Share Market updates: Sensex rises 935 pts, Nifty ends above 16,850; banks, IT top gainers

Good afternoon!

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended marginally higher after a choppy session on Friday, tracking mixed global trends amid uncertainties on the geopolitical front. 

Sensex closed at 55,550.30, higher by 85.91 points or 0.15 per cent. Nifty rose 35.55 points or 0.21 per cent to close at 16,630.45. What's next? Here's a look at the latest updates of the market today!

3:33 pm: Closing update

 Sensex ends 935 points higher at 56,486 and Nifty zooms 240 points to `16,871.

2:45 pm: Market update

Sensex rises 912 points to 56,463 and Nifty zooms 244 points to 16,874.

2:05 pm: Up to 18,700% return! Here's why big investors are keen on this sector

Investing is all about picking the right stock from the right sector and at the right time. Investors who picked quality stocks from the chemical space must be sitting on healthy gains at present. Data shows that at least 37 stocks in the sector have rallied more than 1,000 per cent in the past 10 years. READ MORE 

1:58 pm: Market breadth is positive with 1767 shares trading higher against 1,647 stocks falling into red.

1:45 pm: Top Sectoral gainers 

Banking and IT shares are the top sectoral gainers, with BSE bankex zooming 765 points and BSE IT index gaining 537 points in the afternoon session.

1:30 PM: No proposal to modify FDI ceiling to accommodate LIC IPO, says govt

The Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance, Bhagwat Karad, while responding to the Lok Sabha question on changes in Foreign direct investments (FDI) policy for Life Insurance Company (LIC) initial public offering (IPO), stated that no proposal to modify the existing foreign investment ceiling in domestic insurance companies is under consideration. READ MORE

1:03 PM: Sensex surges 580 points to 56,130 and Nifty gains 143 points to 16,773.

12:59 pm: Parth Nyati, Founder, Tradingo on Jubilant Foodworks stock crash

"Jubilant Foodworks shares tumbled sharply on the back of news that CEO Pratik Pota resigned. We are seeing the knee-jerk reaction and various downgrades on the stock price because the stock saw rerating in the last few years because of Mr. Potra who brought lots of changes in the business model. The stock went to 60PE from 40PE of its one year forward earnings. However, the stock has already corrected significantly from its 52-week high and the outlook of the company is still very strong.

IPL is going to start soon therefore we may see buying interest at lower levels. The market will watch for the new name of the CEO before any meaningful recovery. Technically, It is trading near the critical demand zone of 2500-2400 where we can expect some buying while if it slips below 2400 then 2100 will be the next important support level. On the upside, the 2900-3000 area will act as an immediate resistance zone at any pullback," Nyati added. READ MORE

12:49 pm: Market check

Sensex rises 563 points to 56,114 and Nifty zooms 127 points to 16,760. Market cap of BSE-listed firms rises to Rs 253.10 lakh crore on BSE.

12:20 PM: Tata Motors stock slips over 3%

Shares of Tata Motors fell over 3% today as China imposed strict measures to curb the rising cases of COVID-19 in Shanghai and Shenzen, country's two biggest cities. China is the second-largest market for Tata Motors' UK arm Jaguar Land Rover (JLR). Tata Motors stock touched an intraday low of Rs 404, down 3.38% against the previous close of  Rs 418.15 on BSE. READ MORE

11:50 am: Market check

Rising for the fifth straight session, the BSE benchmark Sensex jumped over 500 points to 56,058.59. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty also climbed over 100 points to 16,748.

In the 30-share Sensex pack, Infosys, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India were the major gainers.

11:00 am: ICICI Securities maintains Buy on Paytm

"We were estimating Paytm’s consumer base to grow by 10% in FY23E and monthly transacting users to increase at >25% run-rate. The company will have to increase its efforts to enhance engagement with the existing user base to offset the adverse impact of embargo on new users," it said.

"Now, expecting moderation in the onboarding of new users and the adverse impact on incremental payment revenue (as wallets are key monetisable payment instruments), we revise our target price to Rs 1,285 (earlier Rs 1,352). Also, it may defer Paytm Payments Bank’s plan to apply for conversion into a small finance bank (though eligible to apply from May 22)," ICICI Securities added.

Read: Paytm shares hit record low, down over 65% from all-time high

10:40 am: Ruchi Soya shares on a roll

Shares of Ruchi Soya touched an upper circuit of Rs 964.4, rising 20% against the previous close of Rs 803.70 on BSE

The stock zoomed 20% in early trade today after the board of edible oil major approved the red-herring prospectus (RHP) for its follow-on public offer (FPO) of around Rs 4,300 crore. The FPO will be launched in the capital market on March 24. 

Shares opened with a gain of 6.76% at Rs 858 against the previous close of Rs 803.70 on BSE and touched an upper circuit of Rs 964.4, rising 20% against the previous close of Rs 803.70 on BSE. 

Read: Ruchi Soya stock hits upper circuit of 20%, here's why

10:00 am: HDFC Bank stock rises nearly 3% as RBI lifts curbs on digital business

Shares of HDFC Bank rose nearly 3 per cent after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lifted restrictions on its business-generating activities planned under the bank's Digital 2.0 program.

The stock touched an intraday high of Rs 1,433.75, rising 2.63 per cent against the previous close of Rs 1,397 on BSE. It has gained 7 per cent in five sessions.

The shares opened 1 per cent higher at Rs 1,411 on BSE.

Read: HDFC Bank stock rises nearly 3% as RBI lifts curbs on digital business

9:30 am: Paytm shares hit all-time low, down over 65% from all-time high

Shares of fintech major Paytm plunged over 13 per cent to hit an all-time low of Rs 672.10 after the RBI asked Paytm Payments Bank to stop opening new accounts amid "material supervisory concerns" observed in the bank.

Currently, the stock is trading 65 per cent lower from its all-time high of Rs 1,961.05. It opened 12 per cent lower at Rs 684 against the previous close of Rs 774.80 on the BSE.  The market cap of the company slipped below Rs 45,000 crore on the BSE.

9:16 am: Market opening

Equity benchmark Sensex opened 92 points higher at 55,642.96 and Nifty opened flat at 16,633.70. However, Sensex jumped over 200 points after minutes of opening.

HDFC Bank was the top gainer on Sensex, advancing over 2 per cent.

Infosys, Asian Paints, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and SBI were among the top gainers.

Dr Reddy and HUL were the top losers.

9:00 am: Pre-market comment by Mohit Nigam, Head - PMS, Hem Securities

Benchmark indices are expected to open on a slightly negative note as suggested by early trends on SGX nifty. The markets showed a directional bias for the fourth consecutive day on Friday as it closed with meager gains. 

Investor sentiments were boosted on the back of BJP’s win in UP which is considered a gateway to Lok sabha elections. As, the new week starts investor sentiments will again shift towards the ongoing tussle between Ukraine and Russia. Investors will also be eyeing the rising crude oil prices and their impact on domestic prices and the economy as a whole. It will be interesting to watch when the government will hike the domestic fuel prices. 

On the Technical front, the key resistance level for Nifty50 is 16,700 followed by 16,800 and on the downside 16,500 and 16,350 will act as strong support. The key resistance level for bank nifty is 34,900 followed by 35,200 and on the downside 34,100 and 33,700 will act as strong support.

8:45 am: FII and DII action

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 2,263.90 crore on March 11, and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,686.85 crore, as per provisional data available on NSE.

8:40 am: Global updates

World shares slid on Friday, pressured by uncertainty about the conflict in Ukraine and expectations the Federal Reserve will hike US interest rates next week. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 fell, weighed down by tech and growth stocks. Oil prices settled up for the day but down for the week in volatile trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 229.88 points, or 0.69 percent, to 32,944.19, the S&P 500 lost 55.21 points, or 1.30 percent, to 4,204.31 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 286.15 points, or 2.18 percent, to 12,843.81.

Asian shares advanced and oil slipped on Monday on hopes for progress in the Russia-Ukraine peace talks even as fighting raged on, while bond markets braced for rate rises in the US and UK this week.

Japan's Nikkei rose 1.1 percent, while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan inched up 0.1 percent after sliding almost 4 percent last week.

8:30 am: SGX Nifty

The Indian equity market is likely to open lower today as SGX Nifty was trading lower at 16,555.

The Singapore Stock Exchange is considered to be the first indication of the opening of the Indian market.

8:15 am: Market on Friday

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended marginally higher after a choppy session on Friday, tracking mixed global trends amid uncertainties on the geopolitical front. 

This is the fourth straight session the market has ended higher amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Sensex opened weak and fell 414.44 points to 55,049.95 in opening deals.

But within minutes, it cut all its losses and jumped 369.56 points to 55,833.95. The index finally closed at 55,550.30, higher by 85.91 points or 0.15 per cent. Nifty rose 35.55 points or 0.21 per cent to close at 16,630.45. 

Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy's, PowerGrid, ITC and Titan were among the top Sensex gainers, rising up to 3.82%.