Sensex, Nifty end marginally lower on F&O expiry

Closing bell

Domestic equity benchmarks ended marginally lower after a highly volatile session as June derivatives contracts expired.

After swinging over 300 points, the 30-share BSE Sensex settled 5.67 points, or 0.01 per cent, lower at 39,586.41. The index hit an intra-day high of 39,817.22 and a low of 39,510.44. The broader NSE Nifty slipped 6 points, or 0.05 per cent, to end at 11,841.55. During the day, the index touched a high of 11,911.15 and a low of 11,821.05.

Top losers in the Sensex pack included Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, RIL, ITC, Infosys, PowerGrid, Kotak Bank, Yes Bank and Vedanta, shedding up to 2.26 per cent. On the other hand, Tata Motors, M&M, ONGC, Axis Bank, HDFC, SBI, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma and HUL rose up to 2.95 per cent.

According to traders, market witnessed heavy volatility as June futures and options (F&O) contracts expired. The domestic market opened on a positive note and continued to trade with strong gains till noon amid positive cues from global markets ahead of the G-20 summit.

“However, post noon, market lost gains amid reports of heightening uncertainty over US-Iran standoff after latter issued warning message to the US, adding to the volatility in later part of trade,” said Narendra Solanki, Head Fundamental Research (Investment Services) - AVP Equity Research, Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers.

On the currency front, the Indian rupee appreciated 3 paise to 69.11 against the US dollar intra-day. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.93 per cent to USD 65.08 per barrel.

Globally, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended on a positive note. Equity markets in Europe were also trading in the green in early deals.

Rainfall deficit

Monsoon rains arrived in Kerala on June 8. File Photo

India's monsoon rains were 24 per cent below average in the week ended June 26, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said, as the seasonal rainfall was scanty over central and western parts of the country. Monsoon has delivered 36 per cent lower-than-normal rainfall since the start of the season on June 1, due to a delay in the onset of monsoon rains. Click here to read the monsoon update by IMD

Europe stocks

Germany's trade-sensitive DAX jumped 0.70 per cent.

The anticipation of a trade truce between the United States and China put European stock markets on pace to break a four-day losing streak, with Frankfurt's DAX outperforming as shares of Germany's chemicals giant Bayer rallied. Germany's trade-sensitive DAX jumped 0.70 per cent and helped charge a 0.26 per cent gain in the pan-European STOXX 600 index by 0755 GMT. Read the European stock markets report here

True North sells 7.39% stake in Aster DM Healthcare

Aster DM Healthcare runs hospitals in India and the Middle East. File Photo

Private equity firm True North has sold 7.39 per cent stake in Aster DM Healthcare worth over ₹448 crore through open market transactions. According to the shareholding pattern available on BSE, at the end of March quarter, True North III A, held 8.23 per cent stake in Aster DM Healthcare, which runs hospitals in India and the Middle East.

The stock of Aster DM Healthcare was trading 1 per cent higher at Rs 126.

IL&FS Engineering asks bourses to go easy on compliance delays

Citing the ‘special’ circumstances that IL&FS Engineering and Construction Company Ltd is passing through following various processes under the NCLT, its management has requested the stock exchanges not to take any coercive action against the company for compliance delays, including the declaration of financial results. The stock of IL&FS Engineering was trading 4.98 per cent lower at Rs 5.45

Broker's Call

Elara Capital

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (Buy)

CMP: ₹453.3

Target: ₹585

On June 22, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals received a complete response (CRL) letter from the USFDA on new drug application (NDA) submission for  Rylatris  used to treat allergic rhinitis. GNP has corrected about 28 per cent in the past three months versus the BSE Pharma Index fall of 10 per cent on concerns of weak Q4 US sales and delay in Rylatris. Read our Broker's call on Glenmark Pharmaceuticals here

Sensex, Nifty trims gains

The 30-share BSE index Sensex trimmed the day's gains and was trading 15.95 points or 0.04 per cent at 39,602.02. The index was dragged by industry heavyweights and IT stocks.

The top gainers in the pack were Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, NTPC, Hero MotoCorp and ONGC while the laggards were Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, HCL Tech, Reliance, and Infosys.

The 50-share NSE index Nifty was trading in negative at 11,844.95, lower by 2.60 points or 0.02 per cent. The top scrips lending support to the index were Tata Motors, IBUL Housing Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Eicher Motors and Infratel while the stocks of Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, Wipro, UPL, and Power Grid were top losers.

Commodity commentary

Gold’s over-extended rally, triggered by a host of supportive factors, is now beginning to come off.  Many gold bulls expected the Fed to cut rates by as much as 50 basis points as early as July on the assumption that the Fed may buckle under President Trump’s pressure. After sharp correction from the high of $1,440 an ounce, prices are closer to the $1,400/oz mark. Read our commodity commentary on bullion market here

Coffee Day Enterprises gains

Shares of Coffee Day Enterprises Ltd rise as much as 8.8 per cent to ₹242.9 , marking their biggest intraday per cent gain since February 13. The stocks of Coffee Day Enterprises were trading 4.38 per cent higher at ₹233.80.

Nifty Call

The market breadth of the Nifty index is biased towards advances. The Nifty futures contract began the session in positive note, opening at 11,876 levels. The near-term outlook remains positive as long as the contract trades above 11,865 levels. Traders can buy the contract with a stop-loss at 11,860 levels. Read our Nifty call for June futures here

Nifty touches 11,900 mark

The 30-share BSE index Sensex was trading 192.01 points or 0.48 per cent at 39,784.09 led by financial stocks. The top gainers were Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank and Hero MotoCorp while the stocks trading in red were Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Bharti Airtel, HCL Technologies and Reliance.

Among the sectoral indices, the auto and realty stocks were the biggest gainers.

The 50-share NSE index Nifty was trading at 11,900.75, 53.20 points or 0.45 per cent higher. The positive pack were led by the stocks of IBUL Housing Finance, Tata Motors, Eicher Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra and Axis Bank while the stocks in the negative zone were Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, UPL, Power Grid, and Wipro

Top Mindtree executives likely to quit after the deal

Mindtreee CEO Rostow Ravanan is among the executives seen exiting the firm next month

With L&T now holding a 51 per cent stake in Mindtree, top executives of the IT services firm, including CEO Rostow Ravanan, are unlikely to continue with the firm after its mid-July AGM. One of Mindtree’s co-founders, Subroto Bagchi, has already decided not to seek re-election to the board. Read more

The stocks of Mindtree were trading 0.27 per cent lower at Rs 933.60

Broker's Call

Motilal Oswal

Axis Bank (Buy)

CMP: ₹788.95

Target: ₹925

Axis Bank’s (AB) annual report analysis reveals the bank’s focus on improving its earnings metrics and asset quality. As part of its FY20-22 strategy, AB targets an RoE of 18 per cent by FY22, with credit cost, opex and business mix identified as the key drivers for the achievement of this goal. Read our Broker's Call on Axis Bank here

Adani Ports plans to raise $750 mn

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited (APSEZ) on Thursday announced plans to raise USD 750 million (approx Rs 5,195 crore) to fund its capital expenditure requirement and also to retire some of its debt. The company said it intends to use the proceeds primarily for capital expenditure. The stocks of Adani Ports were trading 1.76 per cent lower at Rs 407.70

Sensex rally 132 points higher

The 30-share BSE index Sensex was trading 132.38 points or 0.33 per cent higher at 39,724.46 led by financials and auto stocks

The major gainers in the pack were Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank and Hindustan Unilever while the laggards were Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Bharti Airtel, Reliance and Infosys.

Among the sectoral indices, realty emerged the top gainer followed by auto stocks.

Similarly, the broader index was trading 37.55 points or 0.32 per cent at 11,885.10. The scrips leading the positive zone were IBUL Housing Finance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, Infratel, and Eicher Motors while shares trading in red were Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, UPL, Bharti Airtel and Power Grid.

Donald Trump asks India to withdraw import tariff hike

US President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media.

US President Donald Trump asked India to withdraw retaliatory tariffs that New Delhi imposed this month, calling the duties “unacceptable”. India slapped higher tariffs on 28 US products following Washington's withdrawal this month of key trade privileges for New Delhi. Trump scrapped trade privileges for India under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), under which New Delhi was the biggest beneficiary that allowed duty-free exports of up to $5.6 billion. Read more on the India-US import tariff hike and US-India trade ties

Staff costs soar for IT majors

TCS, Infosys, Wipro have recruited over 25,000 Americans in recent years.

Leading IT firms Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and Wipro witnessed a sharp increase in employee benefit expenses, including salaries and bonuses, in FY19. In recent years, the three companies have altogether hired over 25,000 employees there, with the bulk of them coming on board last fiscal. Read more on the hiring in US by IT majors

The stock of TCS was trading 0.16 per cent higher at Rs 2,257.25, the shares of Infosys was trading at 739.90, up 0.03 per cent and whereas the Wipro shares were trading 0.87 per cent lower at Rs 283.70.

The IT stocks were trading lower by 0.02 per cent at 15,818.40

Commodities market

Oil fell, erasing some of the previous session's strong gains, as traders await the G20 summit in Japan and a meeting of OPEC and other oil producers to decide on an extension of output cuts. Brent crude futures were down 19 cents, or 0.3 per cent, at $66.30 by 0256 GMT. Crude inventories in the US, the largest producer and consumer of oil, fell 12.8 million barrels last week. More on the commodities market report, read here

Shares up ahead of F&O expiry

The shares tracked upbeat Asian stocks, ahead of expiry of derivative contracts, on hopes of a tentative trade truce between the United States and China.

The South China Morning Post (SCMP), citing sources, said Washington and Beijing were laying out an agreement that would help avert the next round of tariffs on an additional $300 billion of Chinese imports.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan were up 0.6 per cent. US President Donald Trump is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday in Osaka, a conversation that could revive stalled negotiations between the world's two biggest economies or launch a much deeper, costlier trade war that would drag down global growth and roil financial markets.

Although, some nervousness remained after Trump said on Wednesday that a trade deal with Xi was possible but he is prepared to impose US tariffs on virtually all remaining Chinese imports if the two countries continue to disagree.

Back home, sentiment dampened on renewed worries of a trade dispute with the United States after Trump called out India's move to raise tariffs on US goods . Earlier this month, India imposed higher retaliatory tariffs on 28 U.S. products including almonds, apples and walnuts, following Washington's withdrawal of key trade privileges for New Delhi.

The broader NSE index was up 0.35 per cent  or 41.65 points at 11,889.20, while the benchmark BSE index was 0.39 per cent or 156.33 points higher at 39,748.41. Technical charts indicate that the NSE index is biased to test a resistance at 11,920.34.

“Markets are jittery due to the uncertainty coming from the trade tiffs between US and China and markets will continue to be cautious till the conclusion from the G20 meeting comes out,” said Saurabh Jain, AVP Research, SMC Global Securities

Financials were among the biggest gainers on the index. Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd gained 2.2 per cent, while Axis Bank Ltd and IndusInd Bank Ltd added more than 2 per cent each. Among other gainers, Coffee Day Enterprises Ltd rose 8.8 per cent on reports that Coca-Cola Co is in talks to pick up a significant stake in Cafe Coffee Day. - Reuters

Precious metals

Gold bars are displayed at a gold jewellery shop in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh April 11, 2012. Indian gold futures are likely to extend losses this week, falling below a one-week low touched on April 16, 2012, hurt by a firm dollar overseas, although a revival in physical demand ahead of key festival could limit the downside, analysts said. Picture taken April 11, 2012. REUTERS/Ajay Verma (INDIA - Tags: BUSINESS COMMODITIES)

Gold prices were little changed following a steep fall in the previous session, as investors waited on any Sino-US trade developments later this week, while bulls rolled back hopes of big US interest rate cuts. Spot gold was down 0.1 per cent at $1,407.25 per ounce. More on the gold and other precious metals prices, read here

Rupee market

A 100-rupee-note

The rupee depreciated 17 paise to 69.32 against the US dollar in opening trade as strengthening of the American currency in the overseas market weighed on the local unit. The rupee opened weak at 69.29 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 69.32. Read more on the local currency market here

Shares rise ahead of G-20 summit

Domestic equity benchmark BSE Sensex rose over 100 points in early trade tracking positive cues from global markets ahead of the G-20 summit.

The 30-share index was trading 139.77 points, or 0.35 per cent, higher at 39,731.85. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty was quoting 33.65 points, or 0.28 per cent, up at 11,821.20.

In the previous session Wednesday, the BSE gauge finished 157.14 points, or 0.40 per cent, higher at 39,592.08, and the broader NSE Nifty jumped 51.10 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 11,847.55.

Top gainers in the Sensex pack included Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank, ONGC, Axis Bank, M&M, L&T, NTPC, Maruti and HUL, rising up to 1.43 per cent. While, TechM, Sun Pharma, HCL Tech, PowerGrid, Bajaj Auto, RIL, HDFC Bank and Bharti Airtel fell up to 1.14 per cent.

According to experts, equities are rallying globally as investors hope for progress in US-China trade talks at the G-20 summit scheduled to be held in Osaka, Japan, on June 28-29.

Elsewhere in Asian, Shanghai Composite Index, Hang Seng, Nikkei and Kospi were trading significantly higher in their respective early sessions.

Meanwhile, on a net basis, foreign institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 106.26 crore, while domestic institutional investors sold shares to the tune of Rs 51.47 crore, provisional data available with stock exchanges showed Wednesday.

On the currency front, the Indian rupee depreciated 15 paise to 69.30 against the US dollar. The global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell 0.35 per cent to 65.46 per barrel.

Forex market

Foreign exchange reserve

The dollar hovered near a one-week high against the yen, propped up by hopes of Sino-US trade talk progress though investors were nonetheless cautious ahead of a meeting between leaders of the two powers in Japan in days ahead. The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies was a touch lower at 96.196. Click here to read the forex market report

Sensex, Nifty marginally high

The 30-share BSE index Sensex was trading 73.62 points or 0.19 per cent higher at 39,665.70 while the NSE index Nifty was trading at 11,865.75, higher by 18.20 points or 0.15 per cent.

The bank stocks lend support to the BSE index. The stocks of IndusInd Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, Axis Bank, Tata Motors and Tata Steel emerged the top gainers while the stocks trading in red were Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Sun Pharma, HCL Technologies and Reliance.

Sectorally, the realty stock index was trading at 1.81 per cent.

In the broader index, the biggest gainers were Vedanta, JSW Steel, Power Grid, Sun Pharma and Hindalco while the laggards were Britannia, IBUL Housing Finance, Infosys, IndusInd Bank and Bharti Airtel.

Asian markets

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.6 per cent. File Photo

Asian share markets turned higher following a media report the US and China have tentatively agreed to a truce in their trade war, ahead of a closely-watched meeting between the two nations this weekend. China led the gains with its blue-chip index up 1.4 per cent. Read the Asian markets report here

Stocks in focus

Shares of Oceanic Foods will remain in focus on Thursday, as they will turn ex-bonus on Friday. The company will issue two bonus shares for every one held as on the record date. The board has fixed June 28 as the record date to determine eligible shareholders to receive bonus shares. For investors who wish to receive the bonus shares, Thursday is the cut-off date to own the company’s shares. The BSE-SME listed company hit the market in 2017 at an IPO price of ₹65.

Havells India is looking at a ₹1,000-crore revenue from building circuit protection devices over the next three years. The new range of MCBs and RCCBs are manufactured at the plant in Baddi where the company has enhanced its manufacturing capacities to 60 lakh poles per month. Shareholders will closely monitor the development, as the electrical equipment maker had reported a net profit of ₹791.52 core and revenues of ₹10,057.62 crore for FY2019.

MSTC has signed an agreement with Kerala State Electricity Board to provide e-procurement services for their solar projects across the state. As part of the agreement, MSTC would be developing an online portal for KSEB. However, the PSU major did not disclose other details such as order size and execution time. Shareholders would be keen to know the order size from MSTC, which reported a loss of ₹324.47 crore and revenues of ₹2,927 crore for FY19.

Opening bell

The 30-share BSE index Sensex opens 41.89 points higher at 39,633.97 against the previous close of 39,592.08. The 50-share NSE index Nifty opens higher by 22.6 points at 11,870.15 against the previous close of 11,847.55.

Day Trading Guide

Given below are supports and resistances for Nifty 50 futures and seven key stocks that can help in your intra-day trading:

₹2467 • HDFC Bank

₹739 • Infosys

₹277 • ITC

₹167 • ONGC

₹1294 • Reliance Ind.

₹358 • SBI

₹2253 • TCS

11864 • Nifty 50 Futures

S1, S2 : Support 1 & 2; R1, R2: Resistance 1 & 2.

Today's Pick

Radico Khaitan

We recommend a buy in the stock of Radico Khaitan at the current levels of ₹311.4. The stock has been trending upwards for the past one week. Overall the short-term outlook is bullish and the stock potential to trend upwards. Read our stock recommendation and stock activity of Radico Khaitan here

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