Post Session: Quick Review

Hectic buying activity which took place during last leg of trade mainly drove the markets higher and key domestic benchmarks recaptured their crucial 26,600 (Sensex) and 8,200 (Nifty) bastions ahead of second quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data slated to be announced later in the day. The general expectation is that economic growth accelerated to 7.5 per cent in the September quarter from 7.1 per cent in the June quarter but lower than 7.9 per cent growth posted for the March quarter. Traders took some encouragement with Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) decision to allow bank customers to withdraw amount over and above the weekly limit provided the deposits had been made in legal tender. Some support also came with a private report stating that government is expected to meet its fiscal deficit target of 3 per cent for the next financial year on account of additional revenue from penalty on black money and deposits under the income disclosure.

Traders also got some support with report that domestic institutional investors (DIIs) - including banks, domestic financial institutions, insurance, new pension scheme and mutual funds - have pumped in net Rs 17,600 crore into the Indian markets during the month till November 29, the highest since the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) started maintaining the data since calendar year 2005. Moreover, traders overlooked Fitch Ratings’ report titled ‘Global Economic Outlook - November’ where it lowered India’s GDP growth forecast for current fiscal to 6.9 percent from 7.4 percent forecasted earlier, as there will be temporary disruptions to economic activity post demonetization.

Buying got intensified after European markets made a firm opening with CAC, DAX and FTSE trading in green with a gain of around half a percent in early deals. Asian markets ended mostly in green ahead of the highly anticipated OPEC meeting in Vienna later in the day. However, Chinese equities and commodities tanked amid worries that Beijing’s efforts to support its currency could squeeze liquidity.

Back home, appreciation in Indian rupee too aided sentiments. The rupee firmed up 17 paise to 68.47 against the dollar at the time of equity markets closing, rising for the second straight day on increased selling of the US currency by exporters and banks. On the sectoral front, banking stocks remained in focus after the RBI has said that deposit expansion of scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) stood at 12.9 per cent, while credit growth was at 12.1 per cent for the quarter ended September.

The NSE’s 50-share broadly followed index Nifty gained by over eighty points to end above the psychological 8,200 support level, while Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index -- Sensex surged by around two hundred and sixty points to finish above its psychological 26,600 mark. Broader markets too traded with traction and ended the session with a gain of over a percentage point.

The market breadth remained in favor of advances, as there were 1,744 shares on the gaining side against 842 shares on the losing side while 208 shares remain unchanged. (Provisional)

The BSE Sensex ended at 26652.81, up by 258.80 points or 0.98% after trading in a range of 26395.50 and 26680.55. There were 25 stocks advancing against 5 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index surged 1.07%, while Small cap index was up by 1.28%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Consumer Durables up by 2.46%, Bankex up by 2.20%, Finance up by 1.71%, Capital Goods up by 1.57% and Basic Materials was up by 1.35%, while there were no losers on the BSE sectoral front. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were ICICI Bank up by 3.54%, Maruti Suzuki up by 3.50%, Larsen & Toubro up by 2.10%, SBI up by 1.82% and HDFC Bank up by 1.69%. On the flip side, Lupin down by 1.22%, GAIL India down by 1.16%, Cipla down by 0.72%, Reliance Industries down by 0.49% and Tata Motors down by 0.22% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, the government has given approval to set up six new special economic zones (SEZs) across three states in sector such as IT and biotechnology. These SEZs were given approval by the Board of Approval (BoA), chaired by Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia.

The approved SEZ proposals are Vaxenic India, EON Kharadi Infrastructure and KRC Infrastructure. GAR Corporation has planned to set up two IT/ITeS zones in Telangana, while Vaxenic India wants to set up biotechnology and bio pharmaceuticals SEZ in the state. EON Kharadi Infrastructure and KRC Infrastructure too have planned to set up separate IT/ITeS special economic zones in Pune. Information Technology Park has got the approval to set up IT zone in Karnataka.

It should be noted that SEZs account for about 23 per cent of the India’s total exports. During the period of 2015-16, exports from special economic zones recorded a marginal growth of 0.77 per cent to Rs 4.67 lakh crore. The exports from such 204 zones were Rs 4.63 lakh crore in 2014-15. As per the Commerce Ministry’s data, as on March 31, these zones had attracted investments worth Rs 3.76 lakh crore and generated employment for 15.91 lakh people.

The CNX Nifty ended at 8224.50, up by 82.35 points or 1.01% after trading in a range of 8139.25 and 8234.25. There were 41 stocks advancing against 10 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were ICICI Bank up by 3.95%, Maruti Suzuki up by 3.50%, Ambuja Cement up by 2.80%, Yes Bank up by 2.56% and Indusind Bank up by 2.52%. On the flip side, Idea Cellular down by 2.27%, Lupin down by 0.88%, Reliance Industries down by 0.77%, GAIL India down by 0.76% and Cipla down by 0.45% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading in green; France’s CAC gained 25.25 points or 0.55% to 4,576.71, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 38.52 points or 0.57% to 6,810.52 and Germany’s DAX was up by 43.03 points or 0.41% to 10,663.52.

Most of the Asian markets made a positive closing on Wednesday as upbeat US data and a weak yen boosted investor sentiment. US data showed stronger-than-expected third quarter growth, higher housing prices in September and a sharp rebound in consumer confidence in November. Japanese shares ended on a flat note as investors digested a slew of data and waited for cues from the OPEC meeting and the weekend's Italian constitutional referendum. Investors are awaiting news later Wednesday on the prospect of a production cut by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Iran’s oil minister said that he believed the cartel would reach a production deal, but that an immediate freeze of his country’s output wasn’t on the agenda. Japan's industrial output grew for a third consecutive month in October, preliminary data showed today but the government left its basic assessment intact, saying production is increasing at a moderate pace. Other reports on automobile production, housing starts and small business confidence painted a mixed picture of the economy. Meanwhile, Chinese shares ended lower on worries about liquidity and increased regulation as Beijing steps up efforts to support a sliding Yuan.