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Sensex, Nifty slip into the red; India's Services PMI at 56.7

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The benchmark indices reversed gains in mid-morning trade as profit selling emerged at higher levels. The Nifty slipped below 17,250 level. Banks and financial shares declined while auto and media stocks advanced.

At 11:27 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 46.02 points or 0.08% at 57,806.66. The Nifty 50 index fell 1.5 points to 17,232.55.

The Sensex hit record high of 58,115.69 while the Nifty scaled all time high of 17,311.95 in early trade.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.17% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.3%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1610 shares rose and 1354 shares fell. A total of 155 shares were unchanged.

 

IHS Markit India Services PMI

The seasonally adjusted India Services Business Activity Index stood at 56.7 in August, up from 45.4 in July. The index was above the 50.0 neutral threshold for the first time in four months. The latest reading pointed to a marked rate of expansion that was the fastest in one-and-a-half years. Where growth was reported, panelists mentioned strong inflows of new work and improved demand conditions.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Media index surged 1.68% to 1,643.10. The index has gained 2.59% in three days.

Network 18 Media & Investments (up 6.29%), TV18 Broadcast (up 2.8%), TV Today Network (up 2.63%), Jagran Prakshan (Up 2.07%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (up 1.94%) and Dish TV Network (up 1.68%) were top gainers in media space.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Exide Industries surged 6.87% to Rs 190.50 after HDFC Life Insurance Company announced acquisition of Exide Life Insurance. The board of directors of HDFC Life Insurance Company (HDFC Life), Exide Industries and Exide Life Insurance Company (Exide Life) approved the transaction involving the sale of Exide Life Insurance to HDFC Life. HDFC Life will acquire 100% stake in Exide Life Insurance from Exide Industries via issuance of 8,70,22,222 shares at an issue price of Rs 685 per share and a cash payout of Rs 726 crore, aggregating to Rs 6,687 crore. The process for merger of Exide Life into HDFC Life will be initiated on completion of the acquisition. The entire process, including the acquisition and subsequent merger, is subject to obtaining the relevant regulatory and other approvals. The proposed transaction will accelerate the growth of the agency business of HDFC Life. Exide Life complements HDFC Life's geographical presence and has a strong foothold in South India, especially in Tier 2 and 3 towns, thus providing access to a wider market.

Reliance Industries gained 1.32%. The company's subsidiary Reliance Industries Retail Ventures (RRVL) has taken sole control of Just Dial with effect from 1 September 2021 and it now holds 40.98% in the local search engine. On 20 July 2021, RRVL acquired 1.31 crore equity shares of Rs 10 each of Just Dial at a price of Rs 1,020 per equity share from VSS Mani on the floor of the stock exchange through the block window facility. The acquisition represents 15.63% of the post-preferential issue paid-up equity share capital of Just Dial.

PNB Housing Finance fell 0.99%. The housing finance company said that Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approached the Supreme Court against the Securities Appellate Tribunal's (SAT's) order in the matter related to the company's Rs 4,000 crore equity capital raise plan. The company is examining the appeal filed by SEBI, the housing financier said in a statement.

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First Published: Sep 03 2021 | 11:28 AM IST

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