A divergent trend was witnessed among the two key benchmark indices which moved in a narrow range near the flat line in afternoon trade. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was just a tad higher for the day whereas the 50-unit CNX Nifty was a tad lower. The Sensex was currently up 3.54 points or 0.01% at 28,166.83. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 101.98 crore yesterday, 18 November 2014, as per provisional data. Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan yesterday, 18 November 2014, said that there is a lot of work to be done to get India back on a strong growth path. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) today, 19 November 2014, said the Indian economy is showing signs of a turnaround and that new reforms, some of which are included in the package presented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, need to be implemented to put the country on a path to strong, sustainable and inclusive growth.
IT stocks advanced on weak rupee. Capital goods stocks were mostly higher. Wipro rose after the company in a clarification said it has won a $143 million deal from a customer.
Earlier, the Sensex and the 50-unit CNX Nifty had pared gains after both these indices hit record high at the onset of trading session.
In overseas markets, Asian stocks were mixed. US stocks edged higher yesterday, 18 November 2014, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500, both, attaining record closing high as upbeat US housing data, as well as news of a snap election in Japan and better-than-expected data from Germany boosted investor sentiment.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar.
Brent crude oil futures were steady after data showed Saudi Arabia increased crude exports in September despite signs of an oversupplied market.
At 13:15 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 3.54 points or 0.01% at 28,166.83. The index jumped 130.72 points at the day's high of 28,294.01 at onset of the trading session, a record high for the index. The index fell 31.07 points at the day's low of 28,132.22 in morning trade.
The CNX Nifty was down 6.40 points or 0.08% at 8,419.50. The index hit a high of 8,455.65 in intraday trade, its record high level. The index hit a low of 8,412.30 in intraday trade.
The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 56.93 points or 0.55% at 10,332.23. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 78.31 points or 0.68% at 11,521.47. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. On BSE, 1,539 shares gained and 1,280 shares fell. A total of 122 shares were unchanged.
IT stocks edged higher on weak rupee. A weak rupee boosts revenue of IT firms in rupee terms as the sector derives a lion's share of revenue from exports. MphasiS (up 1.86%), Mind Tree (up 1.81%), HCL Technologies (up 1.55%) and Tech Mahindra (up 0.44%) gained.
Wipro rose 0.34% at Rs 568.25. The company after market hours yesterday, 18 November 2014, in a clarification with regard to news item titled "Wipro wins $143-million deal from Levi Strauss" said that the company has won the deal from Levi Strauss, a customer. The deal size is $143 million over a five year period. Wipro added that the deal size is not material enough for making disclosure as per the Disclosure Policy approved by the Disclosure Committee of the company and hence this deal was not disclosed earlier.
Infosys edged lower in volatile trade. The stock was off 0.33%. The scrip hit high of Rs 4,182 and low of Rs 4,141.90 so far during the day. Infosys after market hours yesterday, 18 November 2014, announced that its BPO unit Infosys BPO has appointed Anup Uppadhayay as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of the company. The board of directors of Infosys BPO also appointed Deepak Bhalla as Chief Financial Officer of the company. The board of Infosys BPO also announced the separation of Abraham Mathews, its Chief Financial Officer from the services of the company for not complying with its code of conduct. This departure is in keeping with the company's goal of setting the highest standards of corporate governance and adhering to the letter and spirit of the company's code of conduct, Infosys said in a statement. Gautam Thakkar, the current Chief Executive Officer has submitted his resignation to the company effective 30 November 2014, taking responsibility on moral grounds and will be assisting Uppadhayay in this transition, Infosys said.
Capital goods stocks were mostly higher. Siemens (up 1.22%), L&T (up 1.55%), ABB (up 0.86%), and Crompton Greaves (up 0.17%) gained. Thermax (down 1.05%) and Bharat Heavy Electricals (down 0.1%) declined.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 61.84, compared with its close of 61.745 during the previous trading session.
Brent crude oil futures were steady after data showed Saudi Arabia increased crude exports in September despite signs of an oversupplied market. Brent futures for January settlement was currently unchanged for the day at $78.47 a barrel. The contract had lost 84 cents to settle at $78.47 a barrel yesterday, 18 November 2014.
Oil ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) are scheduled to meet in Vienna on 27 November 2014 to consider whether to adjust their output target of 30 million barrels per day (bpd) for early 2015.
Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan yesterday, 18 November 2014, said that there is a lot of work to be done to get India back on a strong growth path. India will focus on sustainable economic growth and developed economies should do the same, Rajan told reporters in Mauritius yesterday, 18 November 2014, according to reports. "Lots of work to do to get India back on a strong growth path. The government has been putting together a series of reforms which I think cumulatively amount to big reforms. The central bank is putting together reforms. My sense is we will do what it takes," Rajan said.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) next undertakes monetary policy review on 2 December 2014. The central bank aims to limit consumer-price gains to 8% by January 2015 and 6% by January 2016. Over the longer term, the RBI aims to limit consumer-price gains to 4%, within a 2% band. The annual rate of inflation based on the combined consumer price index (CPI) for urban and rural India eased to 5.52% in October 2014 from 6.46% in September 2014, data released by the government on 12 November 2014 showed.
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) today, 19 November 2014, said the Indian economy is showing signs of a turnaround. New reforms, some of which are included in the package presented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, need to be implemented to put the country on a path to strong, sustainable and inclusive growth, according to the latest OECD Economic Survey of India. According to the survey, India's GDP should grow by more than 6.5% annually in the coming years.
Investment and exports are driving the rebound, but growth will be sustained at a stronger pace if further steps are taken, the OECD said. In the near term, stable and lower inflation and smaller deficits are needed, it said. Structural improvements to the business climate are crucial for medium term growth, and in the longer-term, health improvements and increased female participation in the labour market will sustain strong and inclusive growth, the OCED said.
The OECD said that India should formally adopt a flexible inflation-targeting framework, which will help contain inflation expectations and provide support for saving and investment. It also suggested implementing a broad national value-added tax goods and services tax (GST) and cutting energy subsidies, as part of wider efforts to put public finances on a stronger footing. Reducing barriers to manufacturing growth, which has contributed relatively little to growth of GDP or exports, will be critical, the OECD said.
India's reform agenda should also seek to increase women's economic participation rates, which are often drastically below those of men. Over a long-term, more and better jobs for women would raise equity and boost growth by over 2 percentage points annually, the OECD said.
Asian stocks were mixed today, 19 November 2014. Key benchmark indices in Indonesia, Singapore and Taiwan were up 0.39% to 1.18%. Key benchmark indices in China, Hong Kong and South Korea were off 0.01% to 0.7%.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 Average was off 0.32%. The Bank of Japan (BOJ) after a monetary policy review today, 19 November 2014, decided to maintain its large-scale easing policy and stick to its upbeat assessment of the economy despite dismal growth figures released earlier this week that prompted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to delay a tax increase and call early elections. While government data released early this showed the world's third-biggest economy unexpectedly fell into a recession, the BOJ maintained the view that a moderate recovery trend has taken hold, suggesting that the downturn sparked by a tax increase earlier in the year will be short-lived.
The relatively optimistic view contrasts with the judgment by Mr. Abe that the economy isn't strong enough to go ahead with a second increase in the sales tax planned for next year. The prime minister said yesterday, 18 November 2014, that the rise in the tax rate would be delayed by 18 months and that he would seek a popular mandate for the postponement and his economic policy platform known as Abenomics in an election next month.
Trading in US index futures indicated that the Dow could fall 14 points at the opening bell today, 19 November 2014. US stocks edged higher yesterday, 18 November 2014, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500, both, attaining record closing high as upbeat US housing data, as well as news of a snap election in Japan and better-than-expected data from Germany boosted investor sentiment.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News
