Sensex ends FY18 with 11% gain; investors richer by Rs 20.70 trillion


The benchmark BSE Sensex slumped 206 points in a see-saw trade on Wednesday to close below the 33,000-mark in the last trading session of 2017-18, but finished the year with a gain of 11.30 %.

The broader 50-share Nifty also ended 70 points lower at 10,113.70. The Sensex has gained 3,348.18 points, or 11.30 %, in 2017-18. The index had gained 16.88 % in the previous fiscal year.

Investors saw wealth addition of Rs 20.70 trillion during 2017-18. The market capitalisation of all firms listed on the BSE was at Rs 142.24 trillion against Rs 121.54 trillion as on March 31, 2017.

The broader Nifty closed the fiscal year with gains of 939.95 points, or 10.25 %. During the previous year, it scored gains of 1,435.55 points or 18.55 %.

For the day, the BSE Sensex snapped its two-session winning streak to end lower by 205.71 points, or 0.62 % at 32,968.68. Intra-day, it hovered between 33,104.11 and 32,917.66. The gauge had rallied 577.85 points in the past two sessions. The NSE Nifty, too, ended the day 70.45 points, or 0.69 % lower at 10,113.70 after shuttling between 10,158.35 and 10,096.90.

On a weekly basis, the Sensex rose 372.14 points, or 1.14 %, while the Nifty gained 115.65 points or 1.16 %. This was their first gain in five weeks.

Stock exchanges will remain closed on Thursday and Friday on account of Mahavir Jayanti and Good Friday, respectively.

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Sensex ends on Friday 509 pts lower, Nifty slips over 1%; Nifty Metal index down 2%


The market ended lower amid political upheaval after the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) formally decided to quit the NDA government.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 33,176, down 510 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,195, down 165 points.

Among sectors, metal companies were under pressure falling by over 2% on the NSE on fears that the tariffs could disrupt growth. SAIL, Vendanta, Hind Copper were trading lower in the range of 3% to 5% on the NSE.

Shares of Tata Motors, Tata Motors DVR, Force Motors, BEML, ICRA, Great Eastern Shipping Company and Max Financial Services were among nine stocks from the S&P BSE 500 index hitting their respective fresh 52-week lows in noon deal on the BSE.

Ramky Infrastructure has been awarded project worth Rs 939.41 crore in Srinagar in the State of Jammu & Kashmir by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on EPC mode. The stock gained 1.5 percent.

Shares of Dr Reddy’s Laboratories declined 3 percent as it has received Form 483 with 4 observations for its API Hyderabad Plant 1 at Jinnaram Mandal, Medak Telengana from USFDA.

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Sensex ends 137 pts down, Nifty at 10,458 levels; PSU banks fall


The benchmark indices ended marginally lower on Thursday afternoon amid thin trade. The S&P BSE Sensex ended the day at 34,047, down 137 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,458, down 34 points.

The markets will remain closed on Friday, March 2, 2018, on account of Holi.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty PSU Bank index fell 1.87% on Thursday led by a decline in the shares of Indian Bank, Canara Bank and Bank of India.

Venky’s (India) continued its upward march for the seventh straight trading day, hitting a new high of Rs 4,530, up 15% on the BSE in an otherwise subdued market. The stock rallied 69% from Rs 2,673 on February 20, 2018, as compared to 1.3% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex.

Fortis Healthcare was trading flat on Thursday even after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 191 million for the quarter ended December 2017 against a profit of Rs 4.5 billion year-ago periods.

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Closing Bell Friday: Sensex falls 287 pts, Nifty ends below 10,500; PSU Bank Index dips 2.5%


The benchmark indices ended off day’s low but remained under pressure during the day.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 286.71 points at 34,010.76 and the 50-share NSE Nifty was down 94.30 points at 10,451.20.

The PSU Bank index fell more than 2.5% as all stocks caught in a bear trap after PNB detected transaction fraud worth USD 1.8 billion (Rs 11,300 crore). PNB and Bank of Baroda were biggest losers, falling nearly 5 percent each. Bank of India, IDBI Bank, Union Bank, Syndicate Bank, SBI, Indian Bank, Canara Bank, Andhra Bank, OBC and Allahabad Bank were down 1-3 percent.

Fortis Healthcare slipped 20% to Rs 115 in noon deal trade, falling 24% from its intra-day high on BSE on back of heavy volumes after the Supreme Court (SC) allowed financial institutions to sell pledged shares of the company.

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Sensex tanks 2.5%, down 839 pts, Nifty ends below 10,800 on Budget woes


Benchmark indices tumbled on Friday as the long-term capital gains tax on equities investments dampened sentiment, while bonds slid for a second consecutive session on worries the central bank would become more hawkish on inflation.

The weak sentiment came a day after the government unveiled its budget for the year starting in April that raised spending for rural sectors and healthcare, widening the fiscal deficit target to 3.3% of gross domestic product from the previous 3.0%. The government also unveiled a 10 percent tax on long-term capital gains in equity markets.

Investors worried that higher spending and the government’s move to raise minimum support prices for crops could lead to higher retail prices at a time when consumer price inflation has already hit a 17-month high of 5.21%, well above the Reserve Bank of India’s target of 4%.

BHEL, Bajaj Auto, Bajaj Finance and Tata Power lost the most on both indices, while TCS, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, and HCL Tech were the top gainers.

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Sensex snaps 6-day gains, falls 111 pts; Nifty ends Jan series above 11,000, up 6%


Benchmark indices fell on Thursday, snapping a six-day record-setting rally, as profit-taking hit IT stocks while large state-run lenders slid as they stood to receive less money than expected from a government recapitalisation plan.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 36,050, up 111 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 11,069, up 16 points.

The government’s Rs 881.39 billion capital infusion in struggling public sector banks should help in part to mitigate risks but resolution of bad assets and continued high credit costs hinder the sector’s near-term performance, Fitch Ratings said on Thursday. While the capital infusion plan was less than half of its estimate of $65 billion needed for the sector, Fitch said yesterday’s announcement will encourage banks to resolve their non-performing loan (NPL) stock faster as improved capital buffers bolster their ability to absorb potential large haircuts.

Jindal Saw dipped 8% to Rs 154, extending Wednesday’s 4% decline on BSE after the company reported 19% growth in net profit at Rs 963 million for the quarter ended December 2017 (Q3FY18). It had a profit of Rs 807 million in the same quarter last fiscal. Total income increased 49% to Rs 21,807 million from Rs 14,666 million in the corresponding quarter of previous year.

Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd posted a 38.5 percent slump in quarterly net profit as sales declined due to pricing pressure in the United States, its biggest market. Net profit was Rs 3.03 billion ($47.7 million) in the third quarter ended December 31, compared with Rs 4.92 billion a year earlier, the company said.

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Sensex ends at record high, Nifty settles over 10,550 for first time ever


Benchmark indices ended at new closing high on Friday, tracking global equity markets on the back of robust economic data.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at new closing high at 34,153, up 184 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled above 10,550 for the first time ever. It ended at 10,558, up 54 points.

Shares of telecommunication companies were in focus with the S&P BSE Telecom index rallying more than 3% on BSE, trading close to its record high.

Idea Cellular, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications (RCom), Tejas Networks, GTL, GTL Infrastructure, Aksh Optifibre and Sterlite Technologies from the telecom index have surged up to 12% on BSE in intra-day trade.

Subros hit an all-time high of Rs 347, up 11% on BSE in intra-day deal, after the company announced that it has started supply of blower for trucks to its customers include Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland.

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Nifty ends above 10,300, up 2% for week, Sensex gains 216 pts; metals shine


Benchmark indices gained ground on Friday as investors cheer after the exit polls that released their survey results at the end of the final phase of polling in Gujarat on Thursday evening predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was set to retain Gujarat and wrest Himachal Pradesh from the Congress.

While survey agencies differed in their seat projections, nearly all predicted almost 100 or more seats for the BJP, with the party set to extend its 22-year rule in the state. Survey agencies also said the election, in the last phases, was focused on the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and overcame the brewing anti-incumbency against the Vijay Rupani government and dissipated the anger that sections of Gujarati society had felt about specific local issues.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 33,462, up 216 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,333, up 81 points

Broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices with both BSE Midcap and BSE Smallcap indices up over 1%.

Maruti Suzuki India shares touched a fresh all-time high of Rs 9,237, rising 1.3 percent intraday after the global brokerage house raised target price sharply. While maintaining a buy call on the stock, Citi has increased its price target to Rs 10,600 (from Rs 9,400 per share earlier), implying 16% upside from Thursday’s closing price.

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Sensex tanks 316 pts, Nifty ends below 10150 as Q2 GDP fails to lift spirit


In a volatile trading session on Friday, the benchmark indices ended lower with the Nifty50 settling the first day of December expiry below 10,200 as economic growth data came in largely as expected, failing to boost a market weighed down by concerns about the country’s fiscal deficit and global risk factors such as rising crude prices.

Data late on Thursday showed India’s gross domestic product grew 6.3% in July-September, in line with expectations, as businesses started to overcome troubles after the bumpy launch of Goods and Services Tax (GST).

The data failed to lift sentiment as country’s fiscal deficit reached 96% of the budgeted target for the fiscal year ending in March 2018, sending shares sharply lower on Thursday.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is meeting next week at a time of rising concern about a rally in crude prices, which rose following OPEC’s decision to extend production curbs.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 32,832, down 316 points, while the broader Nifty50 settled at 10,121, down 104 points.

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In first trading session of Samvat 2074, Sensex dives 194 points


Trading in Samvat 2074 got off to a rocky start, with the benchmark indices ending more than half a % lower and gauge for banking stocks dropping 1.25%. The BSE Sensex on Thursday fell 194.4 points, or 0.6% to close at 32,390, the Nifty 50 index fell 64.3, or 0.63% to close at 10,147.

The fall in the market was on account of a global sell-off which saw the Hong Kong market tumble the most this year and the European equities fall the most in two months. Market players said some domestic investors also resorted to profit-booking after a healthy 18% rally in the just-concluded Samvat 2073.

The BSE Bankex fell 1.3%, with ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Bank declining 2%, 1.6% and 1% respectively. These three stocks accounted for half of the fall in the benchmark Sensex.

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