Sensex, Nifty close in red; BHEL up 15%, SpiceJet gains 20%

3:30 pm Market closing: After a volatile trading day, the market has ended in red. The Sensex is down 51.66 points or 0.2 percent at 28926.36, and the Nifty slipped 25.05 points or 0.3 percent at 8917.95. About 1422 shares advanced, 1343 shares declined, and 154 shares were unchanged.

BHEL, SBI, ONGC, ICICI Bank and Tata Steel were top gainers while Asian Paints, HDFC, Axis Bank, NTPC and GAIL were losers in the Sensex.

3:20 pm Result: SpiceJet net profit surged 51 percent to Rs 149 crore in April-June quarter from Rs 73 crore in corresponding quarter last fiscal. Its total income also grew 36.7 percent to Rs 1521.5 crore against Rs  1113 crore in year-ago period.

Its Q1 passenger load factor was at 92.5 percent. The stock was locked at 20 percent upper circuit.

3:00 pm Market Update: Equity benchmarks remained lacklustre. The Sensex was down 35.19 points at 28942.83 and the Nifty down 20 points at 8923.

2:50 pm Buzzing: MIC Electronics shares were locked at 20 percent upper circuit at Rs 17.28 after getting much awaited patent for its LED Digi-poster.

The patent is valid up to the year 2028.

LED Digi-poster is the key for next generation digital display technology for various applications across the world. It is an intelligent, integrated LED based, robust and rugged display device meant for use in advertisements or information dissemination, either indoors or outdoors.

Additionally, "MIC was one of only three companies awarded a contract to supply a new LED based coach light fixture to the Indian Railways," the Hyderabad-based LED video display manufacturer said in its filing.

2:40 pm Divestment: NITI Aayog has made a case for strategic sale in as many as 44 public sector undertakings where the government can reduce its holding below 50 percent by selling its stake.

 NITI Aayog's recommendation of strategic sale of these PSUs is part of the task entrusted to it by the government to suggest ways to divest Centre's stake in profit-making as well as loss making and sick units.

"NITI Aayog has already recommended about 44 companies for strategic sale and that is going through a process. Dipam (Department of Investment and Public Asset Management) is working on that, taking it forward. "But for us, it's an ongoing process, so we are looking at the second lot, the third lot and we will come out with recommendations," NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant told reporters.

2:20 PM SEBI nod to IPO: Varun Beverages, franchisee for soft drinks maker PepsiCo, has received markets regulator Sebi's approval to raise over Rs 1,000 crore through an initial public offering. Besides, leading logistics service and solutions provider, Seaways Shipping & Logistics has also got Sebi's nod to float an IPO.

Varun Beverages and Seaways Shipping & Logistics had filed their draft red herring prospectuses with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in June and March, respectively.

The two firms got the regulator approval on August 31, as per the latest update. The initial public offer (IPO) of Varun Beverages entails sale of up to 2.5 crore shares, including fresh issue of 1.5 crore shares and offloading of stake by the promoters.

2:00 pm Market Check: Equity benchmarks remained directionless in afternoon trade with the Sensex hovering around 29000 and the Nifty around 8950 due to lack of cues.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 30.31 points at 29008.33 and the 50-share NSE Nifty up 0.20 points at 8943.20. About 1438 shares advanced against 1180 declining shares on the BSE.

ICICI Bank surged nearly 3.7 percent after its life insurance subsidiary ICICI Prudential Life has received approval from the SEBI for its initial public offering. JP Morgan added the stock to its model portfolio.

State Bank of India also gained 3.7 percent and Bank of Baroda rallied 4 percent.

BHEL spiked over 14 percent after better-than-expected quarterly earnings. Profit grew by 54.2 percent to Rs 77.7 crore on yearly basis.

1:55 pm Apple euphoria: Shares of Redington (India) jumped 6 percent intraday on Wednesday as Apple is gearing up to launch iPhone 7 today. Redington India is one of the distributors for Apple in India, handling  the vendor's entire range of products comprising iPad, Mac, iPhone and iWatch. The company is also a distributor for iPhone in UAE and Nigeria.

Meanwhile, at its annual product launch in San Francisco on Wednesday, the world's most valuable publicly traded company is expected by blogs and analysts to reveal an iPhone without a headphone jack, paving the way for wireless headphones, a touch-sensitive home button that vibrates, double-lens cameras for the larger 'Plus' edition and other incremental improvements.

1:45 pm Divestment? NITI Aayog has made a case for strategic sale in as many as 44 public sector undertakings where the government can reduce its holding below 50 percent by selling its stake.

 NITI Aayog's recommendation of strategic sale of these PSUs is part of the task entrusted to it by the government to suggest ways to divest Centre's stake in profit-making as well as loss making and sick units.

 "NITI Aayog has already recommended about 44 companies for strategic sale and that is going through a process. Dipam (Department of Investment and Public Asset Management) is working on that, taking it forward. "But for us, it's an ongoing process, so we are looking at the second lot, the third lot and we will come out with recommendations," NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant told reporters.

1:35 pm Buzzing: Shares of BHEL jumped 15 percent after it posted better-than-expected June quarter results. Its net profit jumped 54.2 percent to Rs 77.7 crore from Rs 50.4 crore in corresponding quarter last fiscal. Total income during the quarter jumped 29 percent to Rs 5622 crore against Rs 4368 crore in year-ago period.

The market continues to hold early as the Sensex is up 15.83 points at 28993.85. The Nifty is down 3.30 points at 8939.70. About 1377 shares have advanced, 1158 shares declined, and 156 shares are unchanged.

SBI, L&T, ICICI Bank, Cipla and Infosys are top gainers while BHEL, HDFC, Asian Paints, NTPC and Axis Bank are major losers in the Sensex.

Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover reported 26 per cent increase in retail sales with36,926 units in August. The month's performance has been driven by strong sales of the Land Rover Discovery Sport, the Jaguar F-PACE and XE, Tata Motors said in a BSE filing.

The Jaguar brand sold 10,868 units in August, up 104 percent from the year-ago month, reflecting the strong launch of the F-PACE as well as continued solid sales of the XE, it added.

Land Rover's August sales were at 26,058 vehicles, up 9 percent year-on-year driven mainly by the Discovery Sport, which retailed 7,053 units.

12:59 pm Market Update: Equity benchmarks continue to consolidate as the Sensex was up 24.99 points at 29003.01 and the Nifty down 1.30 points at 8941.70.

About 1374 shares advanced against 1133 declining shares on the BSE.

12:40 pm Europe opens: European stocks opened slightly higher as weaker US data lowered the chances of the US Federal Reserve hiking interest rates later this month.

 The pan-European STOXX 600 was up around 0.12 percent.

European investors are digesting the latest data out of the US which, along with disappointing nonfarm payroll data last Friday, could appear to quash any chance of a rate hike when the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meets later in September.

12:20 pm Poll: ONGC is seen reporting net profit down 28 percent in April-June quarter to Rs 3163 crore from Rs 4416.11 crore in quarter-ago period. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, the oil and gas company may see total income up 44 percent at Rs 23636 crore against Rs 16384.8 crore on sequential basis.

During the period, EBITDA is likely to recover sharply on sequential basis from a very weak fourth quarter. In Q1 EBIDTA is seen up 82 percent at Rs 8164 crore versus Rs 4487.2 crore while EBIDTA margins are seen at 34.5 percent versus 27.4 percent.

Analysts polled by CNBC-TV18 expect net oil realisation of USD 47/bbl but gas realisation should be lower by 20 percent following the domestic price cut from 1 April 2016.

12:00 pm Market Check
Equity benchmarks remained lacklustre in noon trade with the Nifty hovering around 8950 level after investors digested likely delay in Fed rate hike.

The Sensex gained 54.62 points at 29032.64 and the Nifty was up 5.60 points at 8948.60. The broader markets also gained momentum with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap rising marginally on positive breadth.

About 1349 shares advanced against 1045 declining shares on the exchange.

Tata Motors is near to its record high of Rs 601.95 touched on January 27, 2015 and today's intraday high is Rs 598.60. It surged 99 percent from its Budget day lows.

Shares of Federal-Mogul Goetze are locked at 20 percent upper circuit at Rs 534.10 as Billionaire Carl Icahn's investment firm, Icahn Enterprise said it would buy the remaining 18 percent of auto parts maker Federal-Mogul Holdings Corp for USD 9.25 per share. Federal-Mogul Holdings Corp holds a little less than 75 percent stake in the Indian entity.

11:50 am Corporate interview: Despite a dismal performance in the first quarter of FY17 where its same store sales growth went into negative territory for the first time in the past seven quarters, Jubilant FoodWorks is confident of an improved show and a positive same-store sales growth in the second quarter. Jubilant FoodWorks, which operates Domino's Pizza and Dunkin' Donuts chains in India, attributed a 31.09 percent fall in standalone net profit at Rs 18.99 crore for the first quarter ended June 30 to weak consumer sentiment. The company had posted a net profit of Rs 27.56 crore in the same period of previous fiscal. Total income from operations went up by 6.69 percent to Rs 608.91 crore during the quarter under review as against Rs 570.68 crore in the year-ago period, Jubilant FoodWorks (JFL) said in a filing to the BSE. The company's same store sales growth declined to -3.2 percent, for the first time in past seven quarters.

11:40 am FII view: Christopher Palmer, Founder, Benson Avenue Capital said that investors have been on the sidelines for many months with regard to risk assets. He added that investors are now 'pushing into emerging market debt'. Global liquidity and recent positive local macroeconomic data are raising Indian stocks to their highest levels since early 2015. Regarding India, Palmer said that investors can gain some confidence from the country. ''The country is at the heart of EM portfolio as it doesn't have many growth concerns like others.'' India stands out among markets because of an organic growth rate, he said.

11:30 am Result poll: BHEL is expected to post weak June quarter as revenue may remain subdued due to weak execution. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, the company is likely to net loss at Rs 15 crore in April-June quarter from a profit of Rs 33 crore in corresponding quarter last fiscal. Its Q2 revenue is seen flat at Rs 4630 crore against Rs 4361 crore in year-ago period. Its EBITDA loss in Q1 may narrow to Rs 205 crore versus Rs 210 crore year-on-year. Analysts will keenly watch out its provision and write-offs as per IndAS accounting rules. Order inflows are expected to remain weak. Update on stalled and slow moving projects will also be crucial.

The market has begun its climb again with the Sensex hitting 29000. The 30-share index is up 32.17 points or 0.1 percent at 29010.19. The Nifty is up 3.55 points at 8946.55. About 1276 shares have advanced, 965 shares declined, and 121 shares are unchanged.

Tata Steel, SBI, ICICI Bank, Maruti Suzuki and Infosys are top gainers while BHEL, Asian Paints, HDFc, NTPC and Bharti Airtel are losers in the Sensex.

Tracking a firm trend overseas, gold traded higher by 0.18 per cent to Rs 31,581 per 10 grams in futures market today as traders enlarged positions.
 
Analysts attributed the rise in gold futures prices to a firming trend overseas where gold built on its biggest daily increase since June and traded near the highest in almost three weeks as the dollar weakened amid diminishing chances of a US interest-rate rise in September.

10:45 am Poll: GAIL is expected to continue its earnings revival in the quarter ended June 2016 with the profit & revenue rising 4 percent each to Rs 802 crore and Rs 12,152 crore on sequential basis, respectively.

Gain on its stake sale in the Mahanagar Gas IPO may also boost the bottomline.

According to average of estimates of analysts polled by CNBC-TV18, operating profit may increase 19 percent to Rs 1,457 crore and margin may expand 160 basis points to 12 percent compared with preceding quarter.

Analysts expect the company can surprise with its petrochemical business. While Pata-II ramp-up was slow, petchem may return to profit due to lower gas costs and higher polymer prices, they say, adding transmission may benefit from revised tariffs for its KG/Cauvery networks.

10:35 am Guidance: With the upcoming festive season and implementation of 7th Pay Commission, demand for gold is expected to rise in the next few quarters.

Demand for gold continues to be muted, but clear growth for diamond studded products is visible for Titan, says company's CEO S Subramaniam. Demand is a concern across the industry.

In its jewellery business, the company continues to maintain its market share as well as seeing improvement in margins.

Going ahead, volumes for the industry as well as Titan are expected to be in the negative. Industry has declines by around 20 percent in terms of value, he says.

10:20 am FII View: Liquidity driving the markets is bound to ease and hence, it is better to be defensive now than chasing it aggressively, believes Geoffrey Dennis of UBS.

Weak services index data along with soft jobs data has postponed any hike by the Federal Reserve to December. Dennis says some commentary might come in from the Fed in the next few weeks.

Fed not raising the rate, a soft dollar as well as recovery in commodities have benefitted the emerging markets (EMs). While Brazil has been the best performing market, UBS continues to be overweight on India.

India is probably the best fundamental story amongst EMs, but as markets become expensive, it is better to be defensive, he says. UBS is bullish on India, Taiwan, Korea and prefers exiting Brazil amidst the current run-up.

10:00 am Market Check: Equity benchmarks as well as broader markets continued to consolidate in morning trade after rallying more than 4 percent from last week.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 12.83 points at 28965.19 and the 50-share NSE Nifty fell 7.60 points to 8935.40 despite positive market breadth.

About 1168 shares advanced against 956 declining shares on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Tata Motors shares rebounded after falling in early trade, up 0.4 percent. Infosys, ITC, ICICI Bank, SBI, Tata Steel and Lupin continued to stay higher.

HDFC, Asian Paints, Adani Ports, NTPC, Bharti Airtel and BHEL were down 1-2 percent.

9:55 am FII view: This bull market is driven by improving earnings, lower real rates, falling risk premium and capital flows that support currencies, Adrian Mowat of JP Morgan says, adding 2016-end Asia Pacific ex-Japan target is 500 (+12 percent).

Markets typically turn six months before net revisions.

In case of India, earnings per share revisions have turned from negative to flat, Mowat says, adding earnings surprises continue to be driven by margin dynamics.

9:45 am Result poll: BHEL is expected to post weak June quarter as revenue may remain subdued due to weak execution. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, the company is likely to net loss at Rs 15 crore in April-June quarter from a profit of Rs 33 crore in corresponding quarter last fiscal. Its Q2 revenue is seen flat at Rs 4630 crore against Rs 4361 crore in year-ago period.

Its EBITDA loss in Q1 may narrow to Rs 205 crore versus Rs 210 crore year-on-year.

Analysts will keenly watch out its provision and write-offs as per IndAS accounting rules.

9:34 am Market slips: The market has gone into red. The Sensex is down 34.18 points or 0.1 percent at 28943.84 and the Nifty is down 18.10 points or 0.2 percent at 8924.90. About 863 shares have advanced, 687 shares declined, and 76 shares are unchanged.

BHEL, Asian Paints, Bharti Airtel, Axis Bank and HUL arre top gainers while GAIL, SBI, ICICI Bank, Tata Steel and Wipro are gainers in the Sensex.

The market has opened on a strong note Wednesday. The Sensex is up 66.37 points or 0.2 percent at 29044.39, and the Nifty is up 25.70 points or 0.3 percent at 8968.70. About 351 shares have advanced, 76 shares declined, and 24 shares are unchanged.

TCS, SBI, Wipro, ICICI Bank and GAIL are top gainers while BHEL, Bharti, HDFC and Reliance are major losers in the Sensex.

The Indian rupee appreciated further, hitting more than four-month high. The currency has opened at 66.36 a dollar, up 16 paise compared with previous day's closing value of 66.52 a dollar. The upside in currency was largely on account of weaker dollar after likely delay in Fed rate hike.

NS Venkatesh of Lakshmi Vilas Bank says today, the rupee will take cues from the US non-ISM non-manufacturing data as well as the equity market.

Asian shares opened mixed, shrugging off Wall Street's higher close on "bad news is good news" as weaker-than-expected US ISM services data lowered the chances the Federal Reserve will hike rates.

Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 0.76 percent in early Asian trade, as the yen strengthened against the dollar. A stronger yen is generally seen as negative for Japanese stocks as it makes exports more expensive and reduces overseas earnings when translated back into the home currency.

US stocks rose slightly, nudging the Nasdaq to a record high close, as economic data bolstered views the Federal Reserve may decide against raising interest rates in the near term.

The S&P financial index, which tends to rise with expectations for higher rates, slipped 0.2 percent, while the S&P utilities index, which tends to benefit from a lower rate environment, rose 1.1 percent. A weaker-than-expected reading on the US services sector in August added to views the Fed will refrain from raising interest rates at its meeting this month.

From the precious metals space, gold ended the session sharply higher and hit three-week highs. Weak US data and dollar spurred gains in precious metals.