Sensex ends 111 pts up; BSE Auto soars record 2%, CIL up 4%

The BSE Sensex and the Nifty gained for the fourth consecutive session, rising 0.6% each on Thursday. Auto, healthcare, steel & mining, FMCG and HDFC group companies' shares helped the market close higher while the fall in Reliance Industries, State Bank of India and BHEL has limited the upside.

Even the better than expected response to Spain bond auction the European markets rally today, which was another cue for the market to gain. Spain sold bonds worth euro 2.54 billion, which was higher than expectations of euro 2.5 billion.

Back home, the BSE benchmark rose 111.32 points, to close at 17,503.71 led by 21 components, taking the total gains of over 409 points in four sessions. The NSE benchmark stayed above the 5300 level for major part of the session, which moved up 32.40 points to 5,332.40.

Auto stocks hogged the limelight on expectations of rise in sales volumes after the Reserve Bank of India cut repo rate by 50 basis points on Tuesday. The BSE Auto Index closed at all-time high of 10,744.73, rising 2%, which saw an intraday high of 10,786.6.

At 15:07 hours IST: Sensex, Nifty up 0.6%; HDFC Bank, Tata Motors, CIL shoot up.

The BSE Sensex and Nifty headed for their fourth consecutive winning session on Thursday, as auto stocks extended a recent rally, while Infosys recovered from recent losses, though plenty of caution remains.

A winning session on Thursday would match the four-session streak ended on March 14, though traders cited plenty of uncertainty ahead as the bulk of Indian companies have yet to report earnings.

Reliance Industries' fourth-quarter results on Friday will be particularly important, according to traders. The stock fell 1%.

The BSE benchmark was up 111 points or 0.64% at 17,503.48 and the NSE benchmark rose 33.35 points to 5,333.35.

Auto shares led gains on optimism for improved sales, especially after the Reserve Bank of India's aggressive rate cut this week is expected to reduce the cost of loans to purchase vehicles.

Tata Motors, commercial vehicle maker surged 3% while M&M, Maruti and Hero Motocorp were up 1.65-2.5%.

Coal India, largest coal mining company topped the buying list, rising 3.6%.

Private sector lender HDFC Bank jumped 3% while State Bank of India and ICICI Bank were down 0.5-0.9%.

Cigarette major ITC and FMCG company HUL gained 1% each. Housing finance company HDFC was up 1%.

Infosys shares rose 1.2%, after dropping nearly 14% since disappointing investors with its revenue growth outlook on Friday during its earnings results.
However, shares of GAIL and Hindalco tanked 2% each. Capital goods majors L&T and BHEL lost 0.5% and 3.5%, respectively.

At 14:36 hours IST: Sensex off day's high; BHEL tops sell list, RIL, ICICI down.

The BSE Sensex sheds some gains as European markets came off their day's high. Banking majors, capital goods and Index heavyweight Reliance Industries extended fall a bit.

The BSE benchmark moved up 77.36 points to 17,469.75 and the NSE benchmark gained 24 points at 5,323.95. France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were trading moderately higher.

Oil & gas producer and India's most valued stock Reliance Industries dropped over 1% ahead of March quarter results tomorrow. Experts feel it would be a non-event for the market.

Top lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank were down nearly 1% while rival HDFC Bank shot up 3%.

State-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals retained its top position in the selling list, losing over 3.5% while engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro was down 0.8%.
 
Aluminium major Hindalco Industries tanked 2% and gas transporter GAIL dropped 1.7%.

However, auto stocks hogged the limelight, with the sectoral index hitting all-time high today. Tata Motors and Maruti Suzuki jumped 2.5%; M&M rose 2% and Hero Motocorp was up 1.4%.

Coal India, largest coal mining company shot up 2%. Shares of HDFC, ITC and Infosys moved up 1% each.

At 13:59 hours IST: Sensex up 100 pts; BSE Auto Index hits all-time high.

The BSE Sensex gained more than 100 points following an upmove in the European markets. France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE climbed 0.5-0.7% while the Dow Jones futures gained 76 points, pointing to positive start of the US markets.

Private sector lender HDFC Bank, top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors and top car maker Maruti Suzuki topped the buying list, rising over 2.5%.

The BSE benchmark was up 114 points at 17,506.13 led by 20 components. Meanwhile, the NSE benchmark rose 35 points to 5,335.25.

The BSE Auto Index rose for a sixth straight session to a new all-time high, on expectations sales will improve after an interest rate cut is seen bringing down the cost of loans. The Index gained 1.6% at 10,697.70, which shot up over 30% in 2012 while the Sensex rallied 12.5%.

Production has also normalised at India's biggest car maker Maruti Suzuki after recent labour unrest, which is also contributing to the gains in the sub-index.

"Maruti, Tata Motors are expected to be the main beneficiaries of RBI's cut" Yaresh Kothari, sector analyst at Angel Broking said. M&M, Hero Motocorp and Bajaj Auto were up 0.5-1.5%.

Shares of ITC, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Bharti Airtel, HDFC, Tata Steel, Sun Pharma and Sterlite were up 0.7-1%.

Oil & gas producer ONGC rose 0.5% while rival Reliance Industries was flat.

However, state-owned BHEL topped the selling list, falling 3.5%. Gas transporter GAIL tanked 1.8%. Top lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank, and capital goods major Larsen & Toubro fell 0.4% each.

At 12:39 hours IST: Volatile Sensex gains strength on positive European cues.

The BSE Sensex stayed positive amid choppy trade in the afternoon trade. Auto and healthcare stocks were witnessing buying interest while capital goods and major banks stocks were under pressure. European markets opened higher on Thursday; France's CAC rose 1% while Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE went up over 0.5%.

The BSE benchmark was up 66 points at 17,457.97 and the NSE benchmark climbed 21 points to 5,320.80.

Private sector lender HDFC Bank rose 2.35%. Infosys, India's No. 2 software services exporter moved up 0.7% while its rivals TCS gained just 0.2%.

Auto stocks gained momentum on likely reduction in lending rates by banks. Tata Motors, top commercial vehicle maker and Maruti Suzuki, country's largest car maker rallied 2.7% and 0.7%, respectively. Hero Motocorp and M&M were up over 1%. Bajaj Auto, a two-wheeler maker gained 2.7%.

Top lenders ICICI Bank and State Bank of India were down around 0.4-0.8%. Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro dropped 0.6% and state-owned BHEL was down 2.7%.

Drug makers Sun Pharma and Cipla advanced 1% each.

Advancing shares outnumbered declining by 740 to 622 on the National Stock Exchange.

At 11:19 hours IST: Nifty stuck at 5300; European markets set to open flat.

The benchmark index Nifty was trading marginally higher in trade on selective buying in auto and pharma stocks after a quiet start.

Asian shares and the euro traded in tight ranges on Thursday ahead of a Spanish bond sale seen as a key test of investors' risk appetite amid renewed concerns over the euro zone's debt crisis.

The Sensex was up 3.80 points or 0.02% at 17396.19, and the Nifty was up 2.35 points or 0.04% at 5302.35. About 1269 shares advanced, 1016 shares declined, and 1132 shares remain unchanged.

Rate sensitive auto stocks were in top gear after RBI slashed repo rate by 50 basis points in its annual monetary policy review for 2012-13 on Tuesday, 17 April 2012. Banking stocks were trading mixed.
 
European shares were also expecting a mixed start, with financial spreadbetters predicting that major European markets would open between down 0.2% and up 0.2%. US stock futures were up 0.1%.

Rupee at 14 weeks low.

The rupee continued to fall, touching its weakest level in more than 14 weeks and heading closer to technical support at 52.12, as the country's economic challenges and a cautious RBI inspire little confidence.

Top gainers on the Nifty: Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Power, Coal India and Ranbaxy Labs were up 1-2%.

Top losers on the Nifty: BHEL, Reliance Infra, Hindalco, ICICI Bank and Reliance Comm were down 1-3%.

RIL has bought back 52.61 lakh shares for Rs 396.04 crore as of 17 April 2012. The average buyback price per share works out to Rs 752.77. The company's board had approved buyback of up to 12 crore shares on 20 January 2012.

BHEL is down nearly 2%. Morgan Stanley has released a cautious report on the stock. It retains an underweight rating on the stock with a target of Rs 206.

Onmobile Global was down nearly 5%. News reports indicate that TRAI has blacklisted the company for violating telemarketing regulations.

Koutons was down 10% on the back of NSE suspending trading in the stock from April 26.

IndusInd Bank is up over 1% ahead of earnings, the stock is at 52 week high. According to CNBC-TV18 poll, net interest income may see a 17% growth at Rs 454 crore, while PAT may grow by 25% at Rs 214 crore.

Balrampur Chini is down 3%. Merrill Lynch downgrades the stock to underperform from buy and cuts the target price by 35% to 37 rupees owing to the likely delay in cyclical recovery.

Anand Rathi recommends selling Coal India between Rs 350 and 353 with a target of Rs 340 and stop loss at 358. coal india has been consolidating in a range of 315 to 355 since the past 14-15 weeks. the stock is near its crucial resistance levels and at the upper band of the trading range.

IIFL recommends buying Maruti at current market price with a target of Rs 1430 and stop loss at Rs 1335. It has given a weekly breakout above Rs 1365 and has seen strong addition on the long side.