Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity benchmarks displayed a stunning performance. Both the indices, BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty ended the session at 18 month high. Though the benchmarks made a cautious start in red in early deals on account of sluggish global cues it erased losses after sentiments got a push with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s statement that the government is running against time for the implementation of GST, but added that he would certainly like to give it a try. He said the new GST, once implemented, would have a transformational impact by creating a common market in the country, while also acting as a transfer mechanism that would aid poorer states. Meanwhile, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das has said that implementation of the goods and services tax will bring small and medium enterprises (SMEs) into the national value chain and committed many more reforms. Das, who attended the G20 summit in China earlier this week enlightened with confidence that the kind of reforms which India has undertaken has been very widely appreciated by G20 countries.

On the global front, Asian markets were mostly higher; as Chinese trade data topped forecasts and imports recorded their first annual rise since late 2014. Japan’s economy grew faster over April-June than initially estimated, the Cabinet Office stated, with upward revisions to capital expenditure and inventories, but the lack of a strong growth driver is seen undermining momentum for the rest of this year. European stocks moved mostly higher, as investors awaited the European Central Bank’s policy decision due later in the day. Later, the ECB was expected to leave interest rates unchanged.

Back home, hectic buying activity was witnessed in selected auto stocks on reports that domestic passenger vehicle sales grew for a 14th straight month in August with a 16.68% increase, promoting auto industry body SIAM to revise upward, its growth estimate for the ongoing fiscal to 10-12 percent.  According to the data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), passenger vehicle sales in August were at 258,722 units as against 221,743 units in the same month last year. Frontline IT stocks were trading under pressure after TCS warned that there could be sequential loss of momentum as its clients may hold back discretionary spending in banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) segment in the US. The street judged the company’s outlook as a reflection of the state of the IT sector.

The BSE Sensex ended at 29045.28, up by 118.92 points or 0.41% after trading in a range of 28854.56 and 29077.28. There were 22 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index was up by 0.15%, while Small cap index was up by 0.83%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 3.03%, Consumer Durables up by 1.19%, FMCG up by 1.00%, Metal up by 0.92% and Auto up by 0.91%, while IT down by 2.49%, TECK down by 1.81% and Bankex down by 0.04% were the losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Sun Pharma up by 3.84%, Bajaj Auto up by 3.55%, Tata Steel up by 3.10%, Maruti Suzuki up by 2.79% and Hero MotoCorp up by 2.21%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, TCS down by 4.90%, Wipro down by 1.71%, GAIL India down by 1.66%, Infosys down by 1.61% and NTPC down by 0.78% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, based on the recommendations of foreign investment promotion board (FIPB) in its 235th meeting held on May 20, 2016, the government has approved two foreign direct investment (FDI) proposals, including that of Aurobindo Pharma. The FDI proposal of Aurobindo Pharma is worth Rs 2.19 crore, while the one from Sterling Commerce Solutions India was for approval to act as an investing company for Curan Software International, Emptoris Technologies India, Kenexa Technologies and Rational Software Corporation (India), which are currently owned by overseas companies of IBM and are currently dormant.

FIPB has recommended another proposal from Holcim India worth Rs 3,400 crore for approval of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. The proposal seeks approval for Ambuja Cements to acquire 24 per cent shares in its holding company, Holcim India.

Three FDI proposals were deferred including Mylan Laboratories, Vodafone India and Reckitt Benckiser (India). Besides, seven proposals were rejected which include Rizobactor Argentina, S.A, Indian Energy Exchange, Veritas (India), BMJ Group India, CevaSanteAnimale, Sharekhan and Exzatech Solutions.

The CNX Nifty ended at 8948.45, up by 30.50 points or 0.34% after trading in a range of 8896.00 and 8960.35. There were 36 stocks advancing against 15 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Sun Pharma up by 3.69%, Aurobindo Pharma up by 3.35%, Bajaj Auto up by 3.29%, Tata Steel up by 3.17% and Grasim Industries up by 2.89%. (Provisional)

On the flip side, Yes Bank down by 5.57%, TCS down by 4.65%, Tech Mahindra down by 2.67%, BHEL down by 2.10% and HCL Tech down by 1.92% were the top losers. (Provisional)

The European markets were trading mostly in green; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 35.08 points or 0.51% to 6,881.66 and France’s CAC increased 0.12 points or 0% to 4,557.78, while Germany’s DAX decreased 16.83 points or 0.16% to 10,736.15.

The Asian markets made mostly a higher closing on Thursday as Chinese trade data topped forecasts and oil extended overnight gains on API data, indicating a massive draw in crude inventories last week. The focus turned to the European Central Bank meeting later in the day, with investors waiting to see whether ECB President Mario Draghi will announce an extension of the bond-purchase program. Japanese shares closed a tad lower, dragged down by financials after the Bank of Japan deputy governor said the central bank will not rule out deepening negative interest rates to achieve its inflation target. Investors ignored revised GDP data, which showed that Japan's economy expanded at a better-than-estimated 0.7 percent annualized pace in April-June. Meanwhile, Chinese stocks fluctuated in a narrow range and finished roughly flat as positive news on the data front was offset by receding hopes for additional monetary policy support. Reports showed that China's imports unexpectedly rose in August for the first time in nearly two years, boosted by coal and other commodities, suggesting domestic demand may be picking up and putting the world's second-largest economy on a more balanced footing.