Share Market Updates Today: Indian equity benchmarks plunged on Thursday after government data showed that retail inflation spiked to a five-month high in September, stoking fears of further rate hikes by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Consumer price-based inflation accelerated in September to 7.41 per cent, year-on-year (yoy), as food prices surged. Market participants also awaited quarterly (Q2) results of IT firm Infosys, to be announced later in the day. Wipro, Adani Ports, SBI, SBI Life and ICICI Bank were among the top losers on the NSE platform with their shares down as much as 6.95 per cent. In contrast, HCL Tech, Sun Pharma, Coal India, Dr Reddy's and Tata Motors were among the top gainers.
Asian stocks, in sync with an overnight decline on Wall Street, remained depressed today ahead of the US inflation print for cues on further rate hikes. However, S&P futures rose 0.45 per cent, while Nasdaq futures moved 0.25 per cent higher, and Dow futures rose 0.45 per cent, indicating a slightly higher start for Wall Street.
Here are the share market highlights:
Infosys today reported an 11.10 per cent year-on-year (YoY) rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 6,021 crore in September quarter compared with Rs 5,421 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Along with the quarterly results, the IT major announced a Rs 9,300 crore in share buyback. (Read more)
Nifty is consistently taking support near the 200-day SMA (Simple Moving Average) or 16,950 while facing strong resistance at 17,150, said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities Ltd. A sharp correction wave is possible if the index trades below 16,950 and on further decline, it could slip till 16,800-16,700, he added.
Retail inflation persisting above the desired levels has been a major cause of concern for the Indian economy, said said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. "This, coupled with declining industrial production in August may not be taken well by the market because Indian economy is anticipated to sustain its resilience. In this backdrop, the impending US inflation figures, which are forecasted to remain high, may cause volatility in the global market," he added.
The overall market breadth stood negative as 1,303 shares advanced while 2,128 declined on BSE. The market capitalization (m-cap) of BSE-listed companies fell to Rs 269.89 lakh crore.
11 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- settled in the red. Sub-indexes Nifty Financial Services, Nifty Bank and Nifty Consumer Durables underperformed the NSE platform by falling as much as 1.27 per cent, 1.26 per cent and 0.80 per cent, respectively. On the flipside, Nifty Pharma and Nifty Metal rose 0.22 per cent and 0.11 per cent, each, today.
Mid- and small-cap shares finished on a lower note as Nifty Midcap 100 fell 0.69 per cent and small-cap shed 0.50 per cent.
On the stock-specific front, Wipro was the top Nifty loser as the stock cracked 6.95 per cent to close at Rs 379.60. Adani Ports, SBI, SBI Life and ICICI Bank were also among the gainers. In contrast, HCL Technologies, Sun Pharma, Coal India, Dr Reddy's and Tata Motors were among the top gainers.
Sensex slips 391 points or 0.68 per cent to close at 57,235, Nifty moves 109 points or 0.64 per cent lower to settle at 17,014
The Indian rupee traded an extremely narrow range for the second day ahead of US consumer inflation data to gauge the next leg of direction, said NS Ramaswamy, Head of Commodities, Ventura Securities. The pair could trigger major gap-up or gap-down if there is a major change in US data, he added.
As inflation still remains a matter of uncertainty, it's advisable to invest in inflation-hedged assets like commodities and cyclical stocks of FMCG as they generally gives good returns when prices are higher, said Ravi Singh, Vice-President and Head of Research, Share India Securities.
Shares of Tanla Platforms gained 11 per cent today after board of the firm fixed the record date for the purpose of determining the entitlement and names of shareholders, who will be eligible to participate in the proposed buyback. On September 8, 2022, the board of the firm approved buyback of shares at a price of Rs 1,200. Tanla Platforms stock gained 11.17 per cent to Rs 871.17 against the previous close of Rs 784.10 on BSE. (Read more)
In the midst of volatility in stock markets globally, domestic stocks have relatively outperformed peers by a good margin in the last one year. (Read more)
Life Insurance Corporation of India or LIC is the largest institutional investor in the Indian stock market with stakes in many listed entities. But the insurance behemoth is a shareholder not only in the listed entities but also owns a sizeable stake in the platforms – stock exchanges, to be precise – on which the companies are listed. (Read more)
Sensex tanks 460 points or 0.80 per cent to trade at 57,166, Nifty moves 130 points or 0.76 per cent lower to trade at 16,994; Wipro, Adani Ports, SBI, L&T, ICICI Bank among top drags
PB Fintech, the operator of Policybazaar, will complete its first year of listing on bourses next month. After a robust debut on the stock exchanges during the third quarter of FY22, shares of the company have tanked over 60 per cent to Rs 455 in the morning trade on October 13, 2022 against the listing price of Rs 1,150. (Read more)
Talk about good timing. At a time when more than 70 companies are in the pipeline to enter the stock markets through initial public offerings (IPOs), capital markets regulator Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has announced key measures to encourage more IPOs. (Read more)
Shares of Jaiprakash (JP) Associates fell more than 4 per cent in Thursday's intraday deals as the company didn't disclose any further details about its move to divest cement business. The stock cracked 4.14 per cent to trade at Rs 11.35 during in morning deals today. It declined as much as 5.24 per cent to hit a day's low of Rs 11.22 on BSE. (Read more)
Seasoned investor Mukul Mahavir Agrawal stayed put on Indian Metals & Ferro Alloys in the September quarter, latest shareholding pattern suggests. Agrawal held 7,78,900 shares or 1.44 per cent stake in this company as of September 30, the same as June quarter. This is even as the scrip has fallen 51.44 per cent from its 52-week high of Rs 514.
On Thursday, the scrip was trading 0.48 per cent lower at Rs 249.55. At a market capitalisation of Rs 1,346.42 crore, Agrawal's holding in the company is worth Rs 19.40 crore, as per data publicly available with Trendlyne.
Shares of JP Associates cracked 4.14 per cent to trade at Rs 11.35 in late morning deals.
Sensex tanks 408 points or 0.71 per cent to trade at 57,218 in late morning deals, Nifty moves 120 points or 0.70 per cent lower to trade at 17,003; Wipro, Adani Ports, SBI Life, L&T, SBI among top drags