Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Thursday, led by ICICI Bank's biggest intraday advance since September 2013.
#BQMarketsNow | Nifty opens above 9,350. Banking and steel stocks rise.https://t.co/6KjG5LdgXz pic.twitter.com/usDLX1JS9e
Here are the stock moving the markets this morning:
Nifty Bank Jumps To Record High
Bank stocks climbed after the Union Cabinet approved amending the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 to deal with the bad loans problem.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will get more power to take action against defaulting companies through this amendment, according to an official in the finance ministry. The details of the plan will be made public after the president gives his assent.
The Nifty Bank gained 1.4 percent to 22,624, compared to a 0.6 percent rise in the benchmark Sensex in early trade.
Also Read: RBI May Be Given More Powers Under New Bad Loan Resolution Plan
- SBI (+1.5 percent to Rs 294)
- Federal Bank (1.5 percent to Rs 113)
- Canara Bank (+1.9 percent to Rs 374)
- PNB (+2.2 percent to Rs 179)
- Bank of Baroda (+2.5 percent to Rs 194)
- Axis Bank (+1 percent to Rs 505)
- IDFC Bank (+1 percent to Rs 65)
Steel Companies: Cabinet To Give Preference To Domestic Players
Steel companies gained after the government decided to give preference to domestically manufactured iron and steel products in government-sponsored projects. The government also approved a new steel policy that targets increasing production capacity more than thrice in the next 13 years.
“The objective is to make ours a globally competitive steel industry,” Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in a media conference, adding that the policy aims to achieve a per capita steel consumption of 160 kilograms by 2030.
The Nifty Metal Index fluctuated between gains and losses on Thursday morning.
- Jindal Steel & Power (+0.9 percent to Rs 113)
- Steel Authority of India (+0.7 percent to Rs 61)
- JSW Steel (+0.7 percent to Rs 194)
- Tata Steel (+0.2 percent to Rs 441)
Also Read: Preference To Domestic Steel In Government Projects
Deccan Cements: To Consider Division Of Shares
The cement company rose 2.5 percent to Rs 1,253 after announced a board meeting on May 19, 2017 to consider a sub-division of equity shares of Rs 10 face value.
The stock rose 9.3 percent in April compared to an average of 1.5 percent gain in its peers.
SH Kelkar: Bulk Deal
Shares of the company rose 1.1 percent to Rs 315 after six companies including Morgan Stanley and Blackstone Singapore bought its shares for Rs 306 per share in separate bulk deals.
- Morgan Stanley France Sa bought 0.67 percent of its shares.
- Tarish Investment and Trading Company bought 0.77 percent shares.
- Hober Mallow Trust bought 0.83 percent shares.
- Kotak Funds Indian Midcap Fund purchased 0.83 percent shares.
- Prazim Trading And Investment Company bought 1.42 percent shares.
- Wells Fargo Lux Worldwide Fund Emerging Markets Equity Fund bought 1.61 percent.
- Blackstone Capital Partners Singapore Vi Fdi Two bought 7.5 percent.
Time Technoplast: Drops After 4% Gain
Shares of the company rose as much as 4.1 percent to Rs 140 before falling as low as 7.7 percent to Rs 124 on Thursday morning. This came after Ashish Kacholia bought a 1.1 percent stake in the company for Rs 115 per share.
Earnings Reaction: ICICI Bank, L&T Tech, IG Petrochemicals
ICICI Bank rose as much as 8.7 percent to Rs 296 after its net profit jumped nearly three-fold to Rs 2,024.6 crore in the January to March quarter of financial year 2016-17. The stock rose to its highest point since September 2013.
The bank had reported a lower profit in the comparable quarter last year due to a contingency reserve of Rs 3,600 crore it created for making provisions against bad loans.
The lender's asset quality continued to deteriorate with the gross non-performing asset ratio rising to 7.89 percent from 7.2 percent.
L&T Technology Services fell 1.8 percent to Rs 770 after its profit fell 11 percent for the fourth quarter.
Net profit stood at Rs 96.5 crore while EBITDA fell 8 percent to Rs 133.8 crore. EBITDA margins also contracted by 150 basis points.
IG Petrochemicals jumped 8.8 percent to Rs 441 after it saw encouraging fourth quarter results as its net profit rose 1.3 times. Revenue also rose 35 percent to Rs 289.3 crore while EBITDA margins expanded by 500 basis points. This was the stock's highest point since October 2016 when it rose as much as 11.7 percent.
Also Read: Earnings Today: HDFC's January-March Profit May Take A Hit Due To Base Effect
Sensex, Nifty: Movers & Shakers
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