Key barometers extended gains and hit fresh intraday high in early afternoon trade. At 12:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 205.87 points or 0.57% at 36,557.10. The Nifty 50 index was up 60 points or 0.55% at 11,017.10.
The Lok Sabha debated on Friday a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government moved by the opposition. The government has said it is confident of its numbers and that it was looking forward to a debate in which it can showcase its achievements during the first no-trust vote on the floor of Parliament in 15 years. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP), an estranged ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, moved the no-confidence motion on Wednesday, which was admitted by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan. TDP's major concern is to get a special category status for Andhra Pradesh.
Media reports suggested that Shiv Sena MPs will not attend Parliament today, thus abstaining from voting during the no-confidence motion. Meanwhile, Bihar chief minister and alliance partner Nitish Kumar reportedly said Janata Dal (United) is with the Modi government.
Overseas, most Asian shares were trading higher. US stocks slipped on Thursday as earnings season rolled on, with investors digesting comments from Trump on the Fed. Trump told the media on Thursday that he was not "thrilled" that the Federal Reserve was hiking interest rates. Worries about a potential trade war also weighted on investor sentiment after Trump threatened "tremendous retribution" against the European Union on Wednesday, specifically mentioning auto tariffs, if his meeting with EU officials next week does not yield what he considers a fair auto trade deal.
On the US data front, initial jobless claims fell by 8,000 last week. Separately, the Philly Fed manufacturing index rose 6 points to a reading of 25.7 in July.
Back home, indices opened lower and firmed up as the session advanced. Indices turned range bound in mid-morning trade. Indices firmed up and hit fresh intraday high in early afternoon trade. The Sensex rose 205.87 points, or 0.57% at the day's high of 36,557.10 in early afternoon trade. The index fell 15.62 points, or 0.04% at the day's low of 36,335.61 in early trade. The Nifty rose 63.70 points, or 0.58% at the day's high of 11,020.80 in early afternoon trade. The index fell 10.90 points, or 0.10% at the day's low of 10,946.20 in early trade.
Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.71%. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.28%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. On BSE, 1025 shares rose and 1209 shares fell. A total of 137 shares were unchanged.
Most cement shares rose. ACC (up 0.71%) and Ambuja Cements (up 0.54%), edged higher. UltraTech Cement was down 0.17%.
Grasim Industries was up 0.71%. Grasim has exposure to cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.
Ashok Leyland was up 3.54%. The company announced during trading hours today, 20 July 2018, that Ashok Leyland West Africa has bagged its third project order for 147 buses comprising of 80 units Falcon, 57 units Eagle 916 and 10 units MiTR bus Models. The buses will be supplied to the Ministry of Higher Education Scientific Research and Innovation. The order is worth $9.57 million. The Buses will be supplied over the next 180 days and includes delivery of vehicles, spare parts, and an effective after sales support system in Burkina Faso.
Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) was up 2.32%. The company announced during trading hours today, 20 July 2018, that the heavy engineering arm of the company has won orders worth Rs 1600 crore to supply critical reactors and heavy equipment to refining, petrochemical and liquified natural gas (LNG) industries. These prestigious orders were received in the current financial year.
Drug major Dr. Reddy's Laboratories was up 1.75%. The company announced during trading hours today, 20 July 2018, the launch of Esomeprazole Magnesium Delayed-Release Capsules USP, 20 mg, an over-thecounter (OTC) therapeutic equivalent generic version of Nexium 24HR Capsules in the United States market as approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA). Esomeprazole Magnesium Delayed-Release Capsules USP, 20 mg, is an OTC proton pump inhibitor used to treat frequent heartburn occurring two or more days a week in adults. The combined market of Nexium 24HR Capsules and private label OTC Esomeprazole Magnesium products had U.S. sales of approximately $311 million for the most recent twelve months ending in May 2018 according to IRl.
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