Share Market News Today | Sensex, Nifty, Share Prices Highlights: Indian benchmark indices witnessed high volatility in intraday trade amid concerns over the likely government action as Covid-19 cases rose in Japan, China and the US. The S&P BSE Sensex tanked more than 600 points, to close at 61,067. The NSE Nifty 50 index fell below 18200 level to end at 18,199, down 1.01%. Broader markets fell in trades as Nifty MidCap 100 settled 1.58% lower and Nifty SmallCap 100 lost 2.24% in trade today. Sectorally, the Nifty Pharma index gained the most, over 2% in trade. On the flip side, Bank Nifty, Nifty Auto, and Nifty Media indices declined the most. Bank Nifty gave up the 43,000 mark, ending 1.7% down at 42,617.
Bank Nifty has slipped below the 20-DMA, where 42,200-42,000 is an immediate and critical support zone; below this, we can expect any major weakness, otherwise it may bounce back again. On the upside, the 20-DMA of 43,300 will act as a hurdle now.
– Santosh Meena, Head of Research, Swastika Investmart
Divi's Lab, Cipla, Apollo Hospitals, Sun Pharma and Dr Reddy were Nifty 50's top gainers, while Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, UltraTech Cement, IndusInd Bank and Bajaj Finserv are the index's biggest laggards, with Adani Enterprises losing 6.15%.
“Benchmark Indices dropped yet again on the back of Covid scare in China and elsewhere but today's fall was more noticeable to participants since the red colour on the screen engulfed all over barring Pathology Labs, Hospitals and select Pharma counters involved in Covid related drugs. Barring Healthcare & IT, all other sectoral indices ended in the red. Benchmark indices lost over a percentage in afternoon trade despite opening in the green, even as developed markets continued to trade in the green.”
– S Ranganathan, Head of Research, LKP Securities
The S&P BSE Sensex tanked more than 600 points, to close at 61,067. The NSE Nifty 50 index fell below 18200 level to end at 18,199, down 1.01%.
The India VIX index, maintained by the National Stock Exchange, surged over 12% . The index is calculated by looking at the movement in the prices of options contracts of the Nifty 50 index. It is an indicator that is often seen as a measure of the amount of fear in the stock market
Adani Ports Board appointed Ranjitsinh B Barad as additional director. Barad, an IAS officer of the 2006 batch, is the Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Gujarat Maritime Board. At present, he is also the Chairman of Gujarat Pollution Control Board. Adani Ports was quoting at Rs 860.50 apiece on the National Stock Exchange, down by 2.6%.
Indian benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 are among the best performers so far this year compared to major western and EM stock markets, with gains of over 4% year-to-date. Bank, oil & gas, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and public sector enterprises are among the stocks that drove the rally in the index in 2022. The top five best-performing stocks in the Nifty 50 universe include Adani Enterprises which has rallied over 140% so far this year. It is followed by Coal India (up 54.7%), ITC (54.4%), M&M (up 52%) Axis Bank (40%).
Pharma and diagnostics stocks jumped on Wednesday amid renewed fears of Covid outbreaks. As reports of a sudden spurt in Covid-19 cases in China, Japan, the United States of America, the Republic of Korea, and Brazil surface, a meeting on the COVID-19 situation is being held by Union Health Ministry on 21 December. Share prices of Dr Lal PathLabs, Metropolis Healthcare, Vijaya Diagnostic Centre, Thyrocare Technologies, and Krsnaa Diagnostics rallied up to 6% in early trade as investors bet high on these stocks as they see brighter prospects for diagnostics and healthcare businesses amid Covid scare.
“It’s a healthy correction so far and we expect Nifty to take a breather around the 18,000-18,100 zone first and the next major support is at 17,800 levels. However, the recovery could also be gradual as the 18,500-18,750 zone would act as a hurdle. We’re seeing profit-taking across the board however sectors like banking, FMCG, auto and metal are showing resilience and outperforming the others. We feel participants should utilise this phase to gradually accumulate the top-performing stocks from these sectors.”-Ajit Mishra, VP – Technical Research, Religare Broking
With a spurt in coronavirus cases reported in China, the United States and South Korea, India’s Health Ministry has asked States to bolster genome sequencing of coronavirus samples. Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya will review India’s COVID-19 situation today. In view of the recent rising cases of COVID-19 in some countries, Union Health Ministry has requested States/UTs to send samples of all COVID-19 positive cases to INSACOG labs to track new variants, if any. Health Ministry and INSACOG are keeping a sharp watch on the situation.
Sensex is down 350.99 points or 0.5% percent at 61,562. Nifty is down 96 pts or 0.5% at 18,289.
Bajaj Finance Ltd, the non-banking financial company (NBFC) with a focus on consumer loans, has underperformed the benchmark Sensex and Nifty indices in 2022, the first time it has done so in 14 years. So far this year, both the Sensex and Nifty have risen nearly 6%, but Bajaj Finance shares have dropped 4.8%, a first such underperformance since 2008. This was also the first negative annual return for the NBFC since 2011.
Samvardhana Motherson | 56.70 lakh shares (0.2 percent equity) worth Rs 39.95 cr changes hands at an average of Rs 70 per share
The Indian rupee depreciated 5 paise to 82.75 against the US dollar in early trade as strength in US dollar and firm crude prices in global markets weighed on the domestic currency. The local unit is expected to depreciate further, tracking weakness in equity markets. Volatility in the USDINR pair is likely to continue, according to analysts. Additionally, market participants will keep an eye on RBI MPC minutes and major economic data from the US to gauge the economic health of the country. “US$INR (December) is facing strong resistance near 82.97. As long as it sustains below this level it may slip further till 82.50,” said ICICIdirect.
“The Bank Nifty is expected to hold 43000 levels in the current week as it holds highest open interest. However, on upsides, 43500 Call has witnessed some closure, which suggests it is likely to resume its positive momentum.”-ICICIdirect
The Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued directions to stock exchanges in commodity derivatives segment to extend suspension in trading of derivative contracts in seven farm commodities, which are paddy (non-basmati), wheat, chana, mustard seeds and its derivatives, soya bean and its derivatives, crude palm oil and moong for a year. The suspension in trading has been extended for one more year beyond December 20, 2022 i.e. till December 20, 2023.
“Nifty weekly contract has highest open interest at 18,600 for Calls and 18,300 for Puts while monthly contracts have highest open interest at 18,500 for Calls and 18,300 for Puts. Highest new OI addition was seen at 18,800 for Calls and 18,200 for Puts in weekly and at 18,400 for Calls and 18,200 for Puts in monthly contracts. FIIs increased their future index long position holdings by -14.98%, increased future index shorts by 26.77% and in index options by -3.50% in Call longs, 2.04% in Call short, 2.97% in Put longs and -5.29% in Put shorts.”
– Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services
“The anticipated consolidation briefly breached our downside marker of 18,270, before pulling back swiftly.The failure to collapse was because the structure had room for upsides, towards 18,520-670 or even the 18,800sas discussed. But given yesterday’s volatility, the extent of upsides need a revisit. Inability to clear 18,530 with the present momentum, will sound the first warning towards weakness, but we would watch the performance inside the 18,430-463 region before reverting to the downside view.”
– Anand James – Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services
Bank Nifty rises 238 points or 0.5% to trade around 43,598. The broader markets and sectoral indices open in the green, with Nifty PSU Bank adding 1.08%.
Indian benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 opened higher in trade today, after closing mildly in the red amid volatility during yesterday's trading session. Nifty is trading at 18,456, adding 70 points while Sensex is up 0.4% at 61,921.
“Early optimism is seen as key benchmark indices are likely to start on a firm note on the back of strong gains in SGX Nifty and other Asian gauges following overnight recovery in the US markets. Local traders would be eyeing the minutes of the recently concluded RBI's monetary policy meeting set to be released later today. The minutes will throw some light on the reasons behind undertaking the previous rate hike and indication of what could be in store going ahead with regards to RBI's rate setting decision. The other key catalysts are the US Dollar remaining sluggish below 104 levels, and the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury rising to 3.69%.”
– Prashanth Tapse – Research Analyst, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities
Domestic indices Nifty and Sensex trade higher during the morning's pre-open session. Nifty gained 50 points to settle at 18,435, while Sensex rose 0.4%, ending at 61,992, almost reclaiming the 62,000 level.
“The 185 pull back from the lows in Nifty yesterday is confirmation of the success of the strategy of buy on dips. Institutional buying – by both FIIs and DIIs – can trigger short covering in an oversold market. This might have contributed to the pull back yesterday. The near-term market construct is not favourable for equities. The rising Covid cases in the US, Korea, Brazil, and China is an area of concern. The situation is dire in China. This might impact market sentiments. Moreover, there are no near-term triggers to take the market higher. The next round of triggers will come only in January, starting with the Infy and HCL Tech results starting on 12th Jan. Even in a weak market leading private sector banks and Reliance are likely to remain strong.”
– V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services
“U.S. stocks finished modestly higher on Tuesday, bouncing after a four-session skid, as investors gauged whether the recent losing streak in equities has been overdone. Traders also weighed the potential ripple effects of the Bank of Japan’s surprise announcement to put a higher ceiling on government bond yields.
Technology shares still under pressure after last week’s hawkish central bank turn. Treasuries slumped, with the global bond market digesting the Bank of Japan’s sudden increase in its yield trading band, seen as a step toward the ending of its era of ultraloose monetary policy. Investors were also worrying about the current quarter earnings season and winter holiday shopping. Japan’s two-year government yield rose above zero for the first time since 2015.”
– Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) tweaked the present share buyback norms for listed companies and tightened disclosure rules in its bid to increase transparency and credibility of markets. “Buyback through stock exchange route to be phase out in a gradual manner,” India’s capital market’s regulator said in a release post its scheduled board meet on Tuesday.
Oil prices rose in early Asian trade on Wednesday as U.S. crude stocks were seen falling last week, while the dollar weakened, making oil less expensive for non-American buyers. Brent crude futures rose 8 cents to $80.07 per barrel by 0126 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 6 cents to $76.29.
The board of Hinduja Global Solutions Ltd (HGS), the group's business process management arm, approved a buyback of 60 lakh shares worth Rs 1,020 crore on 19 December. The board has approved a buyback price of Rs 1,700 per equity share payable in cash for an aggregate amount of up to Rs 1020 crore, excluding any expenses related to the buyback, including brokerage, costs, fees, turnover charges, taxes such as buyback tax, securities transaction tax, and goods and services tax (if any), stamp duty, advisors fees, filing fees, printing and dispatch expenses, and other incidental and related expenses and charges.
-Central Bank of India: To consider fund raising in 26 December board meet
-Dabur India: Entities of Burman family sold 1 percent stake via block deal
-Future Enterprise: Defaults on interest payment of Rs 6.07 crore
-JM Financial: To raise funds via private placement of notes, NCDs
-Sterling & Wilson Renewable: OFS fs non-retail category gets 153% demand
-UNO Minda: Signs tech license pact with South Korea’s Asentec for wheel speed sensors
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) sold $922 million worth of foreign currency on a net basis in October to shore up the rupee, which is sharply lower than it did in September. Data released by the central bank on December 20 showed net sales of foreign currency in October was $25.78 billion and net purchases was $24.86 billion.
Further RBI bulletin showed net forward dollar holdings stood at $241 million at the end of October, compared with $10.42 billion as of end-September.
“Markets struggled through the session and ended in red due to weak global cues, but managed to recoup most of its early losses. The choppy trend can be attributed to lack of fresh positive triggers. Also investors are awaiting the release of the minutes of the RBI's recently concluded monetary policy on Wednesday, which could give some clarity on the central bank's likely course of action in the near term. Technically, after early morning sharp intraday selloff the index took support near 18200 and recovered from the day's low level. Currently, the market is witnessing a non-directional activity and perhaps traders are waiting for either side to breakout. For bulls, 18450 would be the important breakout level to watch. And if the market manages to trade above the same, then we can expect a quick uptrend rally towards 18550-18600. On the flip side, trading below 18200 may increase further weakness up to 18100-18050.”-Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities
“Low market volumes have led to higher intra-day volatility in the markets. Nifty could now remain in the 18269-18441 band in the near term and a breach of this band could result in accelerated move in that direction.”-Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities
CONCOR (BUY): For today’s trade, long position can be initiated in the range of Rs 742- 737 for the target of Rs 769 with a strict stop loss of Rs 727.
GRASIM (BUY): For today’s trade, long position can be initiated in the range of Rs 1,748- 1,738 for the target of Rs 1,805 with a strict stop loss of Rs 1,710.
SRF (BUY): For today’s trade, long position can be initiated in the range of Rs 2,285- 2,270 for the target of Rs 2,395 with a strict stop loss of Rs 2,234.
“The key technical indicators are in favor of the bears on daily timeframe chart, while its hourly indicators witnessed a bullish divergence. As per the current set-up, the index may witness a rebound before resuming its southward journey. On the higher side, as per the change in polarity principle, the index will continue to face hurdle around 43,800-level. The index could move towards 42,900-42,600-42,100-levels. As for the day, support is placed at around 43,068 and then at 42,776 levels, while resistance is observed at 43,539 and then at 43,718 levels.”-Reliance Securities
“For Nifty, the key technical indicators are negatively poised on the short-term timeframe chart, while its near-term indicators reversed from the lower levels. Our near-term bearish stance will remain intact, where a rebound cannot be ruled out before it resumes the southward journey. On the higher side, 18,600-18,650 zone will cap the up-move. The index could move towards 18,200-18,150 zone initially and 18,000-17,950 zone subsequently. As for the day, support is placed at around 18,257 and then at 18,129 levels, while resistance is observed at 18,459 and then at 18,533 levels.”-Reliance Securities
“The Nifty opened gap down on December 20 & moved down in the first half of the session. Multiple technical parameters offered support on the downside near 18200. The index received support from the junction of the 40 DEMA & the daily lower Bollinger. Also, the selling pressure was absorbed near lower end of a downward sloping channel drawn from the high of 18887. Thereon, the Nifty saw sharp recovery, which is likely to continue going ahead. The Nifty is expected to test the upper channel line near 18600. On the downside, 18200 will continue to pose as a crucial support.”-Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas
In the previous session, BSE Sensex declined 104 points to 61,702, while NSE Nifty 50 fell 35 points to 18,385. “Domestic markets succumbed to global pressure on the back of surge in bond yields, hawkish stance by central banks globally and rising cases of Covid in China. There is a growing recessionary fear among investors which is fading hopes of a Santa Claus rally. Market is expected to consolidate with focus shifting towards budget-oriented sectors,” said Siddhartha Khemka, Head – Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.
Markets in the Asia-Pacific traded mixed after Wall Street ended its four-day losing streak as global bonds rose after the Bank of Japan adjusted its yield curve control tolerance. Japan continued its second day of losses, as the Nikkei 225 fell 0.98 percent and the Topix lost 0.65 percent. The Kospi in South Korea erased earlier gains and was flat. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.5%, while the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia rose 1.39% in its morning trade.
Wall Street closed slightly higher on Tuesday after four sessions of declines, but investors fretted about weak holiday shopping and rising bond yields added pressure after the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) surprise tweak of monetary policy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 92.2 points, or 0.28 percent, to 32,849.74, the S&P 500 gained 3.96 points, or 0.10 percent, to 3,821.62 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.08 points, or 0.01 percent, to 10,547.11.
Trends in the SGX Nifty hint at a positive opening for the Indian share market. The Nifty futures were trading 66 pts higher at around 18,492 levels on the Singaporean exchange.
