Benchmark indices traded with modest gains in the afternoon trade on hopes for imminent coronavirus vaccines. The Nifty crossed 12,900 level supported by firmness in IT and pharma stocks. Worries over surging COVID cases and delays to fresh U.S. stimulus, however, capped gains.
At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 169.66 points or 0.39% at 44,051.91. The Nifty 50 index advanced 53.80 points or 0.42% at 12,912.85.
Reliance Industries (up 3.16%), Infosys (up 2.79%) and TCS (up 2.32%) were major index movers.
The Sensex hit a record high of 44,271.15 while the Nifty hit a record high of 12,962.10 in initial deals today.
Broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1.03%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 1.17%.
Buyers outnumbered the sellers. On the BSE, 1,561 shares rose and 1,062 shares fell. A total of 174 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 32 stocks advanced while 18 stocks declined.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 3,860.78 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net sellers to the tune of Rs 2,868.66 crore in the Indian equity market on 20 November 2020, provisional data showed.
COVID-19 Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 5,86,49,890 with 13,88,075 deaths. India reported 4,43,486 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,33,738 deaths while 85,62,641 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Economy:
FICCI's latest quarterly survey on Manufacturing pointed towards recovery of manufacturing sector for Q2 (July-September 2020-21) as compared to previous quarter. The percentage of respondents reporting higher production in second quarter of 2020-21 has increased vis-a-vis the Q1 of 2020-21. The proportion of respondents reporting higher output during July-September 2020 rose to 24%, as compared to 10% in Q1 of 2020-21. The percentage of respondents expecting low or same production is 74% in Q2 2020-21 which was 90% in Q1 of 2020-21. The overall capacity utilization in manufacturing has witnessed a rise to 65% as compared to 61.5% in Q4 2019-20.
Gainers & Losers:
IndusInd Bank (up 4.46%), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 3.35%), Tech Mahindra (up 3.11%) and ONGC (up 2.86%) were major gainers in Nifty 50 index.
HDFC (down 3.94%), ICICI Bank (down 1.98%), Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) (down 1.98%), Titan Company (down 1.85%) and SBI Life Insurance Company (down 1.26%) were major losers in Nifty 50 index.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Route Mobile fell 1.47%. The company announced the appointment of Sandipkumar Gupta as the chairman (non-executive non-independent) and Arun Gupta as the additional director (non-executive independent) on the board effective from 19 November 2020.
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals gained 0.64%. The pharmaceutical major recently published data on Favipiravir as treatment for mild to moderate COVID-19 demonstrated significant improvement in time to clinical cure. The oral antiviral medication Favipiravir, that prevents the replication phase of the virus life-cycle, leads to significant improvement in clinical cure in patients with mild to moderate COVID-19.
These findings were observed in a randomized, controlled Phase 3 clinical study conducted by Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, and the results are now published online in The International Journal of Infectious Diseases (IJID).
Mindtree advanced 2.33% after the company announced a five-year deal with a leading wind turbine manufacturer, The Nordex Group. "The Nordex Group chose Mindtree as its business transformation partner to simplify, modernize, and transform its entire IT landscape globally, while providing scalability to support the company's growth plans, the IT firm said.
Global Markets:
Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Monday as hopes rise that effective coronavirus vaccines will start to be rolled out soon. Markets in Japan were closed for a holiday.
On the economic data front, Singapore's economy contracted 5.8% in the third quarter, according to the country's Ministry of Trade and Industry. Developments surrounding the coronavirus will likely continue to weigh on investor sentiment. South Korea is set to impose stricter distancing regulations for the greater Seoul area and southwestern region in an attempt to stem a resurgence of the coronavirus, as per reports.
US stocks fell on Friday as rising new coronavirus cases, coupled with questions around central-bank funding for key emergency programs, cast doubt on a swift economic recovery. Also, weighing on sentiment Friday was a disagreement between the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve over the continuation of funding for some of the emergency programs implemented during the recession.
On the coronavirus vaccine front, Pfizer and BioNTech said they applied for an emergency use authorization for their vaccine from the Food and Drug Administration. The companies said they can be ready to ship the vaccine within hours after the FDA approves the authorization.
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