Nifty ends above 8400; BHEL, Tata Steel, HUL top gainers

3:30 pm Market close: The market ended in green with the Nifty above 8400. The 50-share is up 19.00 points or 0.2 percent at 8417 and the Sensex is up 21.98 points at 27257.64.About 1484 shares have advanced, 1253 shares declined, and 308 shares are unchanged.

BHEL, Tata Steel, HUL, ONGC and M&M were top gainers while NTPC, GAIL, Hero MotoCorp,, Bharti Airtel and Adani Ports were losers in the Sensex.

3:00 pm Market Update: Benchmark indices remained flat with a positive bias. The Sensex was up 22.21 points at 27257.87 and the Nifty up 14.75 points at 8412.75.

About 1456 shares advanced against 1232 declining shares on the BSE.

2:47 pm Divestment: The Cabinet has approved the listing of public sector general insurance companies through fresh equity, or through offer of sale or a combination of both. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, addressing the media, said work towards listing will start right away and the government plans to reduce its stake in these companies to 75 percent from 100 percent.

Listing of five general insurance companies, namely, New India Insurance, United India Insurance, Oriental Insurance, National Insurance Company and General Insurance have been cleared, he said.

Jaitley said, "Since it is a major decision, which covers the five PSU GIC companies, under the listing requirements, one of the conditions is that government holding has to come down from 100 percent to 75 percent."

2:36 pm Earnings: Hindustan Media Ventures (HMVL) today reported a 7.45 percent fall in its consolidated net profit at Rs 43.82 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2016.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 47.35 crore in the corresponding three months a year ago.

HMVL's total income from operations for the quarter ended December 31, 2016, also decreased by 4.18 percent to Rs 230.28 crore, as against Rs 240.35 crore in the same period of the previous year, it said in a filing to the BSE.

The company publishes Hindi daily 'Hindustan' and magazines like Nandan and Kadambini.

2:25 pm Interview: Havells India, CMD, Anil Rai Gupta, says the impact of demonetisation may not be seen in the fourth quarter. The electrical equipment manufacturer reported increased profit at 27.5 percent year-on-year in the quarter ended 2016.

Speaking to CNBCTV-18, he said the company is seeing a strong demand in cables and wires segment and it is also seeing market share gains in most of the categories.

The note ban impact was seen in many businesses and the electrical trade too got caught in the net. According to Rai, some impact was seen in the market place due to demonetisation, but it is a one-time impact.

The trade schemes introduced in November and December impacted the margins by 1.5-2 percent, said Gupta.

He said the impact seen on margin in the third quarter is a one-off and going forward he expects the margin to return to normal.

2:00 pm Market Check
Benchmark indices as well as broader markets turned volatile after wiping out morning gains. HDFC Group, infra and Tata Group stocks continued to support the market whereas oil and select banks stocks weighed.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 16.04 points at 27219.62 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 1.65 points at 8399.65.

The market breadth was positive as about 1412 shares advanced against 1171 declining shares on the BSE.

ICICI Prudential Life gained 2 percent after cabinet has approved listing of 4 PSU general insurance companies.

Shares of HUL, Tata Steel and BHEL gained 3-4 percent while Reliance Industries, ITC, NTPC, Bajaj Auto, GAIL and Bharti Airtel were under pressure.

European bourses were higher after UK Prime Minister Theresa May provided further clarity on her aims for the upcoming Brexit talks and investors received a number of corporate reports.

1:45 pm Macro outlook: Strong domestic demand and cost competitiveness in exports will help Indian companies to overcome uncertainties from global geopolitical changes and domestic policy-making, S&P global Ratings said today.

Faster economic growth as well as reforms make India a good macroeconomic story and this, coupled with the stable credit profile of companies, bodes well for foreign currency bonds by Indian issuers, it said.

In 'India Corporate Outlook 2017', S&P said healthy economic growth and falling interest rates should also benefit companies in the country.

1:30 pm Exclusive: Diageo is mulling open offer to hike stake in United Spirits (USL) by 8 percent to assert a stronger control over the company, sources say. CNBC-TV18 quoting sources, says the company could consider an open offer before March 2017. Diageo is looking to increase its stake in USL to 63 percent from 55 percent. Sources further say no price has been fixed yet and the bankers are looking into a price band for it. CNBC-TV18 had reported earlier that in long-term, Diageo wants to take the total stake to 70-72 percent in United Spirits.

The market is still holding gains. The Sensex is up 52.44 points or 0.2 percent at 27288.10 and the Nifty is up 24.45 points or 0.3 at 8422.45. About 1504 shares have advanced, 1038 shares declined, and 282 shares are unchanged.

BHEL, Tata Steel, HUL, L&T and M&M are top gainers while NTPC, GAIL, Bharti Airtel, Reliance and Bajaj Auto are losers in the Sensex.

The Reserve Bank of India is expected to go in for a 25 bps rate cut at its next monetary policy meet on February 8, as also in April, says a Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA-ML) report.
 
According to the global financial services major, further easing is likely as demonetisation is hurting growth while inflationary pressure is benign and the government is expected to target a conservative fiscal deficit of 3.5 percent of GDP.

"We grow more confident of our call of a 25 bps RBI rate cut on February 8 (and April) after release of latest CPI/WPI/ IIP data," BofA-ML said in a research note.

12:59 pm Market Update: Benchmark indices erased some gains in afternoon trade, weighed by Reliance Industries.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 59.19 points at 27294.85 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 26.60 points to 8424.60. About 1523 shares advanced against 1013 declining shares on the BSE.

12:46 pm Rate cut possible?: The Reserve Bank of India is expected to go in for a 25 bps rate cut at its next monetary policy meet on February 8 -- as also in April -- says a Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA-ML) report.

According to the global financial services major, further easing is likely as demonetisation is hurting growth while inflationary pressure is benign and the government is expected to target a conservative fiscal deficit of 3.5 per cent of GDP.

"We grow more confident of our call of a 25 bps RBI rate cut on February 8 (and April) after release of latest CPI/WPI/ IIP data," BofA-ML said in a research note.

Incoming data show that demonetisation is impeding growth, BofA-ML said, adding that "old series GDP growth is already languishing at 4-4.5 per cent".

12:36 pm Nomura on India growth story: India's growth numbers are likely to slide in the next two quarters, but a sharp rebound is expected in the second half of 2017 as the demonetisation impact will be transitory and not long lasting, says a Nomura report.

The Japanese financial services major has lowered its January-March 2017 GDP forecast to 5.7 percent and that of April-June to 6.8 percent, from 7 percent.

For 2016-17, Nomura expects GDP growth of 6.5 percent as against 7.6 percent in 2015-16, lower than the official advance estimate of 7.1 percent. For 2017-18, it expects the figure to be at 7.4 percent.

"While we expect a sharp slowdown in the next two quarters, we also expect a V-shaped recovery in the second half of 2017," it said in a research note.

12:20 pm Buzzing: Indiabulls Real Estate shares gained nearly 3 percent intraday on acquisition of FIM's entire stake in joint venture that received refund from Delhi Development Authority.

"Pursuant to the judgment passed by the Honourable Supreme Court of India, a refund of approximately Rs 701 crore, net of TDS, (being the auction price along with interest) has been received from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) by Kenneth Builders & Developers," the company said in its filing.

The refund received by Kenneth was in relation to land situated at Village Tehkhand, New Delhi, which was earlier allotted by DDA for development of residential project.

Kenneth Builders & Developers is a 100 percent subsidiary of Indiabulls Infrastructure (IIPL). Indiabulls Infrastructure is a joint venture company set up by Indiabulls Real Estate with FIM (managed by US private equity fund Farallon Capital Management LLC and its affiliates).

12:00 pm Market Check
Benchmark indices remained higher in noon trade with the Sensex rising more than 100 points while the broader markets outperformed.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 129.91 points at 27365.57 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 46.95 points at 8444.95. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices climbed over 0.6 percent each as about two shares advanced for every share declining on the exchange.

Sanjay Mookim of Bank of America Merrill Lynch says despite near-term GST disruption, Mookim expects the Sensex to deliver robust profit growth and to achieve a 9 percent total return from here on.

Tata Elxsi, United Spirits, HDFC, Force Motors, Tata Steel, PVR and Sun Pharma were most active shares on bourses.

Oil prices rose with a weaker dollar underpinning the market, although gains were limted by expectations that US producers would boost output. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures were trading up 0.36 percent at USD 52.67 per barrel and Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were up 0.36 percent at USD 55.68 a barrel.

11:45 am Macro outlook: India's economy lost momentum in the final three months of 2016 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ban on high-value notes hurt consumption and businesses but it is set to pick up this quarter, a Reuters poll found.

Having posted growth of above 7 percent for six consecutive quarters, India's gross domestic product is expected to have expanded just 6.5 percent in the October-December quarter - the weakest in nearly three years.

The poll also suggested growth would remain below 7 percent in the first quarter of 2017, at 6.9 percent.

India's GDP for the fiscal year to March 2017 is expected to grow 6.9 percent, according to the poll of over 20 economists. That is higher than the International Monetary Fund's estimate of 6.6 percent.

11:30 am Interview: The business environment in the realty sector will rebound in three to six months after being hit hard by demonetisation, according to Sameer Baisiwala, Executive Director of financial services firm Morgan Stanley,

Speaking to CNBC-TV18. Baisiwala said realty prices had remained more intact in Tier-1 cities as compared to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.

He said it would be advisable to stick to established names in the sector such as Oberoi, Sobha and Godrej.

On the pharmaceutical industry, Baisiwala said that he is constructive on the sector, with valuations down 15-20 percent largely due to weakness in the US business, where the generic sector had not fared well and drugs worth USD 70-80 billion were set to go off-patent soon.

The market continues to maintain uptrend with the Nifty hovering aroud 8450. The 50-share index is up 44.25 points or 0.5 percent at 8442.25 while the Sensex is up 125.15 points or 0.5 percent at 27360.81.

BHEL, HUL, Tata Steel, Adani Ports and L&T are top gainers while Bharti Airtel, NTPC, Dr Reddy's Labs, Bajaj Auto and GAIL are losers in the Sensex.

Gold prices hovered below eight-week highs hit in the previous session as uncertainty over US President-elect Donald Trump's economic plans and his comments on strong greenback caused the dollar to decline.

In an article in the Wall Street Journal late Monday, Trump said the strength of the US dollar against China's yuan "is killing us".

Britain will quit the EU single market when it leaves the European Union, Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday in a decisive speech that set a course for a clean break with the world's largest trading bloc.

10:34 am Earnings estimates: Pune-based IT firm KPIT Technologies is likely to report moderate growth in bottomline on account of strong operational performance but topline growth may be muted.

Profit is seen rising 2.3 percent sequentially to Rs 57.5 crore in the quarter ended December 2016, according to average of estimates of analysts polled by CNBC-TV18.

Revenue in rupee terms is likely to increase 0.5 percent quarter-on-quarter to Rs 835 crore and dollar revenue may rose to USD 123.5 million from USD 123.43 million.

EBITDA (operating profit) may jump 9.4 percent to Rs 100 crore and margin may expand 100 basis points to 12 percent compared with previous quarter.

Overall third quarter is expected to be soft mainly due to seasonal lower billing days and furloughs but Q4 is expected to be better than Q3.

10:19 am Market Expert: Strong domestic flows are helping to hold up the market but Budget could be the next big trigger, says Vikas Khemani, President and CEO at Edelweiss Securities.

Foreign outflows, though a cause for concern, are more technical than fundamental, Khemani says. Since India was on top of most emerging market portfolios so far, it was natural to take the first hit in case of any global uncertainties, he noted, adding, a favourable Budget can reverse the trend.

Khemani does not see any major disappointment from corporate earnings yet. The market is keenly watching changes in corporate and long term capital gains taxation in the Budget and will certainly cheer if these are constructive, he says.

10:00 am Market Check
Benchmark indices as well as broader markets extended gains in morning with the Nifty reclaiming 8450 level, supported by banking & financials, FMCG, auto, oil and infra stocks. The market digested speech by the UK Prime Minister Theresa May on Brexit plans.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 165.80 points at 27401.46 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 56.20 points at 8454.20. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices, too, rose 0.6 percent each on strong breadth.

About 1374 shares advanced against 523 declining shares on the BSE.

BHEL, HUL and Tata Steel were biggest gainers among Sensex stocks, up 2-3 percent followed by HDFC Bank, HDFC, L&T, SBI and ONGC with around a percent upside. Bharti Airtel and Dr Reddy's Labs fell 0.6 percent each.

Globally investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's speech later today, to the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, which could offer clues about the direction of monetary policy.

9:55 am Macro outlook: India seems set for four consecutive quarters of sub-7 percent growth for the first time since at least 2011, as the government's demonetisation drive triggers a shortage of cash, Societe Generale said.

The country's Central Statistics Office amended the way India counted its gross domestic product (GDP) numbers in January 2015, amending the base year to 2011-2012 from 2004-2005.

Under this new series, which dates back to June 2011, India experienced three consecutive quarters of growth below 7 percent between December 2012 and June 2013, according to Kunal Kumar Kundu, India economist at SocGen. If Kundu's forecasts turn out to be accurate, this would mark the first time growth will be below the 7 percent mark for four quarters in a row for the series.

9:45 am Buzzing: Gaming company Delta Corp's third quarter earnings disappointed analysts as consolidated net profit plunged 68.8 percent sequentially to Rs 10 crore on lower casino business.

Total income from its operations declined 22.9 percent quarter-on-quarter to Rs 103.6 crore as casino gaming division, which contributed 87 percent to total business, reported a 27 percent de-growth at Rs 90.35 crore compared with previous quarter.

The stock is down 2 percent on the BSE.

9:30 am FII view: Sanjay Mookim of Bank of America Merrill Lynch says the sticky issues holding up the GST (goods & services tax) have largely been resolved.

It is not likely to face any further delays and could be rolled out from July 2017, he feels.

He says the GST Council will now move to categorise various goods and services into different rate slabs at the next council meeting.

Investors should look out for consumer/services category rate slabs, as the market may be pricing in larger gains from lower rates post the GST. This could likely produce stock price volatility in these sub-segments, he feels. However, despite near-term GST disruption, Mookim expects the Sensex to deliver robust profit growth and to achieve a 9 percent total return from here on.

The market has opened higher Wednesday amid global uncertainity. The Sensex is up 71.48 points or 0.3 percent at 27307.14 and the Nifty is up 22.40 points or 0.3 percent at 8420.40. About 557 shares have advanced, 209 shares declined, and 154 shares are unchanged.

Tata Motors, HDFc, Axis Bank, Cipla and Tata Steel are top gainers while Coal India, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Auto, Lupin and HUL are losers in the Sensex.

The Indian rupee opened marginally higher at 67.93 per dollar on Wednesday versus previous close of 67.95 against the US dollar.

The dollar fell to a four-week low, moving lower against all group of 10 currencies with sterling leading the charge. After a soothing speech on Brexit from British Prime Minister Theresa May triggered the pound's largest one-day percentage gain since 2008. A recent sell-off in the dollar deepened after president-elect Donald Trump said the Greenback's strength against the Chinese yuan "is killing us."

Global markets fell on the back of uncertainty over Trump's policies and talks of a hard Brexit gaining momentum after British PM Theresa May's speech on Tuesday.

Asian markets too saw a negative start, tracking global cues. Nikkei fell 0.39 percent amid a strong yen. South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.21 percent.

The Wall Street ended lower, with financials lagging as well as Trump's views on dollar being too strong. The developments also pushed up bond yields as investors looked for safe havens. The dollar fell to a four-week low, moving lower against all group of 10 currencies with sterling leading the charge.

Oil prices edged higher, propped up by a decline in the US dollar and comments by Saudi Arabia that it would adhere to OPEC's commitment to cut output. US crude's discount to Brent widened to its biggest in nearly five months after Trump criticized a part of Republicans' corporate-tax plan.

Gold jumped more than 1 percent to its highest in nearly eight weeks following Trump's comments on the greenback.

The Wall Street ended lower, with financials lagging as well as Trump's views on dollar being too strong. The developments also pushed up bond yields as investors looked for safe havens. The dollar fell to a four-week low, moving lower against all group of 10 currencies with sterling leading the charge.