholders. Shares will list on 1 January 2021 on bourses.
Coronavirus Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 7,68,23,486 with 16,93,205 deaths. India reported 3,03,639 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,45,810 deaths while 96,06,111 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty IT index rose 0.88% to 23,462.10. Mphasis (up 3.07%), Larsen & Toubro Infotech (up 2.01%), HCL Technologies (up 1.49%), Infosys (up 1.39%) and Coforge (up 1.30%) advanced.
Stocks in Spotlight:
PVR declined 2.01%. PVR said its board of directors approved the issue of equity shares of the company for an aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 800 crore. PVR said its board of directors approved the issue of equity shares of the company of the face value of Rs 10 each, against which American Depository Receipts (ADRs) or Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) may be issued, foreign currency convertible bonds, non-convertible debt instruments along with warrants, and/ or other securities in one or more tranches for an aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 800 crore.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) slipped 2.88%. The auto major said it will increase the price of its range of tractors, across models from 1 January 2021. The price hike has been necessitated due to the increase in commodity prices. Details of the price increase across different models will be communicated in due course, M&M said in a statement issued on Monday (21 December 2020).
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