Nifty ends above 8200, Sensex gains 259 points; banks, auto zoom

3:30 pm Market close: Sparked off by late buying, the market has ended on a firm note. The Nifty closed above 8200, up 82.35 points or 1 percent at 8224.50 and the Sensex was up 258.80 points or 0.9 percent at 26652.81.

ICICI Bank, Maruti, L&T, SBI and HDFC Bank were top gainers while Lupin, GAIL, Cipla, Reliance and Tata Motors are losers in the Sensex.

3:10 pm Outlook on crude: Crude prices will continue to remain as low as USD 45 per barrel if the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) disagrees to cut production when it meets today, says Mriganka Jaipuriyar, Associate Editorial Director of Platts.

Many important decisions have to be made at the OPEC meet, like the amount of production cuts to be made and the countries which will be exempt from cuts, says Jaipuriyar. 

US crude production has bottomed out. But there is a high probability that it may rise very soon, she says.

2:59 pm Market Update: Equity benchmarks rallied further on positive European cues ahead of OPEC meeting later today.

The Sensex was up 266.59 points or 1.01 percent at 26660.60 and the Nifty gained 86.30 points or 1.06 percent at 8228.45.

About 1729 shares advanced against 796 declining shares on the BSE.

2:44 pm Buzzing: Amtek Auto shares jumped nearly 10 percent intraday after the board of directors approved the proposal of fresh capital infusion and restructuring of debt.

"In a joint board meeting of Amtek Auto, Metalyst Forgings, ARGL and Castex Technologies, members approved the proposal relating to infusion of fresh capital by new investor(s) and restructuring & reduction of debt subject to the approval of lenders," the company said in its filing.

The proposal for the process of monetisation to support the restructuring and debt reduction of the company also approved, it said.

2:34 pm Oil jumps further: Oil markets edged up ahead of an OPEC meeting later in the day, with members of the producer cartel trying to thrash out an output cut to curb oversupply that has seen prices more than halve since 2014.

International Brent crude was trading at USD 48.27 per barrel, up 4..08 percent, from its last close.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 3.74 percent, at USD 46.92 a barrel.

2:27 pm Europe Update: European markets were marginally higher on with investors closely following political developments in Italy and a potential OPEC deal. France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were trading 0.4-0.6 percent.

2:15 pm Nifty hits 8200: Equity benchmarks extended rally with the Sensex rising 167.66 points to 26561.67 and the Nifty climbing 55.35 points to 8197.50.

About two shares advanced for every share falling on the BSE.

2:07 pm OPEC debate: OPEC began debating a deal to curtail oil production and prop up the price of crude, with Iran and Iraq resisting pressure from Saudi Arabia to participate fully in any action.

Ministers from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries started an informal meeting at 0700 GMT at the Vienna Park Hyatt hotel and were due to begin a formal gathering at OPEC headquarters at 0900 GMT.

"There will be an agreement today," an Iraqi delegate said as he entered the hotel.

"I'm optimistic," said Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh, adding there had been no request for Iran to cut output.

On Tuesday, Iran wrote to OPEC saying it wanted Saudi Arabia to cut production by as much as 1 million barrels per day (bpd), much more than Riyadh is willing to offer, OPEC sources who saw the letter told Reuters.

2:00 pm Market Check: Equity benchmarks as well as broader markets continued to gain amid consolidation in afternoon trade. Banks were the leading gainers while auto stocks also remained higher ahead of November sales data.

The 30-Sensex BSE Sensex was up 137.97 points at 26531.98 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 47.75 points to 8189.90. The BSE Midcap index climbed 0.6 percent and Smallcap jumped 1 percent.

The market breadth was also positive as about 1640 shares advanced against 797 declining shares on the BSE.

Maruti Suzuki added nearly 3 percent after rising 4 percent previous session, especially ahead of November sales data. Nomura expects flat sales growth at 1.21 lakh units on yearly basis while Motilal Oswal sees 5 percent decline in sales.

ICICI Bank was the leading contributor to Sensex gains, up 2.6 percent followed by HDFC Bank, L&T, SBI, Sun Pharma and HUL with over a percent rise whereas Reliance Industries, HDFC and Infosys capped upside.

1:45 pm Moody's on Tatas: Moody's Investors Service today said it will be business as usual for listed Tata companies despite the boardroom brawl but cautioned that any change in the group's strategy and Tata Sons' support policy for operating companies could exert pressure on their ratings.

The ratings of four Tata Group operating companies continue to benefit from an uplift from the group's main holding company, Tata Sons, despite the group's ongoing board reshuffle, it said.

"We expect that Tata Sons can continue to extend support to its key operating companies, should the need arise, owing to its substantial cash holdings and the significant value of its listed equity investments, and despite an ongoing boardroom reshuffle," says Kaustubh Chaubal, Moody's Vice President and Senior Analyst.

1:30 pm Europe: European markets started trading mixed with investors closely following political developments in Italy and a potential OPEC deal.

Oil markets were jittery on Wednesday as OPEC members gathered in Vienna trying to reach an agreement on a production cut. However, investors are concerned that a deal may not be reached between the group and oil prices could subsequently sink due to oversupply in the market.

Meanwhile, The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) announced a revised capital plan on Wednesday after failing a stress test from the Bank of England.

The market is still holding gains as the Sensex is up 108.00 points or 0.4 percent at 26502.01. The Nifty is up 39.30 points or 0.5 percent at 8181.45. About 1599 shares have advanced, 811 shares declined, and 182 shares are unchanged.

Maruti Suzuki, ICICI Bank, HUL, Sun Pharma and L&T are top gainers while Coal India, GAIL, NTPC, HDFC and Reliance are major losers in the Sensex.

Hugh Young, Managing Director at Aberdeen Asset Management Asia says although the surprise demonetisation move did lead to a lot of confusion, it shows a strong commitment to reforms. It is definitely an important signal and overseas investors have read it positively. However, one is keen to see more such reforms. Goods and Services Tax (GST) would be a long-term positive if implemented properly, says Young in an interview to CNBC-TV18.

12:59 pm Market update: The Sensex was up 60.25 points at 26454.26 and the Nifty gained 24.30 points at 8166.45 amid consolidation.

About 1562 shares advanced against 780 declining shares on the BSE.

12:38 pm Buzzing: Idea Cellular shares fell more than 2 percent after a media report indicated that Axiata, the major public shareholder other than promoter and promoter group, is likely to sell its entire stake.

"Axiata is looking to sell its 20 percent stake in Idea Cellular as the Malaysian company believes the Indian telecom provider's valuation will remain subdued for at least the next three years given the likelihood of a pricing onslaught stemming from the entry of Reliance Jio Infocomm," a media report said quoting three people familiar with the plan.

Disclosure: Reliance Jio is the subsidiary of Reliance Industries that owns Network 18 (which publishes Moneycontrol.com).

12:28 pm Solar tariff: Solar tariff has fallen to an all-time low of Rs 3 per unit, which was quoted by Amplus Energy Solutions in an auction for rooftop solar power conducted by Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).

"In a move that will offer cheapest power from solar rooftop plants, Amplus Energy Solutions has won a bid to install 14.5 MW of solar rooftop plants across 10 states. The tariffs offered are at a record low of Rs 3/unit in three states and Rs 5.3-6.2/unit in other states in India. Tariffs are fixed for 25 years," Amplus Energy Solutions said in a statement.

According to statement Amplus won the bid under the 500 MW rooftop grid connected scheme in different states floated by SECI.

The Rs 3 per unit or USD 4 cents tariff is unprecedented in Indian rooftop solar sector that has drastically reduced pricing dynamics, it said.

12:13 pm FII View: Demonetisation is a big reform in a country like India where things usually move slowly believes Hugh Young, Managing Director at Aberdeen Asset Management Asia

Although the surprise move did lead to a lot of confusion, it shows a strong commitment to reforms. It is definitely an important signal and overseas investors have read it positively. However, one is keen to see more such reforms. Goods and Services Tax (GST) would be a long-term positive if implemented properly, says Young in an interview to CNBC-TV18.

He is not too worried about the price corrections seen in emerging markets, in fact sees them as an opportunity to buy and not a threat. However, he would keenly watch Donald Trump's policies to assess the impact on investments in the emerging markets.

While fundamentals of most EMs are strong as of now, global economy still remains weak.

12:00 pm Market Check
Equity benchmarks continued to hold morning gains while the broader markets outperformed for the third consecutive session. The rupee appreciated by 15 paise to trade at 68.50 against the US dollar from last close.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 99.91 points at 26493.92 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 36.35 points to 8178.50 while the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices gained 0.6-1 percent on positive breadth.

More than two shares advanced for every share falling on the exchange.

Asia markets were mixed, with energy stocks under pressure following overnight declines in oil prices and as traders waited to see if the world's top oil producers would reach an agreement to cut production levels. Japan's Nikkei 225 closed flat at 18,308.48, while in South Korea, the Kospi gained 0.36 percent.

11:45 am Buzzing: Lupin shares climbed nearly 2 percent intraday after receiving approval from the US health regulator for Nuvigil tablets that improves wakefulness. "US subsidiary Lupin Pharmaceuticals Inc has received approval for its Armodafinil tablets 50 mg, 150 mg, 200 mg and 250 mg from the United States Food & Drug Administration," the pharma major said, adding it will commence promoting the product in US shortly. Armodafinil is the AB rated generic equivalents of Cephalon Inc's Nuvigil tablets. The drug is indicated to improve wakefulness in adult patients with excessive sleepiness associated with obstructive sleep apnea, narcolepsy or shift work disorder.

11:30 am Macro economy outlook: A major challenge with demonetisation is the absence of a comparable template from another country where such a radical reform was passed, says Jahangir Aziz, Asia Economic Research at JP Morgan. In an interview with CNBC-TV18 he said everyone is waiting for uncertainties to clear with respect to the impact that demonetisation will have on the economy in the short and medium term. On the second quarter gross domestic products (GDP) growth number, due to be released later today, Aziz said that his estimate in slightly below the market consensus at 7.3 percent.

The market is gaining strength lead by banks, capital goods and pharma stocks. The Sensex is up 106.95 points or 0.4 percent at 26500.96 and the Nifty is up 40.70 points or 0.5 percent at 8182.85. About 1523 shares have advanced, 628 shares declined, and 140 shares are unchanged.

L&T, ICICI Bank, Adani Ports, Maruti and SBI are top gainers while GAIL, Relaince, Tata Steel, Coal India and NTPC are losers in the Sensex.

Gold rose as 'risk on' sentiment took a backseat, with investors booking profits in the dollar and bracing for the outcome of an OPEC meeting later in the day aimed at curbing crude output.

Oil markets were jittery ahead of an OPEC meeting later in the day, with members of the producer cartel trying to thrash out an output cut to curb oversupply that has seen prices more than halve since 2014.

10:59 am Market holds gains: The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 113.81 points at 26507.82 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 40.70 points at 8182.85.

About 1496 shares advanced against 582 declining shares on the BSE.

10:58 am Oil update: Oil markets edged up in nervous trading ahead of an OPEC meeting later in the day, with members of the producer cartel trying to thrash out an output cut to curb oversupply that has seen prices more than halve since 2014.

International Brent crude was trading at USD 46.85 per barrel, up 1.01 percent, from its last close.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 0.55 percent, at USD 45.47 a barrel.

10:42 am Demonetisation effect: Collections in the North for Satin Creditcare have started picking up but disbursements may gain traction once currency supply increases, says Founder and MD HP Singh.

In an interview to CNBC-TV18 Singh notes it will take some time before collections reach the 98 percent levels, which according to analysts is a critical level for micro-finance companies to function smoothly. So far collections have only managed to touch about 60-70 percent levels from lows of 30-40 percent seen immediately the post demonetisation announcement, he adds.

Around 60-65 percent of the company's clients have bank accounts but most are likely to be dormant, he says. The challenge will not only be to get these accounts activated and also bring on board the balance 30-40 percent, so that transactions can go cashless, he adds.

10:31 am Buzzing: Lupin shares climbed nearly 2 percent intraday after receiving approval from the US health regulator for Nuvigil tablets that improves wakefulness.

"US subsidiary Lupin Pharmaceuticals Inc has received approval for its Armodafinil tablets 50 mg, 150 mg, 200 mg and 250 mg from the United States Food & Drug Administration," the pharma major said, adding it will commence promoting the product in US shortly.

Armodafinil is the AB rated generic equivalents of Cephalon Inc's Nuvigil tablets. The drug is indicated to improve wakefulness in adult patients with excessive sleepiness associated with obstructive sleep apnea, narcolepsy or shift work disorder.

Nuvigil tablets had US sales of USD 515.6 million, according to IMS MAT report of September 2016.

10:18 am FII View: Sakthi Siva of Credit Suisse says since December 31, 2014, 2016 consensus EPS revisions for India have been cut by 27 percent, Indonesia by 25 percent, the region by 20 percent, Korea by 10 percent and Taiwan by 15 percent.

With India, Indonesia and the Philippines associated with the biggest downgrades to 2016 consensus EPS in November, this could potentially be a catalyst for further underperformance, according to her.

10:00 am Market Check
Equity benchmarks extended gains in morning with the Nifty holding 8150 level, supported by banks and healthcare stocks. The broader markets continued to outperform benchmarks from the beginning of the week.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 96.89 points at 26490.90 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 30.80 points to 8172.95 while the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices gained 0.75 percent and 1 percent, respectively.

About three shares advanced for every share falling on the exchange.

Cement stocks gained strength today. Grasim, Ambuja Cements and ACC climbed over 2 percent.

ICICI Bank, TCS, Adani Ports, Maruti Suzuki, SBI, Sun Pharma and Lupin rose 1-2 percent while ITC, Reliance Industries, NTPC and Tata Steel were under pressure.

9:45 am Result: Tata Power reported weak Q2FY17 earnings with income falling 6 percent to Rs 7,208.9 crore against Rs 7,666.3 crore in the year-ago period. EBITDA fell 27.2 percent to Rs 1,461.6 crore against Rs 2,008 crore reported during Q2FY16. Meanwhile, EBITDA margin for the quarter stood at 20.3 percent. Meanwhile, net profit surged to Rs 336.2 crore during the quarter ended September 2016.

 In the light of boardroom battle, investors may not like earnings Tata Power reported. Even though there is no immediate overhang from Tata Sons EGM, market expert Prakash Diwan said he expects dark days for Tata Power going ahead. The stock could be under pressure when the bourses on Wednesday and for long-term investors there are far better stocks available than Tata Power, he said.

9:30 am FII view: Speaking to CNBC-TV18 Rajat Rajgarhia, MD, Institutional Equities at Motilal Oswal Securities, said markets have shown a resilience. Near-term impact has been severe on corporates, he said, adding that he will be surprised if markets break the recent low made last week. He is constructive on M&M and Maruti Suzuki . NBFCs' growth rate may have come down from a high of 40 percent to about 20-25 percent. Organised financing business get stronger. He mentioned the likes of Bharat Financial and LIC will attract their target audience. ''You need to be more selective now.'' In the consumer space, he said high-ticket items will see a postponement as people will delay such purchases in the light of demonetisation.

The market has opened flat on Wednesday. The Sensex is up 75.90 points or 0.3 percent at 26469.91 and the Nifty is up 27.70 points or 0.3 percent at 8169.85. About 273 shares have advanced, 64 shares declined, and 22 shares are unchanged.

Bajaj Auto, Adani Ports, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank and GAIL are top gainers while ONGC, Bharti Airtel and Cipla are losers in the Sensex.

The Indian rupee opened marginally lower at 68.67 per dollar versus 68.65 Tuesday.

The dollar fell as the greenback consolidated its position against most major currencies following a roller-coaster 24 hours which traders say may just be a precursor to three weeks of risk-packed events including the Federal Reserve's December policy meeting.

Asia markets were mixed in morning trade, with energy stocks under pressure following overnight declines in oil prices and as traders eyed a meeting between the world's top oil producers in Vienna.

Japan's Nikkei 225 was up 0.19 percent, while in South Korea, the Kospi gained 0.37 percent. Australia's ASX 200 fell 0.23 percent, with miners leading losses on the index as the materials sector fell 2.34 percent, while the energy sector was down 1.45 percent.

US equities closed higher on Tuesday, led by health care and real estate, as investors digested falling oil prices ahead of a key OPEC meeting, as well as economic data.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed about 25 points higher. The S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent, with health care and real estate rising about 0.7 percent. The Nasdaq composite outperformed, closing 0.2 percent higher and hitting a new intraday high of 5,403.86. The three major indexes traded lower earlier in the session.