Indian equity markets chose to take a breather in today's trading session after strong gains over the last two days, that nearly erased all of last week's losses.
The S&P BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty 50, ended 8 and 5 points lower at 37,973 and 11,222 respectively.
Banks were the major laggards in today's trading session. The Nifty Bank fell 1.2% while the PSU Bank index ended 2.2% lower.
The other underperformers of the day included FMCG stocks, with the index ending 1.5% lower. The Nifty Realty fell 1.2% while the Nifty Pharma index fell 0.7%.
The outperformers of the day were metal stocks. The Nifty Metal index ended with gains of nearly 2%.
Broader markets too had a subdued session. The midcap index ended 0.1% lower while the smallcap index declined 0.3%
India Volatility Index ended 1% higher, near the mark of 20 at 19.77.
1,004 stocks on the National Stock Exchange ended with losses while 817 stocks posted gains.
The company has informed the exchanges that it has transferred 100% stake of its subsidiary company - KNR Walayar Tollways Pvt. Ltd. to Cube Highways.
The Enterprise Value for this transaction is Rs 511.78 crore, the company said in a notice to the exchanges.
The Enterprise Value for this transaction excludes claims receivable from the National Highways Authority of India and other governmental instrumentalities.
The company will receive a total payout of Rs 384.68 crore.
The share purchase agreement for this was executed on January 9, 2020.
Shares gained as much as 3% to Rs 257.95, before cooling off. The stock is up for the third straight day.
The government is planning to seek the cabinet's approval to sell 25% stake in Life Insurance Corporation of India, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg News.
The government is planning to amend the act of parliament under which LIC was set up to prepare for the sale, sources said.
The sale is likely to be done in tranches while the timing of the IPO will depend on market conditions.
A Finance Ministry spokesperson was not immediately available for a comment.
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The credit card issuer has entered into a strategic partnership with American Express, to offer a powerful mix of global benefits and exclusive privileges for Indian consumers.
SBI Card's premium products - SBI Card Elite and SBI Card Prime will be available on the global network of American Express, the company said in a statement.
"This alliance is another step in our efforts to bolster our premium portfolio, making our diverse portfolio of mass to premium more comprehensive and robust," MD & CEO of SBI Card was quoted as saying.
Shares gained as much as 1.1% to Rs 851.2, post the announcement. The stock is up for the second straight day.
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The company's Board of Directors have approved setting up a clinker unit in Raipur, having a capacity of up to 12,000 tonnes per day (TPD).
The proposed capacity is likely to have an investment of approximately Rs 1,000 crore and is likely to be added by the quarter ending September 2022, the company said in a statement.
The capex will be funded through a mixture of internal accruals and debt.
The existing cement capacity of the company is at 40.4 million tonnes per annum. The utilisation rate for the company in 2019-20 stood at 64%.
Brokerage firm Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to overweight from equalweight this morning. However, the price target on the stock was cut to Rs 22,750 from the earlier Rs 23,450.
Shares are currently trading little changed at Rs 19,522, post the announcement.
The company has informed the exchanges that it will steward the digital transformation of Myanmar's state-owned lender Myanma Foreign Trade Bank (MFTB).
The company will power MFTB's digital transformation with Intellect Digital Core 19.2 - a fully integrated solution, the company said.
The solution, according to the company is past-compatible and future-proof, giving MFTB the ability to integrate with its existing system seamlessly and to respond to new market demands and scale progressively, the statement said.
"With the comprehensive IDC suite and 'core in 24/7 mode,' we are confident of powering measurable growth for MFTB," Rajesh Saxena, CEO of the Intellect Design's Global Consumer Banking business was quoted as saying.
Shares gained as much as 3.6% to Rs 213.1, post the announcement and are up for the third straight day.
The company's Board of Directors have passed an enabling resolution to reduce the promoter holding in the company to 75% from the earlier 79.45%.
The resolution was also passed to increase the company's public shareholding to at least 25%, subject to shareholder approval.
The Board of Directors also approved issuance of equity shares or other convertible securities for an amount aggregating up to Rs 117.1 crore.
A fund raising committee has also been constituted for the same.
Shares have gained as much as 11.7% to Rs 89.5 and are trading at the highest level in a month.
The company has informed the exchanges that it has received orders to export nearly 9,000 wheels for the trailer market in the European Union.
The order is worth 2.29 lakh Euros, the company said in an notice to the exchanges.
The order will be executed from the company's Chennai unit during the months of October and November.
Shares gained as much as 2.8% to Rs 445.2, post the announcement, up for the second straight day.
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The company has informed the exchanges that it has received an approval from the World Health Organisation - Geneva, for prequalification for Pyrimethamine API.
The said API is used as anti-malarial drugs, the company said in an exchange filing.
Shares gained as much as 5% to Rs 207.8 and are up for the third straight day.
The company at its AGM on Monday said that the capex for the year 2021 is pegged at Rs 8,000 crore, as diesel consumption is still below pre-Covid-19 levels.
It also said that the new Kochi gasoline unit will end shortage by next year. The company is also in talks with Bharat Oman Refinery for acquiring the remaining stake in the venture.
The chairman said that GRMs for the second quarter of FY21 are likely to be higher than that in the first quarter.
On the Numaligarh refinery, the company said that Oil India-Engineers India are interested in buying the same.
Shares gained as much as 2.3% to Rs 394 and are up for the second straight day.
Indian equity markets opened higher for the third straight day, extending the positive start made to the October F&O series.
The S&P BSE Sensex opened 0.5% higher at 38,176 while the NSE Nifty 50 index opened 0.54% higher at 11,288. Technical analysts have projected 11,300 to be a key resistance level for the Nifty.
The Sensex is up over 1,400 points, while the Nifty has gained over 400 points, courtesy gains made in the last two trading sessions.
All sectoral indices have opened with gains. The media index has opened 1% higher while Nifty Realty and Nifty Metal are up 0.8%. Indices like Nifty FMCG, Nifty I.T. and Nifty Pharma, along with the Nifty Bank are up 0.5% each.
Broader markets have opened with gains as well. The Midcap index has gained 0.7% while the Smallcap index is up 0.9% at the start of trade.
Source: ICICI Direct
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