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Key indices sharply pare losses

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Key benchmark indices sharply pared losses in afternoon trade. The S&P BSE Sensex was currently down 4.47 points or 0.02% at 27,391.26. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was negative.

Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) rose after the company, Mishra Dhatu Nigam and Hindustan Shipyards have come together to form a consortium for building submarines indigenously. IDBI Bank rose after its board approved the sale of bank's part or whole shareholding of 48.18 lakh shares in Credit Analysis & Research in one or more lots.

Earlier during the day, key benchmark indices reversed initial gains triggered by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Cabinet's approval yesterday, 29 December 2014 to Land Acquisition Act through the ordinance route for amendments.

 

Asian stocks edged lower today, 30 December 2014 as a sharp selloff in commodities and political uncertainty in Greece made investors less willing to take risks in the final trading days of 2014.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 204.22 crore yesterday, 29 December 2014, as per provisional data.

At 13:16 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 4.47 points or 0.02% at 27,391.26. The index gained 82.57 points at the day's high of 27,478.30 in early trade. The index fell 83.44 points at the day's low of 27,312.29 in early afternoon trade.

The CNX Nifty was almost flat at 8,245.40. The index hit a high of 8,268.25 in intraday trade. The index hit a low of 8,220.55 in intraday trade.

The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was negative. On BSE, 1,318 shares declined and 1,302 shares rose. A total of 108 shares were unchanged.

The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 40.11 points or 0.39% at 10,243.75. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 18.65 points or 0.17% at 10,971.03. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

Among the 30-share Sensex pack, 19 stocks declined and rest of them gained. Reliance Industries (down 1.9%), Tata Steel (down 1.9%), Sesa Sterlite (down 1.46%), Hero MotoCorp (down 1.26%), ONGC (down 1.1%), Bharti Airtel (down 1.07%), Coal India (down 0.85%), Bajaj Auto (down 0.75%), Tata Motors (down 0.61%) and GAIL (India) (down 0.58%), edged lower from the Sensex pack.

Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 0.91%), NTPC (up 0.82%), Hindustan Unilever (up 0.71%), Larsen & Toubro (up 0.52%), Cipla (up 0.39%) and Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries (up 0.37%), edged higher from the Sensex pack.

Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) rose 1.06% after the company, Mishra Dhatu Nigam and Hindustan Shipyards have come together to form a consortium for building submarines indigenously. The company made announcement during market hours today, 30 December 2014. The consortium will jointly stake claim with the Ministry of Defence for being considered as a prospective bidder for the proposed P-75 (I) project of the Indian Navy for building six submarines at an Indian shipyard. To this effect, an memorandum of understanding (MoU) towards setting up the consortium, was signed here between Bhel, Midhani and HSL on 26th December 2014.

IDBI Bank rose 1.46% after the bank said that its board has approved the sale of bank's part or whole shareholding of 48.18 lakh shares in Credit Analysis & Research in one or more lots. The bank made announcement after market hours yesterday, 29 December 2014.

The Union cabinet yesterday, 29 December 2014 used its executive powers to make it easier to acquire land in five key sectors including security and defence, infrastructure, power and affordable housing, even as it left the level of compensation unchanged. To be sure, these ordinances will have to be ratified once Parliament reconvenes for the budget session.

After the winter session of Parliament ended on 23 December 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government has pressed ahead with reform initiatives, albeit through executive orders. Last week, the government pushed through two ordinances to allow foreign insurance firms to raise their stakes in local joint ventures to 49% from a maximum of 26% and allow commercial mining of coal.

The government yesterday, 29 December 2014 said that urgency of the land acquisition ordinance was because under Section 105 of the Act, 13 pieces of legislation including the Atomic Energy Act 1962, Railways Act 1989, National Highways Act 1956, and Metro Railways (Construction of Works) Act, 1978 needed clarity on which provisions of the Act applies to them. And their exclusion deadline ends on 1 January 2015.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday, 29 December 2014 also approved an action plan to create an enabling environment to do business in India and boost domestic manufacturing in 25 sectors at the end of a day of deliberations on how best to take forward the government's Make in India campaign. The plan details what each sector will achieve in the short and medium term or one to three year.

Narendra Modi added that his government was adding a new paradigm to the PPP (Public Private Partnership) model, by involving all stakeholders in key decision-making processes.

The Prime Minister said he wished to change the ABCD culture of Government - Avoid. Bypass. Confuse. Delay; and change it to the ROAD to success -Responsibility. Ownership. Accountability. Discipline.

The Indian economy is better placed than it was six months ago because of slowing inflation, political stability and a lower current account deficit, but the banking sector remains subdued because of weak demand for credit and pressure on asset quality, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its bi-annual Financial Stability Report (FSR), released yesterday, 30 December 2014. Economic growth will also remain muted this year because of a moderate kharif (summer crop) harvest and slow growth in industrial production, the report warned.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 63.7350 compared with its close of 63.68 yesterday, 29 December 2014.

Brent oil extended losses into a fourth session, with prices hovering close to a more than five-year low above $57 per barrel, as persistent worries about a global supply glut offset concerns about output disruptions in Libyan. Brent for February settlement was off 57 cents at $57.31 a barrel. The contract had declined $1.57 a barrel or 2.71% to settle at $57.88 a barrel yesterday, 29 December 2014, after tumbling to $57.37, its lowest level since May 2009.

Asian stocks edged lower today, 30 December 2014 as a sharp selloff in commodities and political uncertainty in Greece made investors less willing to take risks in the final trading days of 2014. Key benchmark indices in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, and South Korea fell by 0.07% to 1.57%. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite index rose 0.10%.

The HSBC Holdings Plc/Markit Economics China manufacturing purchasing managers' index for the month of December 2014 will be declared tomorrow, 31 December 2014, followed by the official factory PMI on Thursday, 1 January 2015.

Japanese markets will be shut from tomorrow, 31 December 2014 to Friday, 2 January 2015 and will reopen on Monday, 5 January 2015.

Trading in US index futures indicated that the Dow could fall 30 points at the opening bell today, 30 December 2014. US stocks were little changed in thin trading yesterday, 29 December 2014 as the S&P 500 notched its latest record high, but gains were curbed when an early rally in energy prices lost momentum.

Meanwhile, Greek voters will be heading to the polls in early 2015 after the country's parliament failed to agree on a new president in a third and final vote yesterday, 29 December 2014. Prime Minister Antonis Samaras needed a supermajority of the 300-seat parliament to back his candidate former European Commissioner Stavros Dimas but he only secured 168 of the 180 votes needed. The rejection of the government's candidate now means that the parliament will have to be dissolved, and Samaras is calling for a snap election to be held on Jan. 25, according to reports. Failure to put together a government could leave Greece once again precariously close to a financial crisis since Athens will be without an administration to wrap up a final bailout inspection due to unlock over 7 billion euros in aid, reports added.

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First Published: Dec 30 2014 | 1:15 PM IST

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