Nifty ends above 8600, falls 2.5% for week; Mid, Smallcap up 2%

It was a quiet start to the October series as short covering helped benchmark indices close marginally higher amid consolidation Friday but the broader markets showed spectacular performance despite correction in global peers. In previous session, equity benchmarks and broader markets had fallen 1.6-4 percent on profit booking due to elevated geopolitical tensions at India-Pakistan border.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 38.43 points at 27865.96 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 19.90 points to 8611.15 while the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices surged 2 percent each on strong market breadth. About 2060 shares advanced against 637 declining shares on the exchange.

For the week, the Sensex shed 2.8 percent and the Nifty lost 2.5 percent.

3:30 pm Market closing: The Nifty saw biggest fall in four weeks. The 50-share index was up 19.90 points or 0.2 percent at 8611.15. The Sensex was up 38.43 points or 0.1 percent at 27865.96. GAIL, ONGC, M&M, Tata Steel and SBI were top gainers while Cipla, ITC, HUL, Coal India, Dr Reddy's and HUL were losers in the Sensex.

3:20 pm Fund raising: Indian companies have raised Rs 23,735 crore through retail issuance of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) in the first half of the current financial year, to meet their business needs.

This is on top of the Rs 33,812 crore mobilised in the entire preceding fiscal.

The funds have been mobilised for business expansion, support working capital requirements and general corporate purposes.

According to the latest data with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), companies have raised funds totalling Rs 23,735 crore through retail issuance of NCDs during April-September period of 2016-17.

3:00 pm Market Update: Benchmark indices remained volatile as the Sensex was up 10.68 points at 27838.21 and the Nifty up 12.15 points at 8603.40. About 1962 shares advanced against 658 declining shares on the BSE.

2:50 pm MPC meet: The newly constituted six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) headed by RBI Governor Urjit Patel will hold its first meeting on October 3 and 4 to decided on key interest rate.

"The MPC will meet on October 3 and 4, 2016 for the fourth bi-monthly monetary policy review for 2016-17. The resolution of the MPC will be placed on the website at 2.30 pm on October 4, 2016," the Reserve Bank said in a statement.

Till now, the RBI Governor used to decide on key policy rates, including the repo rate or short-term lending rate.

However, this time the all-powerful interest-rate setting panel, whose constitution was notified by the government yesterday, will take call on interest rate.

The MPC, in which three members are from the RBI and three others nominated by the government, will target to keep inflation at 4 percent with an upper and lower tolerance level of 2 percent.

2:40 pm Outlook: Basic fundamentals are not determining valuations anymore, says Ashok Wadhwa, Group Chief Executive Officer, Ambit Holdings. If valuations were based on fundamentals and earnings, then the market is already very expensive.

But India is the most attractive destination of the emerging markets. So all the the large amount of liquidity in the world has flown into India, says Wadhwa.

"As long as excess liquidity prevails and India remains attractive, we will continue to see capital," he says.

2:20 pm Oil Update: Oil prices dropped as investors took profits following a 7-percent rise in the last two sessions, amid doubts that OPEC's first planned output cut in eight years would make a substantial dent in the global crude glut.

Brent crude futures were down 1.3 percent at USD 48.59 a barrel, after settling the previous session up 55 cents, or 1.1 percent.

US crude was down 1.23 percent at USD 47.24 a barrel, after closing up 78 cents and having touched a one-month high of USD 48.32 that session.

2:00 pm Market Check
The market continued to consolidate in afternoon trade despite correction in global peers while the broader markets extended rally with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices rising 1.5 percent each.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 2.44 points at 27829.97 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 10.65 points at 8601.90. The market breadth remained strong as about 1791 shares advanced against 734 declining shares on the BSE.

Cipla is one of the five most active shares on exchanges, down 3 percent after the company said the US health regulator issued four observations across three facilities in Goa.

Shares of liquor makers United Spirits, United Breweries, Pincon Spirit, Globus Spirits, Radico Khaitan and Tilaknagar Industries shares rallied 4-12 percent intraday after Patna High Court imposed a stay on Bihar's anti-liquor law.

European stocks were sharply lower as concerns over the systemic risk posed by German banks weighed on investor sentiment. Britain's FTSE, Germany's DAX and France's CAC were down 1-2 percent.

Europe followed the trend set by Asia, where markets were lower across the board on the final trading day of the quarter, after concerns over Deutsche Bank's stability drove down sentiment in US markets Thursday.

1:45 pm RBI poll: Inflation is likely to remain below the Reserve Bank's early 2017 target of 5 per cent for the next 12 months, opening up space for monetary easing, says an HSBC report.

According to the global financial services major, the declining trend in inflation is expected to continue as new crop streams into the market and CPI inflation could fall to under 4.5 per cent in January-March 2017.

Moreover, vegetable prices are expected to completely reverse their summer ascent and higher pulse production may reduce inflation by another 40 bps.

"RBI has two objectives, to reach its 5 per cent inflation target in early 2017 and keep real rates at the 1.5-2 per cent range. Marrying the two would open up space for easing by 50 bps," HSBC said.

1:30 pm Market outlook: In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Anish Damania, CEO and Head - Institutional Equities, IDFC Securities, said the broking firm is sticking to its Nifty target of 8,900 and said that it does not expect a major correction in stocks arising out of yesterday's border skirmish between India and Pakistan. "Midcaps, however, could see further correction," he said. IDFC recently did a roadshow in Australia, from where India gets about USD 6-7 billion of inflows. Damania said investor interest from the country remains strong.

The market is still under pressure as the Sensex is down 58.13 points or 0.2 percent at 27769.40. The Nifty is down 11.80 points or 0.1 percent at 8579.45. About 1673 shares have advanced, 762 shares declined, and 180 shares are unchanged.

GAIL, ONGC, M&M, Wipro and Infosys are top gainers while Cipla, Coal India, Bharti Airtel, ITC and Adani Ports are losers in the Sensex.

European stocks opened sharply lower as concerns over the systemic risk posed by German banks weighed on investor sentiment.

Concerns over Deutsche Bank sent its US-listed shares to an all-time low and weighed on the broader financial sector. Shares of the German lender tanked over 7 percent on Friday. European investors will also be keeping an eye on Commerzbank on Friday after the German lender said that it was cutting thousands of jobs.

12:54 pm Market update: Benchmark indices were near day's low. The Sensex was down 77.11 points at 27750.42 and the Nifty down 21.05 points at 8570.20.

About 1665 shares advanced against 755 declining shares on the BSE.

12:37 pm Europe opens: European stocks opened sharply lower as concerns over the systemic risk posed by German banks weighed on investor sentiment.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 1.3 percent.

European stocks follwed the trend in Asia's trading session where markets were lower across the board on the final trading day of the quarter, after concerns over Deutsche Bank's stability drove down sentiment in US markets Thursday.

12:17 pm Outlook: Anish Damania, CEO and Head - Institutional Equities, IDFC Securities, said the broking firm is sticking to its Nifty target of 8,900 and said that it does not expect a major correction in stocks arising out of yesterday's border skirmish between India and Pakistan.

"Midcaps, however, could see further correction," he said.

IDFC recently did a roadshow in Australia, from where India gets about USD 6-7 billion of inflows. Damania said investor interest from the country remains strong.

12:00 pm Market Check
Benchmark indices remained rangebound in noon trade while the broader markets continued to outperform with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices rising 1 percent each.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 49.52 points at 27778.01 and the 50-share NSE Nifty fell 8.15 points to 8583.10. The market breadth remained positive as about 1659 shares advanced against 678 declining shares on the BSE.

The volatility witnessed in the market yesterday, after geopolitical concerns and worries of rising macro-economic instability, led to some "cleansing" in market sentiment and will help it start afresh in October, says Tushar Mahajan, Head of Listed Futures & Options - India, Nomura.

Cipla was the biggest loser, falling 6 percent followed by Coal India, Bharti Airtel, Bharti Infratel, L&T, Adani Ports and HDFC with 1-2 percent loss. However, Reliance Industries, Infosys, SBI, M&M, ONGC, GAIL and Wipro gained 1-3 percent.

11:40 am Concurrent gainers: As the market continues to struggle after severe cuts seen yesterday, here are 6 stocks that have made 13-54 percent gains in last eight days. The Sensex felll around 460 points on Thursday.

11:30 am FII view: The Indian markets have witnessed volatility lately, thanks to geopolitical concerns in the subcontinent and concerns of stress facing the European banking system. But veteran emerging markets investor Mark Mobius thinks that the Indian government's reform drive would aid shares and drive investment into the country even as he thinks concerns over the fate of struggling Deutsche Bank would unnerve global markets. In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Mobius, Executive Chairman, Templeton Emerging Markets Group, said any dip would be a buying opportunity for Indian shares and that he was a big buyer of the consumption theme, followed by telecom and Internet companies.

11:20 am New kids in F&O segment: Torrent Power, IDFC Bank and DCB Bank were added in the Futures and Options. These stocks are making good gains in trading today. Currently, there are over 200 securities available in the F&O segment for trade.

In July 2015, markets regulator Sebi had made a steep hike in the minimum investment size for any equity derivative product to Rs 5 lakh from Rs 2 lakh. Besides, the minimum lot size of an equity derivative contract had been increased to Rs 5 lakh.

The market is still flat with the Nifty still below 8600. The 50-share index is up 1.60 points at 8592.85. The Sensex is down 11.53 points at 27816.00. About 1613 shares have advanced, 580 shares declined, and 130 shares are unchanged.

GAIL, M&M, ONGC, SBI and BHEL are top gainers while Cipla, Coal India, Bharti Airtel, Dr Reddy's Labs and Adani Ports are losers in the Sensex.

Oil prices fell as doubts emerged over the long-term success of a surprise OPEC agreement to cut output and stabilise the oversupplied market. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries on stunned traders by announcing plans to trim collective production by around 750,000 barrels per day.

Initial euphoria over what would be the first output cut in eight years sent prices soaring six percent but the rally fizzled yesterday as traders digested the nuts and bolts of the deal remained to be agreed.

10:49 pm Masala bonds list: State-owned NTPC today announced the listing of its Rs 2,000 crore Green Masala Bonds at Singapore Stock Exchange.

"NTPC has become the flag bearer for Rupee denominated Indian paper bringing in a new set of investors to meet the financing needs of the Indian Infrastructure sector on listing of Rs 2000 crore Green Masala Bonds at Singapore Stock Exchange," the company said in a statement.

NTPC Director (Finance) K Biswal NTPC was the special speaker at the event where a presentation was made by him to a large audience highlighting the PSU's Green Masala Bonds issue for financing renewable energy projects.

Singapore Stock Exchange unveiled The Global Masala Bonds Hub at the Exchange on Monday.

10:38 am FII View: Surendra Goyal of Citigroup feels volatility could continue in the near term.

According to him, the market could remain volatile depending on the future course of events.

"Market view remains constructive with a target of 30,000 on the Sensex for March 2017 but geopolitical risks need to be watched out for," Goyal says.

10:20 am Buzzing: Alkem Laboratories shares fell over 8 percent intraday on several observations from the US health regulator for Daman facility.

"....has received the inspection report for manufacturing facility located at Daman, India which contains thirteen 483 observations," the Mumbai-based pharma company in its filing yesterday.

The US Food and Drug Administration had conducted an inspection at the facility from September 20 to September 29, 2016.

The company said it would put together a detailed response with adequate corrective and preventive measures to address the USFDA observations and the same is proposed to be filed within the timeline stipulated by USFDA.

Also read -  Number of factors to aid Indian shares: Kotak UK manager

10:00 am Market Check
After a firm start of the October Futures and Options (F&O) series, the market has started to wobble. The Sensex is down 27.19 points or 0.1 percent at 27800.34, and the Nifty is down 8.25 points or 0.1 percent at 8583.00. About 1382 shares have advanced, 543 shares declined, and 97 shares are unchanged.

GAIL, Infosys, Wipro, BHEL and ONGC are top gainers while Adani Ports, Cipla, Bharti AIrtel, Dr Reddy's Labs and HUL are major losers in the Sensex.

The Finance Ministry has exuded confidence that currency and stock markets, which tumbled following the surgical strike, will stabilise in the next few days and decisive action against terrorism will spur growth.

"The markets including the currency markets, the stock market they will stabilise in a matter of a very very few days," Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das.

Oil prices dropped on profit-taking, after rising 7 percent in the past two sessions, amid doubts that OPEC's first planned output cut in eight years would make a substantial dent in the global crude glut.

Both Brent and NYMEX crude are on course for a weekly gain of around 7 percent.

9:55 am Economy: Stage is set today for a six- member panel taking over job of setting interest rate after the government notified the new Monetary Policy Committee that will hold its first review on October 4.

"Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) constitution under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, notified," the finance ministry said.

The MPC, in which three members are from the RBI and three others from the government, will target to keep inflation at 4 per cent with an upper and lower tolerance level of 2 per cent.

The government, last week, had named three academics to join RBI Governor Urjit Patel, his deputy in charge of monetary policy R Gandhi and central bank executive director Michael Patra on the MPC.

9:45 am Upcoming: Bangalore-based retailer Shankara BuildPro, which is into home improvement and building products, has filed for an initial public offering to raise about Rs 450 crore. According to market sources, the company has filed the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the market watchdog Sebi today and proposes to mop up between Rs 400 crore and Rs 450 crore through the sale, which will involve promoters and investors diluting their stakes to the tune of 35 percent. The proposed IPO will enable private equity firm Fairwinds, which had pumped in close to Rs 120 crore in 2011, to exit Shankara, the sources told PTI today.

9:35 am China data: China's factory sector struggled to gain speed in September while Japanese inflation went backwards in August despite the best efforts of policymakers, underscoring the limits of stimulus in reviving world growth.

Friday's unflattering figures bookmarked a week in which the IMF warned it would likely downgrade forecasts for the US economy, and the World Trade Organization slashed its outlook for global trade flows.

That was unwelcome news for markets spooked by troubles at Deutsche Bank, whose US shares took a hammering on reports some hedge funds had reduced financial exposure to Germany's largest lender.

9:25 am Market Update: Equity benchmarks entered into consolidation phase after yesterday's sell-off. The Nifty continued to hover around 8600 level.

The Sensex was down 17.64 points at 27809.89 and the Nifty down 7.05 points at 8584.20. The market breadth was marginally positive as about 877 shares advanced against 684 declining shares on the BSE.

9:20 am FII View: Veteran emerging markets investor Mark Mobius thinks that the Indian government's reform drive would aid shares and drive investment into the country even as he thinks concerns over the fate of struggling Deutsche Bank would unnerve global markets.

In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Mobius, Executive Chairman, Templeton Emerging Markets Group, said any dip would be a buying opportunity for Indian shares and that he was a big buyer of the consumption theme, followed by telecom and Internet companies.

Replying to a question on valuations, he said they were a function of interest rates and given the falling rate environment, even a price-to-earnings ratio of 30 times -- which translates into a Sensex target of 45,000 given FY17 earnings-per-share of Rs 1,500 -- would be "tolerable".

9:15 am Market Check
The market started off the October series on a positive note, rebounding sharply after previous day's sharp sell-off.

The 50-share NSE Nifty reclaimed 8600 level, rising 10.95 points to 8602.20. The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 39.84 points at 27867.37. GAIL, Wipro, Infosys, Sun Pharma and BHEL are top gainers while Adani Ports, Dr Reddy's, Cipla, Coal India and ICICI Bank are losers in the Sensex.

The broader markets outperformed benchmarks, rising more than 0.4 percent.

Technology and oil stocks saw short covering whereas select banks and FMCG stocks remained under pressure.

The Indian rupee remained unchanged in opening at 66.85 per dollar against previous close of 66.85.

Bhaskar Panda of HDFC Bank says news about India's overnight raid on terror camps at the Line of Control jarred all markets in India.

He feels the USD-INR pair is likely to trade in a range of 66.60- 66.90/dollar depending on further news.

The US dollar snapped its longest slide since August as gross domestic product and jobless claims data bolstered speculation the Federal Reserve is set raise interest rates by year-end.

Asian markets were lower across the board on the final trading day of the quarter, after concerns over Deutsche Bank's stability drove down sentiment in US markets.