Business News at 09:30 am on 13th November 2023

Samvat 2080 was off to a good start on Sunday in the Muhurat session with the benchmark indices putting up a strong show, driven by IT and PSU counters. The 30-share Sensex jumped 354 points or 0.55% to 65,259.45, with Infosys, Wipro, and TCS being among the top five gainers — rising between 1.4% and 0.74%. Banks and financials also added to gains with HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank and State Bank of India all closing in the green. The broader Nifty jumped 100 points or 0.52% to 19,525.55. Coal India was the biggest gainer, rising over 2% while the Nifty IT, Media and Metal indices were major drivers. All BSE sectoral indices ended the session in the green with technology and industrials topping the charts.

Meanwhile, A colonial-era post office could soon be the address of the latest Taj hotel in Sri Lanka. Indian Hotels Company, the operator of Taj brand of hotels, wants to convert the iconic post office into a hotel and has approached the island nation’s government for permission. The post office, located in the city of Nuwara Eliya, is renowned for its Tudor Revival architecture and is a landmark tourist point. The site is close to Sita Eliya, the place believed to be where Ravana had held Sita in captivity. Last week, Sri Lankan Cabinet spokesman Bandula Gunawardena said that the post office was in a highly dilapidated state and cannot be renovated or painted.
Next up, A majority of big investors in the stock market continued to increase their wealth and beat the benchmark indices successfully in the past year. An analysis of the portfolios of eight top investors revealed that the value has increased in the range of 15% to 101% for seven investors this Diwali, as compared to last year. Only one investor – Dolly Khanna – saw a decline in wealth of around 12%.Around 50% of these investors increased their number of bets while the rest continued with their existing portfolio or trimmed it.
In the investment sector….As mid and small-cap stocks have logged steep gains in the past one year and valuations are turning less attractive relative to large-caps, investors should now look at incremental allocation to large-cap funds. By investing in large-cap funds, investors can diversify their portfolio to protect their investments in case of correction in mid- and small-cap stocks. Large-cap stocks tend to be more stable in the long-run, which ensures that the overall portfolio of investors becomes better balanced. Also, as investors increase their investment horizon the power of compounding comes into play for creation of substantial wealth. Experts say investors can expect favourable returns from large-cap companies due to their substantial market capitalisation, which makes them resilient during economic downturns.

Moving on to insurance news….If a few years ago, someone were to tell you that you could choose to pay your motor insurance premium only for the days you drive, if not unimaginable, it would have still seemed far-fetched. Cut to the present day. The world of insurance is evolving every moment with customer-centricity becoming the focal point of the entire industry. Motor insurance, which was perceived to be just a legal mandate, has evolved now to proactively adopt a customer-first approach, much like its health and life counterparts. This rapidly changed, especially after the pandemic, with regulatory authorities stepping in to make motor insurance more inclusive and customer-friendly. This shift was further driven by technology and the evolving demands of customers.

In other news, The EICMA, or the Milan Motorcycle Show, is the world’s biggest two-wheeler show, and now also a big stage for Indian two-wheeler companies to announce their arrival. At last week’s EICMA, Hero MotoCorp, Royal Enfield and Ultraviolette did the world premieres of their bikes. The Royal Enfield did the world premiere of the all-new Himalayan. It will be launched in India on November 24, at the Motoverse in Goa – the company’s flagship biking event – followed by Europe and the Asia Pacific…………..Hero MotoCorp unveiled three concept vehicles and three production-ready vehicles at EICMA. These are two new ICE scooters Xoom 125R and Xoom 160 and one electric Vida V1 Pro…………..Ultraviolette Automotive, a Bengaluru-based EV start-up showcased the F99, an extremely powerful electric motorcycle that can sprint from 0-100 km/h in just 3 seconds and has a top speed of 265 km/h. Planned to be launched in 2025, it follows the F77 launched in India earlier this year.

Lastly, GIFT Nifty traded up 65.5 points or 0.34% at 19555, indicating a positive opening for domestic indices NSE Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex on Monday. Let’s look at the stocks that you need to watch out for today. These include Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Coal India, Steel Authority of India Limited, Housing and Urban Development Corporation, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals and Biocon.