Post Session: Quick Review

Bulls which remained in action led to second consecutive session of gains at Dalal Street on Friday as market-participants continued to pile up positions in risk equities as they got into crucial Q3 earnings season, which began on an optimistic note with better than expected results of IT major, Infosys. Although, bit of jitter was witnessed by bourses ahead of December earnings of Infosys, but market participants took off really well in the second half of trading session, which led both Sensex and Nifty rally over half a percent  and conclude above crucial 27,450 and 8,250 levels respectively. However, the last trading session of the week did not turn to be as yielding for broader indices, which somehow managed to conclude on positive note. While, Midcap index managed to eke out gains of around 0.05%, Smallcap index ended higher with gains of around 0.10%. For the week, both Sensex and Nifty ended down with cut of over a percent.

On the global front, Asian stocks gained on Friday on upbeat expectations for the closely-watched US jobs data. Friday's US jobs report is expected to show that non-farm payrolls increased by 240,000 in December. That would mark the 11th consecutive month of job gains above 200,000, the longest stretch since 1994. Meanwhile, more weak data from Europe ensured shares worldwide were set to end their first full week of 2015 in the red on Friday. While, German exports fell sharply and industrial output declined in November new figures showed. Industrial production also fell in France and Spain's reading was revised down.

Closer home, most of the sectoral indices on BSE concluded into negative territory, however, stocks from Realty, Power, and Infrastructure counters were the prominent losers of the session. On the flip side, stocks from Information Technology, Technology and Healthcare counters were the prominent gainers of the session. IT pack surged after Infosys reported a 13% growth in consolidated net profit for the quarter ended December 31, 2014 on higher volume and improved utilization rates, which took its scrip higher by 7%. The company’s net profit was higher by 4.9% from Rs. 3,096 crore in July-September 2014 quarter, while revenues grew 3.4% from Rs. 13,342 crore in the second quarter of fiscal 2014-15. The stock also gained as the company retained its revenue guidance for the fiscal year ending March 2015. In a press release, Infosys said that the company has maintained its guidance of 7%-9% growth in revenue in dollar terms for the year ending March 2015 (FY 2015) based on exchange rates as on September 30, 2014. The overall market breadth on BSE was in the favour of decliners, which thumped advances in the ratio of 1349:1540, while 120 shares remained unchanged (Provisional).

The BSE Sensex ended at 27458.38, up by 183.67 points or 0.67% after trading in a range of 27119.63 and 27507.67. There were 16 stocks advancing against 14 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in the green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.05%, while Small cap index up by 0.11%. (Provisional)

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 3.51%, TECK up by 2.44%, Healthcare up by 1.78%, Oil & Gas up by 1.59% and Consumer Durables up by 0.83% while, Realty down by 1.39%, Infrastructure down by 1.10%, Power down by 0.92%, Capital Goods down by 0.41% and Metal down by 0.32% were the losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Hindustan Unilever up by 6.13%, Infosys up by 5.11%, TCS up by 3.03%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 2.93% and ONGC up by 2.61%. On the flip side, NTPC down by 3.41%, Bajaj Auto down by 2.74%, Sesa Sterlite down by 1.97%, BHEL down by 1.59% and ICICI Bank down by 1.51% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, in a move aimed at boosting fund raising from the market and reducing the timeline for listing of shares, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), in its discussion paper on  'Revisiting the capital raising process' proposed e-IPO norms, where investors can bid for shares through Internet and eventually on mobiles.

The market regulator is also planning to tweak rules that will help companies with market capitalization of Rs 250 crore or more to fast-track rights issues and follow-on public offers (FPOs) subject to certain conditions. Under the current rules, companies must have a public market cap of at least Rs 3,000 crore. Additionally, it has also proposed to drastically cut the timeline for listing of shares within 2-3 days of the IPO, as against 12 days presently.

Besides, SEBI has proposed a fast-track route for already listed entities for raising funds through follow-on public offers (FPOs) or rights offers, where funds can be raised from existing shareholders.

The regulator felt the need of reviewing capital-raising process from the markets as it had been observed that listed issuers preferred private placements routes, including qualified institutional placement, over other offers such as FPOs or rights issues, mainly on account of shorter time frame and lower cost involved.

Through the proposals, Sebi wants to simplify the IPO process, lower their costs and help companies to reach more retail investors in small towns. In order to put in place final norms for e-IPO and for fast-track issuances, SEBI has invited public comments till January 30, 2015.

India VIX, a gauge for markets short term expectation of volatility declined 3.14% at 15.95 from its previous close of 16.47 on Thursday. (Provisional)

The CNX Nifty ended at 8284.50, up by 49.90 points or 0.61% after trading in a range of 8190.80 and 8303.30. There were 27 stocks advancing against 23 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindustan Unilever up by 5.82%, Infosys up by 5.12%, Tech Mahindra up by 4.43%, Dr. Reddys Lab up by 3.18% and TCS up by 2.80%. On the flip side, DLF down by 3.43%, NTPC down by 3.24%, Jindal Steel & Power down by 3.20%, Bajaj Auto down by 3.04% and IDFC down by 1.66% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European Markets were trading in the red; UK's FTSE 100 was down by 0.23%, France's CAC was down by 0.08% and Germany's DAX was down by 0.13%.

The Asian equity benchmarks ended mostly in green on Friday, with Japanese stocks rising for a second day on speculation that central banks will support growth. China’s annual consumer inflation hovered at a near five-year low of 1.5% in December, signaling persistent weakness in the economy but giving policymakers more room to ease policy to support growth. The world’s second-largest economy still faces formidable headwinds this year as a property market downturn persists and local governments and companies are struggling to repay debt. The consumer price index rose 0.3% in December from November while, the producer price index in December declined 3.3% from a year earlier, its 34th consecutive monthly decline and the biggest decline since September 2012, as sluggish demand curbed the pricing power of companies. Japan’s index of leading economic indicators rose to a seasonally adjusted 103.8, from 104.5 in the preceding month whose figure was revised up from 104.0.