The equity barometers were trading with small gains in afternoon trade. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 57.17 points or 0.11% at 51,366.56. The Nifty 50 index gained 20.50 points or 0.14% at 15,127.
The broader market outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.25%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.83%.
Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1,602 shares rose and 1,207 shares fell. A total of 163 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 26 stocks advanced while 24 stocks declined.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,786.97 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net sellers to the tune of Rs 2,075.68 crore in the Indian equity market on 10 February 2021, provisional data showed.
COVID-19 Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 10,73,58,295 with 23,54,837 deaths. India reported 1,42,562 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,55,360 deaths while 1,05,73,372 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Economy:
Credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings said that India's budget, presented by the government on 1 February 2021, points to a loosening of fiscal policy to support the country's ongoing economic recovery from the pandemic and will consequently lead to a rise in public debt.
"The debt/GDP trajectory is core to our sovereign rating assessment, meaning higher deficits and a slower consolidation path will make India's medium-term growth outlook take on a more critical role in our analysis," Fitch Ratings said.
"We now expect public debt/GDP to rise above 90% of GDP over the next five years, based on the revised budget targets and with our other previous rating assumptions remaining unchanged. However, recent reforms and policy measures, including those announced in the budget, could also influence our growth expectations and, thus, our debt trajectory forecasts," it added.
Meanwhile, for the third and fourth quarters, SBI Research on Wednesday revised its contraction forecast for the current fiscal year to 7%. The agency had earlier forecast a 7.4% contraction in 2020-21 GDP numbers.
Gainers & Losers:
Hindalco Industries (up 3.35%), Reliance Industries (up 2.85%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 2.13%), GAIL (India) (up 2.10%) and Bharti Airtel (up 1.97%) were major gainers in Nifty 50 index.
Titan Company (down 2.69%), Eicher Motors (down 2.29%), Larsen & Toubro (L&T) (down 1.42%), Wipro (down 1.07%) and Tata Motors (down 0.96%) were major losers in Nifty 50 index.
Nifty Results Today:
Coal India (up 0.43%), ITC (down 0.75%) and PowerGrid Corporation of India (up 1.24%) will announce Q3 result today.
Earnings Impact:
Procter & Gamble Health advanced 3.50% after the company reported a 77.6% jump in net profit to Rs 67.88 crore on 1.5% rise in net sales to Rs 240.22 crore in Q2 December 2020 over Q2 December 2019. The FMCG company said its profitability was primarily driven by lower travel and selling expenses due to COVID-19 pandemic. Profit before tax jumped 70.1% to Rs 86.43 crore in Q2 December 2020 over Q2 December 2019. Current tax expense spiked 37% to Rs 19.03 crore in Q2 December 2020 over Q2 December 2019.
MRF dropped 4.63%. On a consolidated basis, the tyre maker's net profit zoomed 115.7% to Rs 520.54 crore on 13.8% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 4,641.60 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20. Profit before tax surged 86.4% to Rs 690.31 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20. Current tax expense jumped 62.48% to Rs 166.53 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20. The company declared a second interim dividend of Rs 3 per share. The record date is fixed on 19 February 2021.
Global Markets:
European stocks declined at opening bell on Thursday amid a pause in Wall Street rally. Asian stocks were trading higher on Thursday. Markets in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are closed for holidays.
In US, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq edged slightly lower on Wednesday as big tech stocks slid amid an ongoing rotation of portfolio holdings that gave a boost to energy shares and kept the overall market near record highs. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both opened at record highs but soon drifted lower, while the Dow set a new peak during the session.
House Democrats unveiled the details of a relief proposal that included $1,400 direct checks with faster phase-outs than previous bills. President Joe Biden and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen met with CEOs of JPMorgan, Walmart and Gap Tuesday to discuss additional economic relief.
In economic developments, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday that policy will need to stay "patiently accommodative." The Fed chair said the U.S. is "a long way" from where it needs to be in terms of employment despite the economy having reclaimed more than 12 million jobs since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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