Key benchmark indices edged lower in choppy trade, with the market sentiment hit adversely by the government's failure to raise fuel prices. However, the key benchmark indices trimmed intraday losses as the rupee edged higher against the dollar and as European stocks reversed intraday losses. Volatility was high ahead of the expiry of the near month futures & options (F&O) contracts tomorrow, 26 September 2013. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, shed 63.97 points or 0.32%, up close to 197 points from the day's low and off about 122 points from the day's high.
The Sensex has gained 1,236.52 points or 6.64% in September 2013 so far (till 25 September 2013). The Sensex has risen 429.53 points or 2.21% in calendar 2013 so far (till 25 September 2013). From a 52-week high of 20,739.69 on 19 September 2013, the Sensex has declined 883.45 points or 4.26%. From a 52-week low of 17,448.71 on 28 August 2013, the Sensex has risen 2,407.53 points or 13.80%.
The government's decision on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, not to raise fuel prices sparked concerns about the government's fiscal deficit. PSU OMCs, which control more than 90% of the fuel-retail market in India, sell diesel and cooking fuels at government-set discounted prices. The government partially reimburses them for the discounted sales.
IT stocks edged lower. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries declined. Another index heavyweight and cigarette maker ITC dropped in choppy trade. Capital goods pivotal gained. Some pharma stocks rose on defensive buying, with Dr Reddy's Laboratories scaling record high. Most auto stocks declined. Telecom stocks were in demand.
The market may remain volatile tomorrow, 26 September 2013 as traders roll over positions in the futures & options (F&O) segment from the near month September 2013 series to October 2013 series. The September 2013 F&O contracts expire tomorrow, 26 September 2013.
The S&P BSE Sensex fell 63.97 points or 0.32% to settle at 19,856.24, its lowest closing level since 17 September 2013. The index declined 261.47 points at the day's low of 19,658.74 in mid-afternoon trade. The index rose 58.28 points at the day's high of 19,978.49 in early trade.
The CNX Nifty shed 18.60 points or 0.32% to 5,873.85, its lowest closing level since 17 September 2013. The index hit a low of 5,811.10 in intraday trade. The index hit a high of 5,910.55 in intraday trade.
The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.12%, while the BSE -Small-Cap index fell 0.07%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. On BSE, 1,256 shares fell and 1,052 shares rose. A total of 150 shares were unchanged.
The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 1624 crore, higher than Rs 1614.44 crore on Tuesday, 24 September 2013.
Among the sectoral indices on BSE, the S&P BSE Power index (up 1.84%), the S&P BSE Capital Goods index (up 1.45%), the S&P BSE Healthcare index (up 1.27%), the S&P BSE Metal index (up 1.17%), the S&P BSE PSU index (up 0.93%), the S&P BSE Teck index (up 0.54%), the S&P BSE IT index (up 0.05%) and the S&P BSE Auto index (down 0.07%), outperformed the Sensex.
The S&P BSE Consumer Durables index (down 0.35%), the S&P BSE Realty index (down 0.56%), the S&P BSE Bankex (down 0.94%), the S&P BSE FMCG index (down 1.12%) and the S&P BSE Oil & Gas index (down 1.36%), underperformed the Sensex.
Among the 30-share Sensex pack, 15 stocks fell and rest of them rose.
Capital goods pivotal gained. Bhel surged 7.69% to Rs 141.45. The stock was the biggest gainer from the Sensex pack.
L&T rose 0.65% to Rs 831.60.
Among other capital goods shares, Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Company (up 4.61%), ABB (up 2.09%), Lakshmi Machine Works (up 1.89%), ALSTOM India (up 1.87%), Thermax (up 1.41%), Havells India (up 1.37%), Crompton Greaves (up 1.33%), BEML (up 1.11%), Bharat Electronics (up 1.01%), Praj Industries (up 0.55%), Alstom T&D India (up 0.18%) and SKF India (up 0.03%), edged higher.
Index heavyweight and cigarette maker ITC dropped 1.36% to Rs 345.05. The stock hit high of Rs 350 and low of Rs 337.45.
IT stocks were mostly lower. HCL Technologies was off 1.60%. The company announced during trading hours today, 25 September 2013, that its wholly-owned subsidiary, HCL America Inc (HCLA), has won a multi-year, multi-million dollar deal with the WyCAN Consortium, a group of states including Arizona, Colorado, North Dakota and Wyoming. HCLA will enable WyCAN to significantly improve services for its Unemployment Insurance (UI) modernization program, which is one of the largest such programs in the US providing critical income to millions of unemployed Americans.
The deal will give the consortium states a configurable, intuitive Government-to-Citizen (G2C) system aimed at consolidating and replacing existing legacy systems to allow easier adaptation to changing legislation, HCL Technologies said in a statement.
Infosys dropped 0.23%.
Wipro fell 0.51% in choppy trade. Wipro becomes a part of the 50-unit CNX Nifty with effect from Friday, 27 September 2013. The IT major replaces Reliance Infrastructure in Nifty.
Among other IT shares, CMC (down 0.63%), Oracle Financial Services Software (down 0.49%) and Tech Mahindra (down 0.04%), edged lower.
TCS rose 0.92%, with the stock reversing intraday losses. The company announced after market hours on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, that the company, Saudi Aramco and GE launched the first all-female business process services center in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The center will be staffed by Saudi females, with TCS and GE owning 76% and 24% equity in the new venture, which will initially serve Saudi Aramco and GE as anchor clients. The new business process services center will serve as a building block to localize the business process outsourcing (BP0) industry in the Kingdom. The three partners will work together with the intention of scaling up the new venture to create up to 3,000 jobs for Saudi professional females. GE will create up to 1,000 employment opportunities for this initiative.
Hindalco Industries rose 4.19%. Sesa Goa gained 3.74%.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) fell 2.93% to Rs 848.70. The stock hit high of Rs 874 and low of Rs 842.60.
Some pharma stocks rose on defensive buying. Dr Reddy's Laboratories rose 1.88% to Rs 2,442 after hitting record high of Rs 2,444.85 in intraday trade. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries gained 1.7%.
Cipla gained 1.69%. The company said during market hours today, 25 September 2013, that India Ratings & Research, a Fitch Group Company has assigned a Long-Term Issuer Rating of 'IND AAA' to the company.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 2.17%), GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (up 1.04%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (up 0.77%), Lupin (up 0.45%) and Aurobindo Pharma (up 0.16%), edged higher.
But, Ranbaxy Laboratories declined 0.18%.
Most auto stocks declined. M&M (down 2.62%), Eicher Motors (down 2.24%), Ashok Leyland (down 1.34%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 1.28%) and Escorts (down 0.18%), edged lower.
Tata Motors gained 1.9%. The company's British luxury car unit Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, unveiled details of its future plans for advanced research and development in the UK which will now be focused on a new cutting-edge technology, innovation and education centre in Warwick. The National Automotive Innovation Campus (NAIC) is designed to create a large-scale collaborative research environment, JLR said in a statement. JLR is the lead partner in the project investing 50 million pounds, along with Tata Motors European Technical Centre (TMETC), WMG (Warwick Manufacturing Group) and the UK Government's Higher Education Funding Council England (HEFCE).
Two wheeler stocks were mostly lower. Bajaj Auto dropped 1.36%. TVS Motor Company was down 1%. Hero MotoCorp gained 1.53%.
Kingfisher Airlines hit maximum permissible 10% upper circuit at Rs 5.65 on BSE, with the stock extending Tuesday's sharp surge triggered by the company's Chairman Vijay Mallya's comment on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, that the company is in talks with a foreign investor for a potential stake sale. Kingfisher Airlines has been grounded for almost a year for want of cash.
Telecom stocks were in demand. Reliance Communications (up 3.84%), Idea Cellular (up 2.28%), Bharti Airtel (up 1.89%) and Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (up 0.32%), edged higher.
Telecommunications Secretary M.F. Farooqui was quoted by the media as saying on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, that the government expects to conduct its next mobile phone airwave auction in January 2014. The government has estimated Rs 11000 crore of revenue from the auction, he added. The telecommunications regulator earlier this month recommended a sharp cut in the auction reserve prices. The reserve prices are yet to be finalised by the government.
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) surged 8.49% to Rs 16.62 after the company on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, signed a memorandum of understanding with BSNL for sharing network and infrastructure for greater operational synergy and single window customer delivery. MTNL after market hours on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, said that the company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with BSNL for sharing network and infrastructure of each other for greater operational synergy and single window customer delivery. This will result into greater synergy between the two organizations, MTNL said. BSNL operates mobile, fixed-line and Internet services in 20 of India's 22 telecommunications zones, while MTNL operates in the key Delhi and Mumbai zones.
Yes Bank clocked a highest turnover of Rs 105.77 crore on BSE. State Bank of India (Rs 71.99 crore), Tata Motors (Rs 53.73 crore), Reliance Industries (Rs 48.39 crore) and Reliance Communications (Rs 47.71 crore), were the other turnover toppers on BSE.
SpiceJet reported a highest volume of 54.88 lakh shares of BSE. SMS Techsoft (India) (40.70 lakh shares), Alok Industries (39.04 lakh shares), MTNL (36.62 lakh shares) and Unitech (33.77 lakh shares), were the other volume toppers on BSE.
Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas Dr. M. Veerappa Moily on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, ruled out any steep increase in diesel and cooking-fuel prices. The government's decision on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, not to raise fuel prices has sparked concerns about the government's fiscal deficit. PSU OMCs, which control more than 90% of the fuel-retail market in India, sell diesel and cooking fuels at government-set discounted prices. The government partially reimburses them for the discounted sales. Dr. Moily on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, asked the people of India to conserve petroleum products to help the government's finances and reduce the country's oil-import bill.
In an effort to woo Central government employees before the next Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh constituted the 7th Pay Commission on Wednesday, 25 September 2013. The new pay scale recommended by the Pay Commission will be implemented from 1 January 2016 as the government has given about two years to the 7th Pay Commission to submit its report. The Pay Commission will give its recommendation on the salaries, allowances and pensions of about 80 lakh central employees and pensioners.
The setting up of the Commission, whose recommendations will benefit about 50 lakh central government employees, including those in defence and railways, and about 30 lakh pensioners, comes ahead of the Assembly elections in 5 states in November and the general elections in 2014.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 62.45, compared with its close of 62.7525/7625 on Tuesday, 24 September 2013.
European shares reversed initial losses on Wednesday, 25 September 2013. Key benchmark indices in UK, France and Germany were up 0.40% to 0.57%.
Asian stocks dropped on Wednesday, 25 September 2013, as concern that US lawmakers will fail to arrange a budget deal preventing a government shutdown next week weighed on sentiment. Key benchmark indices in China, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea were off 0.01% to 1.2%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.13%.
Trading in US index futures indicated that Dow could fall 21 points at opening bell on Wednesday, 25 September 2013. US stocks ended mostly lower on Tuesday, 24 September 2013, as a drop in consumer confidence and worries over a Washington debt-ceiling fight outweighed a rise in home prices and easing concerns over the Middle East.
Investors are worried about the latest squabbling in Washington over a new budget for the fiscal year that starts on 1 October 2013 and, more importantly, over whether to lift the debt ceiling. The US Treasury is set to reach its $16.7 trillion borrowing limit around mid-October, unless legislators move to raise the debt ceiling. Ratings firm Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday said a failure by the US government to raise the country's debt limit would result in a worse outcome for financial markets than a government shutdown. The ratings agency argued that market participants would view a decision not to raise the debt limit as the event with the higher probability of sovereign default.
The Conference Board's index of US consumer confidence slumped in September to a four-month low and a separate report showed a gauge of manufacturing in the region covered by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond shrank in September. The Case-Shiller report on US home prices showed prices rose in July, but at a slower pace.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) holds a two-day policy meeting on 29-30 October 2013. On 18 September 2013, the Fed surprised economists and investors with its decision to delay scaling back its stimulus.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Hasan Rouhani's decision against meeting President Obama or even exchanging a handshake at the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday underscored difficulties between the two countries.
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