Market LIVE Updates: Sensex off day’s high, Nifty near 15k; banks top drags

Market LIVE Updates: Sensex off day’s high, Nifty near 15k; banks top drags

Asian stock markets reversed gains after opening in positive territory owing to optimism over the progress of a proposed US stimulus as well as global recovery from Covid.

Future Group’s women workers appeal to PM Modi In a written appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a group of 2,677 women employees of retailer Future Group have sought redressal of the impending Future Group-Reliance deal that they said could threaten thousands of jobs if the legal spat between Amazon and Future Group continues.

Brent hops past $70 for first time since pandemic began after Saudi attack Brent crude futures climbed above $70 a barrel on Monday for the first time since the covid-19 pandemic began, while US crude touched its highest in more than two years, following reports of attacks on Saudi Arabian facilities.

Brent crude futures for May hit $71.38 a barrel in early Asian trade, the highest since 8 January 8, 2020, and were at $70.56 a barrel by 07:30 GMT, up $1.20, or 1.7%.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for April rose $1.08, or 1.6%, to $67.17. The front-month WTI price touched $67.98 a barrel earlier, the highest since October 2018.

Asian stocks also rose after the US Senate approved a $1.9 trillion stimulus bill while positive economic data from the US and China bode well for a global economic rebound.

Mold-Tek Packaging declares dividend Mold-Tek Packaging Ltd said its board of directors have declared an interim dividend for FY21, at ₹3 per equitv share on the face value of ₹5 per share.

The dividend shall be paid on or from 20 March to 7 April.

The partly paid equity shareholders of the company will receive the dividends in proportion to the amount paid up on the equity shares, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Easy Trip Planners IPO opens The IPO of online travel company Easy Trip Planners, which operates EaseMyTrip.com, opened today. The company has fixed a price band of ₹186–187 per share for its ₹510-crore initial share-sale, which closes on March 10. Ahead of the IPO, Easy Trip Planners had raised ₹229.5 crore from anchor investors ₹187 per share, including HSBC Global Investment Funds, Nomura, Tata Trustee Company, Aditya Birla Sunlife Insurance Company, Sundaram Mutual Fund, Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company and Nippon Life India Trustee Company.

Anupam Rasayan’s ₹760-cr IPO to open on Mar 12 Specialty chemical company Anupam Rasayan on Monday fixed a price band of ₹553–555 a share for its ₹760-crore initial share-sale, which will open for public subscription on 12 March. The three-day public issue will close on 16 March, Anupam Rasayan said in a statement.The IPO aggregating up to ₹760 crore is entirely fresh issuance of equity shares and proceeds of the issue would be mainly used to pay debt.

AGI Infra’s board to decide on interim dividend The company’s board of directors will meet on 15 March to consider andapprove declaration of interim dividend for FY21, it said in a regulatory filing. AGI Infra has fixed 24 March as the ‘record date’ for the payment of interim dividend, if declared, by the board. The company’s stock was trading 7.44% higher at ₹59.95 at 12:43 pm.

Tech spends to rise across verticals: report Technology spends across verticals and geographies are expected to rise in the next few months, according to a new report by Edelweiss Research.The March 2021report reinforces the “techolution” thesis which refers to a technological revolution that will drive spend across the value chain. Covid-19 has been a boon for technology players as it has forced exponential use of apps and platforms, right from online shopping to e-learning to telemedicine.

Muthoot Finance traders lower Muthoot Finance was down 2.84% to ₹1,253.10 a piece a 11:56 am after Delhi Police denied any foul play in the death of M G George Muthoot. “Muthoot Group chairman MG George Muthoot fell from 4th floor of a building in East of Kailash, Delhi yesterday. He was rushed to Fortis Escort Hospital & was declared dead during treatment. Today, his postmortem was conducted. No foul play is suspected,” the Delhi Police said, ANI reported. Police received information on Friday at 9.21 pm regarding the admission of M G George Muthoot at a hospital after falling from the fourth floor of the house and was later declared dead, a senior police officer said.

Institutional demand driving boom, says Goldman crypto chief Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is seeing substantial demand for digital assets from institutions as it works to restart its cryptocurrency trading desk.In a survey of nearly 300 clients by the firm, 40% currently have exposure to crypto, according to Matt McDermott, global head of digital assets for Goldman Sachs Global Markets Division, speaking on a podcast. The situation is different now compared with the 2017 Bitcoin bubble due to “huge” institutional demand across different industry types and from private banking clients, he said.

McDermott confirmed plans reported last week for Goldman to restart its crypto trading desk, which he said will be “quite narrow initially,” with a focus on areas such as CME Group Inc. futures. He said that U.S. banks need to cope with regulations that bar them from trading physical cryptocurrencies.

Ind-Ra upgrades Happiest Minds’ rating India Ratings and Research has upgraded Happiest Minds Technologies Ltd’s Long-Term Issuer Rating to ‘IND A-/Positive ’ from ‘IND BBB+’ with a positive outlook, with immediate effect. The stock as trading up 1.24% at ₹542.50.

Adani Green Energy commissions new plant in Kutch Adani Green Energy Ltd unit Adani Wind Energy Kutch Three Ltd has commissioned a 100 MW wind power plant in Kutch, Gujarat, five months ahead of schedule. The power plant has 25-year power purchase agreement with Solar Energy Corporation of India at ₹2.82/kwh, Adani Green Energy said in a regulatory filing. The project takes Adani Green Energy’s total renewable capacity to 3,345 MW.

Natco pharma gains Natco Pharma Ltd’s marketing partner Breckenridge Pharmaceutical Inc. has received final approval for its abbreviated new drug application for Everolimus Tablets (generic for Afinitor) from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA). the drug maker’s shares surged 6.20% to ₹884.35 a piece. Oberoi Realty is better placed than Godrej Properties on valuations, says CLSA Foreign brokerage house CLSA has raised the target price of Oberoi Realty to 625. Shares of the Mumbai-based real estate developer rose around 1.5% on Monday and are currently trading ₹Rs552 on the NSE.

The brokerage house is of the view that the company’s new launches coupled with its near-ready projects in Worli, Borivali and Mulund, would drive its sales growth of around 19% over fiscal year 2021–23. In the December quarter, Oberoi Realty saw its highest ever quarterly sales bookings in five years at ₹970 crore. In Q4FY21, the company is expected to launch a new 70 storey tower-Oberoi Elysian in Goregaon project. Given the revival in sentiment towards residential real estate in Mumbai, Oberoi is targeting launches spread across 4–5 million sq. ft in Q4FY21. However, the exact phasing and pricing of these projects are awaited.

BEML gains 14% BEML Ltd’s stock gained 14.02% to trade at ₹1336.20 at 10:07 am. At least six companies, including Tata Motors Ltd, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd and Ashok Leyland Ltd, had been reported as looking to buy a 26% stake in state-run defence equipment maker BEML Ltd, two people aware of the developments said. Bharat Forge Ltd and Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd may also submit expressions of interest for the government’s stake in BEML, the people said on condition of anonymity. The government, which owns 54% in BEML, invited expressions of interest for the stake sale in the defence equipment maker, along with the transfer of management control, on 4 January.

Just Dial gains 6.48% The local searhc engine operator’s stock surged 6.48% at 9:53 am on the back of media reports suggesting that Tata Digital is in talks to explore a stake in Just Dial.

Amazon scales ‘Local Shops’ program to 50,000 offline retailers Ecommerce giant, Amazon India on Sunday said that it has scaled its ‘Local Shops’ programme to 50,000 offline retailers across 450 cities in the country, doubling the total number of sellers on the program in the last four months.

Amazon’s ‘Local Shop’ program was launched in April, last year, right in the midst of the covid-pandemic, when the country continued to be under strict lockdown with only delivery of essentials allowed GMR Infra apprises NCLT of company restructuring scheme GMR Infra filed its scheme detailing amalgamation and demerger with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Mumbai, with a view to take it forward. The merger will take place between GMR Infra, GMR Power Infra Ltd and GMR Power and Urban Infra Ltd, including vertical split of non-airport business.

Markets opening The Sensex rose 248 pts, or 0.49% to 50,654.02, while Nifty was up 0.43% or 64.35 points to 15,002.45. The 30-share gauge opened with 26 stocks in green led by ONGC, NTPC, IndusInd Bank and Tech Mahindra. Titan, RIL, Power Grid and UltraTech opened in red. Markets pre-opening The Sensex was at 50,729.35, up 0.64%, or 324.03 points, at pre-open, while the Nifty was at 14,938.10, down 0.95% or 142.65 points. Indian benchmark equity indices appear set to rise owing to positive cues from Asian peers buoyed by positive developments on the US stimulus and global recoveries from Covid.

Julius Baer upgrades India to overweight Bank Julius Baer has upgraded India to overweight as it will be the fastest growing major economy in 2021, ANI reported. “We change our stance on India from market-weight to overweight and see 15 percent upside from current levels with a Sensex price target of 58,450,” the lender said in a note. “An economic recovery is underway, and we look for 9% y/y GDP growth this year, followed by 7% next year. We look for earnings per share to grow on average over 25% over the next 3 years. It would be unprecedented for the stock market to fall in an environment of such strong growth,” it added.

Easy Trip Planners IPO opens today The IPO of online travel company Easy Trip Planners opens for subscription on 8 March. The company has fixed a price band of ₹186–187 per share for its ₹510-crore initial share-sale. EaseMyTrip.com is operated by Easy Trip Planners Private Ltd. The three-day issue would close on 10 March.

Stocks to Watch: Adani Ports, BEML, Just Dial Windy Lakeside Investment Ltd, an affiliate of private equity firm Warburg Pincus, will invest ₹800 crore in India’s largest private port operator Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) for a 0.49% stake in the company.

Previous markets close Benchmark Indian equity indices closed nearly 1% lower on Friday amid volatility. The Sensex closed down 440.76 points or 0.87% at 50,405.32, while the Nifty ended the day at 14,938.10, down 142.65 points or 0.95%. ONGC, Maruti Suzuki, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Nestlé India led the nine stocks that ended in green on the 30-share gauge. Metals, banks and financials saw heavy selloffs through the day. Earlier, Fed Reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s remarks on holding market intervention even amid better than expected recovery spooked global markets leading to selloffs and rise in bond yields.

Gold recovers from nine-month low Gold prices rose on Monday, recovering from a near nine-month low hit in the previous session, as a passage of the long awaited $1.9 trillion US coronavirus relief package boosted the metal’s appeal. Spot gold rose 0.3% to $1,705.62 per ounce by 0041 GMT, after hitting its lowest since June 8 at $1,686.40 on Friday. US gold futures climbed 0.3% to $1,703.

The U.S. Senate on Saturday passed President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan. Gold is viewed as a hedge against inflation, likely from extensive stimulus.Further supporting bullion, US 10-year yields held below a one-year peak hit on Friday, while the dollar eased.

Anupam Rasayan’s IPO to open on 12 March Anupam Rasayan India Ltd’s ₹760 cr IPO to open on 12 March and the issue price has fixed at ₹553–555 a share. The IPO will close on 16 March. The issue includes a reservation up to 2.20 lakh shares for subscription by eligible employee. QIB portion reserved up to 50%, retail category reserved not less than 35% while non institutional category reserved not less than 15% of the net issue. Proceeds from the issue will be used to pay off ₹556.20 crore in debt. As of September, the company had a total debt of ₹814.48 crore.

Oil jumps above $71 after key Saudi crude terminal attacked Brent oil surged above $71 a barrel after Saudi Arabia said the world’s largest crude terminal was attacked, although output appeared to be unaffected after the missiles and drones were intercepted. Futures in London jumped 2.6% after rising 4.9% last week. The kingdom said a storage tank at Ras Tanura in the country’s Gulf coast was targeted on Sunday by a drone from the sea. The terminal is capable of exporting roughly 6.5 million barrels a day — nearly 7% of oil demand — and, as such, is one of the world’s most protected installations.

Asian markets gain Asian stocks climbed Monday on optimism over President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief plan and the global recovery. Crude jumped after an oil facility was attacked. Shares rallied in Japan, Australia and South Korea, while S&P 500 Index futures edged higher. The U.S. stimulus moves to the House after the Senate passed the legislation, while data showed China’s exports jumped. Oil climbed after Saudi Arabia said one of the world’s most protected oil facilities came under attack.

SGX Nifty was up 0.76% or 114.50 points to 15,086.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.3% as of 9:04 a.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 rose 2% Friday.

Japan’s Topix index climbed 1%.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 1.7%.

South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.6%.

Wall Street witnesses rebound after jobs data surprises US stocks rebounded Friday. All major groups in the S&P 500 and technology gained. Ten-year Treasury yields climbed toward 1.6%, a level touched Friday as US jobs data beat estimates, fueling concerns about inflation risk. Better economic data and the prospect of more fiscal stimulus have pushed up bond yields, spurring questions about equity valuations. Treasury yields are rising because of a much stronger economic outlook, Federal Reserve officials said Friday, playing down the need for a monetary policy response. US treasury secretary Janet Yellen tried to counter inflation concerns by noting the true unemployment rate was nearer 10% and there was still plenty of slack in the labour market. Yet yields on US 10-year Treasuries still hit a one-year high of 1.625% in the wake of the data, and stood at 1.60% on Monday. Yields increased a hefty 16 basis points for the week, while German yields actually dipped 4 basis points.

The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose 3 basis points to 1.60%.

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