Key benchmark indices extended early gains and hit fresh intraday high in morning trade. At 10:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 335.06 points or 1.01% at 33,642.20. The Nifty 50 index was up 106.10 points or 1.04% at 10,332.95. Gains were led by index heavyweights ITC, Infosys and HDFC. Positive Asian stocks boosted sentiment on the domestic stocks.
Shares of cigarette makers gained after cigarette cess was kept unchanged at GST Council meet. Most FMCG stocks rose.
Trading for the week began on a firm note as the key benchmark indices saw a gap-up opening triggered by positive Asian stocks.
The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.5%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.56%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 1,374 shares rose and 774 shares fell. A total of 100 shares were unchanged.
Overseas, Asian stocks edged higher as trade-war concerns took a backseat to economic optimism following a US jobs report Friday, 9 March 2018 that showed the American economy continued to strengthen without the prior month's rapid wage gains that stoked inflation fears.
In US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed back above 25,000 and the Nasdaq Composite Index ended at a record on Friday, 9 March 2018 as Wall Street appeared to shake off worries about tariffs on steel and aluminum to focus on an unexpectedly strong jobs report. Shares also got a boost from news that US President Donald Trump accepted an invitation to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which followed a narrower-than-expected tariff plan from the White House Thursday, 8 March 2018 that eased speculation of a trade war.
In economic data, the US created 313,000 new jobs in February, the biggest gain since mid-2016 and a reflection of the strongest labor market in two decades. The unemployment rate held at 4.1%, the fifth straight month at that level. The subdued rise in wage growth for the month helped to ease worries about runaway inflation.
Back home, Infosys (up 2.19%), HDFC (up 1.46%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.84%) edged higher from the Sensex pack.
Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC jumped 3.22% to Rs 267.75 after the government kept cess on cigarettes unchanged at its GST Council meeting on Saturday, 10 March 2018.
Shares of other cigarette makers VST Industries (up 2.15%) and Godfrey Phillips India (up 2.23%) edged higher.
Engineering & construction major L&T rose 0.95% after the company said its construction division has secured orders valued at Rs 2597 crore. The announcement was made during market hours today, 12 March 2018.
Most FMCG stocks rose. Tata Global Beverages (up 1.83%), Colgate-Palmolive (India) (up 1%), Dabur India (up 1.07%), Godrej Consumer Products (up 1.16%), Marico (up 0.54%), Nestle India (up 0.65%), Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care (up 0.08%) and Jyothy Laboratories (up 0.34%) rose.
Bajaj Corp (down 0.15%), Britannia Industries (down 0.1%), GlaxoSmithkline Consumer Healthcare (down 0.7%) and Hindustan Unilever (down 0.19%) fell.
DQ Entertainment (International) was locked at 5% upper circuit at Rs 13.45 after the stock witnessed multiple bulk deals on Friday, 9 March 2018. N G Industries sold 5 lakh shares of DQ Entertainment (International) at Rs 13.34 per share in a bulk deal on the BSE on Friday, 9 March 2018. Ganpati Dealcom offloaded 10 lakh shares at Rs 13.20 apiece. Ashok Kumar Goenka purchased 8 lakh shares at Rs 13.31 per share. Goenka Securities bought 8 lakh shares at Rs 13.20 apiece.
On the macro front, the government will after market hours today, 12 March 2018 announce inflation data based on consumer price index (CPI) for February 2018. Consumer prices in India increased 5.07% year-on-year in January 2018, below 5.21% in December 2017.
Industrial production data for January 2018 will also be released after market hours today, 12 March 2018. India's industrial production rose by 7.1% year-on-year in December 2017, following an upwardly revised 8.8% gain in the previous month.
Meanwhile, sending a strong positive signal to the exporting community, the GST Council in its 26th meeting held on Saturday, 10 March 2018 decided to extend the available tax exemptions on imported goods for a further six months beyond 31 March 2018. Thus, exporters presently availing various export promotion schemes can now continue to avail such exemptions on their imports upto 1 October 2018, by which time an e-Wallet scheme is expected to be in place to continue the benefits in future.
In a related development which would benefit the exporters, the Council reviewed the progress in grant of refunds to exports of both IGST and Input Tax Credit. The Council appreciated that the pace of grant of IGST refund has picked up. Thereafter, the Council directed GSTN to expeditiously forward the balance refund claims to the Customs/Central GST/State GST authorities, as the case may be, for their immediate sanction and disbursal.
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