The domestic equity benchmarks came off the day's high and were trading with decent gains in morning trade. Investors took cues from positive Asian markets.
At 10:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 262.41 points or 0.60% at 43,900.39. The Nifty 50 index was up 76 points or 0.59% at 12,856.25.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.75% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.43%.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1293 shares rose and 1010 shares fell. A total of 129 shares were unchanged.
Investors' sentiment was boosted after US biotech firm Moderna announced that its experimental vaccine against COVID-19 was almost 95% effective, marking a second major breakthrough in the quest to end the pandemic. Concurrently, a foreign brokerage house reportedly said that a 'global synchronous recovery' looms next year with the world likely to grow at 6.4% in 2021.
Economy:
The annual rate of inflation based on Wholesale Price Index (WPI), stood at 1.48% (provisional) in October 2020 (over October 2019). The figure stood at 1.32% in September.
India's trade deficit narrowed to $8.71 billion in October 2020 from $11.75 billion a year ago as both exports and imports fell during the month. After recording positive growth in September, India's exports fell 5.12% from a year ago to $24.89 billion. Imports also fell 11.53% year-on-year to $33.6 billion in October 2020.
Buzzing Segment:
Shares of hotel companies were in demand as Moderna's encouraging vaccine trial results spurred fresh optimism for an end to the coronavirus pandemic.
Indian Hotels Co (up 5.98%), EIH (up 4.12%), Chalet Hotels (up 3.22%), Kamat Hotels (up 2.42%), TajGVK Hotels (up 2.31%), ITDC (up 1.95%) and Lemon Tree Hotel (up 1.47%) advanced.
Delta Corp (down 2.98%) and HLV (down 0.83%) declined.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) declined 3.42% to Rs 398.60. The government has reportedly received 'multiple' bids for buying out government's 53% stake in India's second-biggest fuel retailer BPCL. The government will not extend the deadline for private firms submitting initial bids. It had earlier extended the deadline for bids for BPCL, as the pandemic delayed the process that was initially expected to be completed by October.
General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re) slipped 1.69% to Rs 125. GIC Re reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 228.40 crore in Q2 FY21 compared with net loss of Rs 652.60 crore in Q2 FY20. Total income during the quarter declined by 12.7% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 12,053.23 crore.
Global scenario for insurance industry for the FY21 has shown weak trends due to Covid-19 situation for most classes while benefiting a few. Although Covid-19 influence remains on the insurance industry, severity of the impact is gradually reducing and the same is reflected in the results of the industry. As compared to Q1, there is a growth in business volume during Q2 FY21, the company said in a statement.
Spandana Sphoorty Financial added 0.67% to Rs 632. The company reported 46% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 66.76 crore on 3.4% decline in total income to Rs 354.11 crore in Q2 FY21 over Q2 FY20. It held cumulative provisions of Rs. 396 crore as on 30 September 2020, which accounted for 7.1% of total on-balance sheet portfolio.
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