Sensex ends with 94 points gain; Infy, BHEL up, Maruti dips 9%

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty closed higher on Thursday led by positive global cues. Even hopes of diesel price hike after today's Presidential election aided the market as Brent crude crossed the USD 105 a barrel level again.

The market gained for the second consecutive session today. The BSE benchmark rose 93.84 points to close at 17,278.85 and the NSE benchmark was up 26.40 points at 5,242.70.

But Atul Badkar of Edelweiss Securities says that the July series will see the Nifty capped at 5,300. ''My sense is that there is not too much upside to go from here any which way. I think 5,320 and 5,348 is where we made the previous high in this month, and these two continue to remain strong resistances,'' he said.

According to him, global macro fundamentals and domestic factors will have to improve for the market to see further gains.

As hopes are building up for a diesel price hike soon after the Presidential election, Gautam Chhaochharia of UBS India feels that the government needs to hike diesel price to avoid a sovereign downgrade. According to him, the market is ignoring monsoon risks but has already factored in diesel price hike.

State-owned oil firms are currently selling diesel still at a loss of Rs 10.33 a litre. The government heavily subsidises diesel prices as the fuel powers much of the economy, especially in farming and transportation. Brent crude rose more than 20% in a month to USD 106 a barrel.

Shares of oil marketing companies like HPCL and IOC gained 1.8% and 1.4%, respectively. BPCL rose nearly 3%.

Country's second largest software services exporter Infosys topped the buying list, rising 3% while its rival TCS was up 0.4%.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries rallied 1.7% ahead of its first quarter earnings tomorrow after market hours.

State-owned power equipment manufacturer BHEL jumped over 2% as the cabinet is likely to discuss a proposal to impose 21% duty on equipment imported for power generation today. Engineering and construction major by sales Larsen & Toubro went up 0.4%.

Private sector lender ICICI Bank moved up 1.3% whereas its rival State Bank of India 1.3%. Housing finance company HDFC gained 1%.

Top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors bounced back sharply with 1.3% gains as it had fallen in previous sessions due to lower than expected Jaguar and Land Rover's June sales numbers.

Bajaj Auto, country's second largest two-wheeler maker, extended gains after the company said the worst was over. The stock gained 1.76% today and yesterday it had rallied over 5%.

Top car maker Maruti Suzuki crashed nearly 9% after a strike at its Manesar plant. Telecom operator Bharti Airtel tanked over 2% ahead of EGoM meet tomorrow wherein the government is likely to decide spectrum reserve price.

Earnings

Hero Motocorp fell 1.4% after lower than expected earnings in the quarter ended June 2012.

Kotak Mahindra Bank was down 2.5% as company's non-performing assets increased during the first quarter of FY13. But, its net profit and net interest income came in higher than expectations.

Dr Reddy's Labs dropped 1% after less than expected net profit and revenues in the April-June quarter.

NIIT Technologies gained 1.7% after higher than expected numbers in Q1.

In the second line shares, GMR Infrastructure, GVK Power and Punj Lloyd were up 2-4%. SKS Microfinance and Mastek rallied over 12%.

Tata Global, JSW Steel and Mahindra Satyam rose over 2%. However, Union Bank of India, PFC and Hitachi Home were under pressure.

On the global front, Asian markets rose 0.7%-1.7% at close following positive US markets on better-than-expected earnings by Honeywell and Intel. European markets were up between 0.3% and 1%.

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty erased half of gains due to fall in State Bank of India and TCS. ICICI Bank, Tata Motors and Larsen & Toubro saw somewhat profit booking. But the market breadth remained in favour of advances.

The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 93 points to 17,277.97 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 27.25 points at 5,243.55.

State-owned power equipment manufacturer BHEL and private power producer Tata Power shot up over 2.5%.

Top car maker Maruti Suzuki extended losses, losing more than 8% due to strike at its Manesar plant

Infosys, India's No. 2 software services exporter topped the buying list, rising 3% while its rivals TCS and Wipro gained 0.5% and 1.2%, respectively.

Among metals stocks, Sterlite Industries and Hindalco rallied 2% each. Tata Steel and Jindal Steel moved up 1% each.

Top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors and country's second largest two-wheeler manufacturer Bajaj Auto jumped 1.4% and 1.7%, respectively.

Private sector lender ICICI Bank was up 1.3% while its rival State Bank of India declined 0.86%.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries gained 1.6% whereas cigarette major ITC slipped 0.75%.

Top telecom operator Bharti Airtel tumbled over 2%. State-owned oil & gas producer ONGC and drug major Dr Reddy's Labs went down 0.5%.

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty maintained early gains following positive global cues. European markets opened marginally higher while Asian markets remained strong in late trade following gains in US markets on better-than-expected earnings from Intel and Honeywell.

The BSE benchmark went up 100.63 points to 17,285.64 and the NSE benchmark rose 30 points to 5,246.40.

Country's second largest software services exporter Infosys gained 2.7% on short covering and build up of long positions. The stock had fallen quite sharply after its June quarter results that had announced on last Thursday. Its rivals TCS and Wipro were up 0.6% and 1.35%, respectively.

Bajaj Auto, India's No. 2 two-wheeler maker extended gains, rising 2%. Yesterday the stock had rallied over 5% after the company said the worst was over now.

Top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors went up nearly 2% whereas the strike again at Manesar plant weighed on Maruti, which tanked 7.5% now.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries moved up over 1%. Engineering and construction major by sales Larsen & Toubro rose 0.6%.

State-owned power equipment manufacturer BHEL rallied 2.5% ahead of likely Cabinet meeting to discuss a proposal to impose 21% duty on equipment imported for power generation.

Metals stocks remained on buyers' radar. Tata Steel, Sterlite Industries, Hindalco and Jindal Steel were up 1-2%.

Drug major Dr Reddy's Labs and top two-wheeler maker Hero Motocorp were down ahead of earnings today.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel plunged over 2% ahead of empowered group of ministers' meeting on Friday.

The Indian rupee has appreciated by 20 paise to 55.28 against the US dollar from previous close of 55.48 a dollar.

Most active shares on exchanges were Maruti Suzuki, SBI, SKS Microfinance, Infosys, Indraprastha Gas, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Auto.

In the second line shares, Amtek India, SRF, Thermax, TTK Prestige and KPIT Cummins were up 4-5%. However, Cholamandalam, CRISIL, Pidilite Industries, Honeywell Automation and Carborundum slipped 2.5%-4%.

Advancing shares outnumbered declining by 1466 to 1010 on the BSE.

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty remained higher as the current optimism may be on hopes that the government may take some action on diesel price after today's Presidential poll. Brent crude rose 1.1% yesterday to USD 105.2 a barrel, which rallied by USD 5 a barrel this week itself and gained more than 20% in a month.

The BSE benchmark gained 91 points at 17,276 and the NSE benchmark went up 25.45 points to 5,241.75, though there were some bouts of profit booking.

Infosys, country's No. 2 software services exporter rose over 2% while its rivals TCS and Wipro were up 0.77%-1.35%.

State-owned power equipment maker surged more than 2.5% as today cabinet is likely to discuss a proposal to impose 21% duty on equipment imported for power generation. Engineering and construction major by sales Larsen & Toubro moved up 0.9%.

Top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors rebounded with 2% gains whereas top car maker Maruti Suzuki plunged 7% on workers' strike at Manesar plant.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries gained 0.8% and housing finance company HDFC was up 0.5%.

Country's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank jumped 1.5% while its rivals HDFC Bank and State Bank of India were up just 0.2%.

However, shares of Bharti Airtel tanked 2% ahead of EGoM tomorrow. ITC, ONGC, Hero Motocorp (ahead of numbers) and Dr Reddy's Labs (ahead of earnings) were down 0.3%-0.6%.

In the second line shares, Greaves Cotton, Jain Irrigation, TTK Prestige, KPIT Cummins and DB Corp climbed 3-4% whereas Cholamandalam, CRISIL, Sanofi India, Gillette India and Carborundum lost 2-4%.

The Sensex gains 0.5 percent, while the Nifty advances 0.53 percent.

Shares in major airlines and retail stocks gain on hopes the government will announce reforms in foreign direct investment into both sectors after the presidential elections due later in the day.

Jet Airways gains 0.99 percent, while Pantaloon Retail gains 1.9 percent.

Shares in Bharat Heavy Electricals gain 2.3 percent and Larsen & Toubro rises 0.7 percent on media reports the cabinet will meet on Thursday to discuss import duties in power equipments.

However, Maruti Suzuki drops 7.3 percent after India's largest auto maker stopped production at its Manesar factory following violent clashes between workers and managers.

Indian equity benchmarks retained early gains amid volatility led by buying interest in banks, capital goods, metals, technology and power stocks. However, top car maker Maruti Suzuki crashed more than 7% today as Suzuki spokesman said production at Manesar plant continued to be halted.

"We do not know when production will resume. There was no damage to the factory's production line or facilities and the damage was only at the office," he said.

Research firm Fortune sees production loss of 7,000-8,000 units/week at Manesar Plant.
 
The BSE Sensex rose 102.60 points to 17,287.61 and the NSE benchmark gained 31 points at 5,247.15. The broader markets followed the same trend, rising 0.6% as about two shares advanced for every share declining on the National Stock Exchange.

According to ICICIDirect.com, the level of 5300 is the immediate resistance. "A close above 5300 would induce major short covering in the market towards 5500. Hence, we would advise formation of fresh long positions in high beta stocks only above 5300. Enough momentum is likely to be seen above this level."

Country's largest software services exporters TCS, Infosys and Wipro gained 1-2%. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries moved up 1% ahead of its first quarter earnings that will be declared tomorrow after market hours.

Private sector lender ICICI Bank gained 1.5% while its rivals State Bank of India and HDFC Bank were up around 0.5%. Housing finance company HDFC too was up 0.5%.

Top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors bounced back quite sharply, rising 1.7%. However, Hero Motocorp was down 0.8% ahead of earnings today.

State-owned power equipment manufacturer BHEL topped the buying list, rising nearly 3% as the cabinet is likely to discuss today a proposal to impose 21% duty on equipment imported for power generation. Engineering and construction major by sales Larsen & Toubro was up 0.9%.

Metals stocks extended gains - Sterlite Industries, Jindal Steel, Hindalco and Tata Steel rallied 1%-1.8%.

Asian markets remained strong; Shanghai, Hang Seng, Kospi and Taiwan Weighted were up 1.3%-1.7%. Nikkei rose 0.9% and Straits Times was up 0.4%.

The 30-share BSE Sensex gained more than 100 points in early trade on Thursday, taking yesterday's upmove further due to positive global cues.

The BSE benchmark rose 113.51 points to 17,298.52. Meanwhile, the NSE benchmark hit the 5250 level, rising 34.25 points to 5,250.55.

The US markets gained in the range of 0.7-1% yesterday after better-than-expected earnings by Honeywell and Intel amid fears of global slowdown. Asian markets were trading 1-2% higher.

Back home, top car maker Maruti Suzuki crashed 6% on workers' strike.

However, BHEL and L&T gained 1.5-2% as the cabinet is likely to discuss today a proposal to impose 21% duty on equipment imported for power generation.

 JP Associates and Sterlite were up over 2%. Sesa Goa, Hindalco Industries, Tata Power, Tata Motors, SBI, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, M&M, DLF and IDFC went up over 1%. SAIL, HUL and ITC were up 0.5%.

However, Bharti Airtel was down 0.7% ahead of EGoM tomorrow.

The CNX Midcap Index was up 53 points at 7,408. About four shares advanced for every share declining on the National Stock Exchange.

In the second line shares, Aptech surged 3.75%. Essar Shipping shot up 7% amid large volumes.

Dishman Pharma, Pipavav Defence, Jet Airways and UB Holdings moved up 1.5-2%.

Infrastructure stocks like GMR Infra, Punj Lloyd, Voltas and Lanco Infratech climbed 1-2%.

Shree Renuka, Financial Tech, Dish TV, 3i Infotech and Mahindra Satyam gained 1-3%.