Sensex, Nifty Post Third Straight Weekly Loss

• RBI Governor says that an off-cycle meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee was conducted
• The Monetary Policy Committee has voted for a repo rate reduction of 40 basis points
• Monetary Policy Committee votes 5:1 in favour of a rate cut
• Repo rate now stands at 4 percent from 4.4 percent earlier
• GDP growth in 2021 is likely to remain in negative territory, Governor says

RBI Governor Says:

• To extend life of credit of Rs 15,000 crore to EXIM Bank for 90 days
• To extend time period for outward remittances for normal imports to 12 months from 6 months
• Group exposure limit of banks to be increased to 30 percent from 25 percent of eligible capital base till June 30, 2021
• The provision for moratorium on term loan repayments are being extended by another three months

• Benchmark indices post their third straight weekly loss
• Nifty ends 1.1 percent lower at 9,039
• Sensex ends 1.4 percent lower at 30,672
• Nifty Bank ends 8.3 percent lower at 17,278 - all constituents post weekly loss
• Nifty Midcap index ends 2.5 percent lower
• Nifty Smallcap index ends 2.2 percent lower
• India Volatility Index ends 14.4 percent lower at 32.2
• ITC ends as the top Nifty gainer this week; up 13.2 percent
• IndusInd Bank ends as the top Nifty laggard this week; down 19.2 percent

Indian equity markets snapped a three-day gaining streak to end lower, due to weak cues from other global markets and rising Covid-19 cases in the country.

European markets continue to trade lower while futures on the Dow Jones are down 120 points.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended today's session down 0.84 percent at 30,672, while the Nifty 50 index managed to hold on to the 9,000 mark, ending 0.74 percent lower at 9,039.

Among sectoral indices, the Nifty Bank underperformed, ending over 2 percent lower, while the Nifty I.T. and Nifty Media index held on to gains of over 1 percent.

Market breadth remained adverse with 685 stocks on the NSE ending with gains while 1,040 posted losses

For the week, the Sensex ended 1.3 percent lower while the Nifty shed 1.1 percent. Financials were the biggest laggards this week. 7 out of the top 10 Nifty laggards this week were financial names.

• Buy M&M above Rs 420 for target of Rs 460 and stop loss of Rs 405
• Buy Lupin above Rs 890 for target of Rs 950 and stop loss of Rs 860

• Trades at an all-time high
• Gains as much as 7 percent to Rs 658.1
• Up for the third straight day
• Gains 7.5 percent in the last three days
• Today's volumes are 2.4 times higher than its 30-day average
• Has nearly doubled from its 52-week low of Rs 336.5 on August 16, 2019
• 12 out of the 15 analysts tracking the stock have a buy recommendation; 0 sell calls
• Return potential of the stock as per Bloomberg data is 2 percent

• Buy Grasim for target of Rs 600 and stop loss of Rs 495
• Buy Coal India for target of Rs 145 and stop loss of Rs 122
• Buy Ultratech for target of Rs 4,000 and stop loss of Rs 3,500

• Top performer on the Nifty Smallcap Index
• Gains as much as 10 percent to Rs 91.9
• Biggest single-day surge on record
• Snaps six-day losing streak
• The six-day losing streak was the longest in two months
• Volumes are 1.1 times higher than its 30-day average
• All 8 analysts tracking the stock have a buy recommendation
• Return potential of the stock as per Bloomberg data is 79.3 percent

• Revenue up 6.4 percent to Rs 3,120.7 crore
• Net profit down 91.3 percent to Rs 25.9 crore
• Property development expense of Rs 500 impacts bottomline
• Ebitda down 15.6 percent to Rs 211.5 crore
• Ebitda margin narrows to 6.8 percent from 8.5 percent
• Exceptional income of Rs 88 crore in the base quarter
• All numbers are consolidated and compared on a year-on-year basis

Shares fell as much as 3.9 percent to Rs 245.2, post the announcement.

• Benchmark indices set to post third straight weekly loss
• Nifty down 0.75 percent at 9,039
• Nifty futures trade at a discount of 22 points
• Sensex down 0.74 percent at 30,705
• Nifty Bank down 2.5 percent at 17,284
• Nifty Midcap Index down 1 percent
• Nifty Smallcap Index down 0.9 percent
• India Volatility Index up 0.7 percent to 33.22
• Nifty Pharma pares losses; trades 0.3 percent higher
• Nifty I.T. is the top sectoral gainer; up 1.4 percent
• Zee Entertainment remains the top Nifty gainer; up 5.2 percent
• Bajaj Finserv is the top Nifty laggard; down 5.8 percent

• Revenue down 18.1 percent to Rs 2,236
• Net profit falls 80.3 percent to Rs 81.1 crore
• Ebitda down 34.4 percent to Rs 341.4 crore
• Ebitda margin narrows to 15.3 percent from 19.1 percent
• Exceptional loss of Rs 297 crore due to provisions for restructuring and asset impairment
• High raw material costs and other expenses dent margins
• Board recommends final dividend of Rs 105 per share
• All numbers are consolidated and compared on a year-on-year basis

Shares trade higher by 1.5 percent at Rs 9,486, post the announcement.

The currency failed to sustain the gains from Thursday, ending today's session with losses, tracking weak cues from the equity markets.

The rupee ended at 75.96 against the U.S. Dollar, as compared to Thursday's close of 75.61.

With today's decline, the rupee posted its third successive weekly fall.

The rupee also ended as the third worst performing currency among its Emerging Market peers. The Malaysian Ringgit and the South Korean Won saw greater declines than the local currency.

For the week, the rupee was the second worst performing currency in Asia behind the Chinese Renminbi.

The Board of Directors of the company have approved an allotment of 3,250 listed, unsecured, rated and redeemable Non-Convertible Debentures of Rs 10 lakh each.

The debentures aggregate to a total of Rs 325 crore and will be listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The tenure of the instrument is 3 years and will attract a coupon rate of 8.75 percent per annum.

Shares are off the day's high and are now trading 2 percent lower at Rs 109.8.

• State Bank Of India's 160 Call: Premium falls 23.8 percent to Rs 1.6. The contract has added 22.44 lakh shares in Open Interest.
• Bajaj Finance's 1,800 Put: Premium up 150.4 percent to Rs 30.5. The contract has added 1.13 lakh shares in Open Interest.
• Reliance Industries' 1,460 Call: Premium falls 15.5 percent to Rs 16.8. The contract has added 3.62 lakh shares in Open Interest.

• Net profit flat at Rs 114 crore
• Revenue down 6.5 percent to Rs 1,430 crore
• All segments see revenue de-growth this quarter
• Value Added Products revenue up 6 percent to Rs 2,070 crore in FY20
• New capex for FY21 will be in the range of Rs 150-200 crore

Shares gained as much as 4 percent to Rs 949, post the announcement.

• Revenue seen 17 percent lower at Rs 18,594 crore
• Ebitda seen 31.3 percent lower at Rs 3,049 crore
• Ebitda margin may narrow to 16.4 percent from 19.8 percent
• Net profit seen 51.5 percent lower at Rs 738 crore
• Lower realisations and losses of overseas subsidiaries may weigh on results
• All estimates are Bloomberg estimates, compared on a year-on-year basis
• Sales volumes seen 13.9 percent lower at 3.7 MT
• Ebitda/tonne seen 16.8 percent lower at Rs 8,461
• HRC prices down 9 percent year-on-year to Rs 38,738 per tonne

Shares are lower for the second straight day, down 2.8 percent at Rs 165.1 ahead of earnings.

The company has informed the exchanges that it received the U.S. FDA approval for its Trientine Hydrochloride Capsules. The drug is a generic equivalent of Syprine Capsules of Bausch Health.

The said drug will be manufactured at the company's Nagpur (Unit 1) facility.

The drug is used in the treatment of patients with Wilson's disease and who are intolerant of penicillamine.

The Trientine Hydrochloride Capsules had annual sales of nearly $86 million in the U.S. as of March 2020 as per the IQVIA.

Shares recovered from the day's low and now trade little changed at Rs 885.

• Top gainer on the Nifty 500 index
• Gains as much as 9.5 percent to Rs 1,095
• Biggest one-day gain in two months
• Trades at the highest level in three months
• Up for the third straight day
• Up close to 10 percent in the last three sessions
• Today's volumes are 9 times higher than its 30-day average
• Stock enters overbought territory with Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 71
• The stock has more than doubled from its 52-week low of Rs 476 on March 24, 2020

Markets across Europe have opened lower for the second straight day, paring weekly gains as U.S.-China tensions rise and weak cues from other Asian markets.

The Stoxx 600 index has opened 0.5 percent lower. All sectors of the index too have opened lower. Miners and oil & gas stocks are the top laggards.

Asian markets have closed with losses, with those in Hong Kong falling the most since 2008 while futures on the Dow Jones are trading lower by 180 points.

Brent Crude for the July contract is down 4.7 percent to $34.38 while Gold is advancing 0.5 percent to $1,734/Oz.

Lets take a look at how benchmark indices across Europe have opened:

• Euro Stoxx 50 down 1.4 percent to 2,866
• DAX down 1.46 percent to 10,905
• CAC down 1.4 percent to 4,384
• FTSE 100 down 1.56 percent to 5,921
• IBEX 35 down 1.3 percent to 6,600

Cholamandalam Investment and Finance announced a partnership with Maruti Suzuki India, under their 'Buy Now Pay Later' offer, the company said in an exchange filing.

The said offer will allow customers to start paying EMIs after 60 days of loan disbursement. The offer is available only on select Maruti Suzuki models and will be applicable on loan disbursements till June 30, 2020.

Shares trade 3.9 percent lower after falling as much as 6.7 percent to a four-year low of Rs 121.20. Shares of Maruti Suzuki too trade 1.6 percent lower at Rs 4,971.

• Benchmark indices trade near the day's low
• Nifty down 1 percent to 9,019
• Nifty futures trade at discount of 25 points
• Sensex down 1 percent to 30,640
• Nifty Bank down 2.4 percent to 17,301
• Nifty Midcap Index down 0.8 percent
• Nifty Smallcap Index down 0.7 percent
• India Volatility Index down 1.9 percent to 33.62
• Nifty I.T. (Up 1.2 percent) and Nifty Media Index (Up 1 percent) are the only sectoral gainers
• Nifty Metal index is down 2.2 percent
• Zee Entertainment remains the top Nifty gainer; up 3.3 percent
• Axis Bank is the top Nifty laggard; down 5 percent
• 600 stocks on the NSE are trading with gains while 1,050 decline

• Trades at the lowest level since October 2018
• Down for 4 out of the 5 trading sessions this week
• Declines close to 10 percent this week
• Has gained only twice in the last 15 trading sessions
• Declines 20 percent in the last 15 sessions
• Today's volumes are 1.7 times higher than its 30-day average
• Down 46 percent from its 52-week high of Rs 138.8 on June 28, 2019
• 5 out of the 8 analysts tracking the stock has a buy recommendation; 2 sell calls
• Return potential of the stock as per Bloomberg data is 67.9 percent

• Revenue seen 17 percent higher at Rs 10,007 crore
• Ebitda seen 58 percent higher at Rs 2,227 crore
• Ebitda margin may widen to 22.3 percent from 16.5 percent
• Net profit may rise 3.9 times to Rs 811 crore
• All estimates are Bloomberg estimates, consolidated and compared on a year-on-year basis

Key Factors At Play For UPL:

• Higher offtake in LatAm and India to drive growth
• Logistics issues due to the lockdown to restrict growth in domestic business despite favourable rabi sowing
• North America & Europe which are high margin markets likely to remain subdued
• Had an exceptional loss of Rs 299 crore in base quarter due to Arysta integration

The company will invest a sum of Rs 7.2 crore for two separate acquisitions, it said in an exchange filing on Thursday.

The first acquisition is of Fanclash - an online e-sports focused engagement and community platform. The said acquisition is valued at Rs 3.5 crore.

The second is of Truemeds - a tele-health platform focused on selling top company traded generics / substitute medicines to customers. The said acquisition is for a sum of Rs 3.7 crore.

Shares fell as much as 3.7 percent to Rs 2,366.

The technology services company has informed the exchanges about the schedule of its proposed share buyback.

The buyback will begin on May 29, 2020 and close on June 11, 2020, the company said in an exchange filing.

The company is set to conduct a buyback of 19.56 lakh equity shares of face value of Rs 10 each at a price of Rs 1,725 per share. The buyback price is a premium of 20 percent to its closing price on Thursday.

Shares are trading at the day's high, up as much as 7.3 percent to Rs 1,548 and are up for the fourth straight day. It is also the top performing stock on the Nifty I.T. index.

The private lender informed the exchanges about the impact of the damage caused due to Cyclone AMPHAN.

The lender said that it 45 out of the 49 micro banking outlets were operational on May 21. It expects an exposure of around Rs 260 crore to be impacted due to the cyclone.

It added in its exchange filing that it expects the AMPHAN portfolio to regularise by the third quarter of FY21.

Shares fell as much as 6.95 percent to Rs 196.20. It is also the worst performing stock on the Nifty Bank index.

• Nifty May futures add 8.1 percent in Open Interest and 6.1 lakh shares
• Nifty Bank May futures add 26.5 percent in Open Interest and 3.65 lakh shares

Nifty: May 28 Expiry

• 9,000 Put: Premium rises 40.3 percent to Rs 143.95. The contract has added 5.53 lakh shares in Open Interest.
• 9,200 Call: Premium falls 35.1 percent to Rs 47.6. The contract has added 6.96 lakh shares in Open Interest.
• 9,100 Call: Premium falls 28 percent to Rs 84.95. The contract has added 3.41 lakh shares in Open Interest.

Nifty Bank: May 28 Expiry

• 18,000 Call: Premium falls 30 percent to Rs 188.4. The contract has added 1.85 lakh shares in Open Interest.
• 17,000 Put: Premium rises 82.6 percent to Rs 348. The contract has added 1.43 lakh shares in Open Interest.
• 19,000 Call: Premium falls 27.2 percent to Rs 47. The contract has added 1.55 lakh shares in Open Interest.

The exchange reported a net loss of Rs 1.3 crore in the fourth quarter. This is in comparison to a net profit of Rs 51.9 crore in the same quarter last year.

The company's Ebitda loss widened to Rs 22.1 crore from Rs 3.1 crore. It also made a provision of Rs 18.6 crore for additional contribution to the Investor Services Fund and Investors Protection Fund.

The company's investment income fell 42 percent while other income fell 59 percent year-on-year.

Shares fell as much as 7.4 percent to Rs 401.25 and are down for the third straight day.

• Benchmark indices fluctuate amid RBI governor speech
• Nifty down 0.45 percent to 9,065
• Nifty futures trade at a discount of 30 points
• Sensex down 0.4 percent to 30,814
• Nifty Bank down 0.8 percent to 17,589
• Nifty Midcap index down 0.2 percent
• Nifty Smallcap index little changed
• India Volatility Index up 1.4 percent to 33.45
• Nifty Media index is the top sectoral gainer; up 1.9 percent
• Nifty PSU Bank is the other sectoral gainer; up 1.3 percent
• Nifty Metal index is the top sectoral laggard; down 1.7 percent
• Zee Entertainment is the top Nifty gainer; up 3.5 percent
• Hindalco is the top Nifty laggard; down 3.6 percent
• 824 stocks on the NSE trade with gains and 735 trade with losses

The currency has opened weak in today's trading session after ending as the best performing currency among its Emerging Market peers on Thursday.

The rupee opened at 75.74 against the U.S. Dollar as compared to Thursday's close of 75.61. The currency remains flat for the week after ending little changed last week as well.

In the bond markets, the Reserve Bank of India will conduct auctions of Government bonds today and also release data on the weekly foreign exchange.

The kitchenware maker reported a 21 percent drop in revenue to Rs 146 crore in the fourth quarter of FY20. The company informed in its press release that operations - including production and sales were impacted due to the nationwide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Net profit fell 30.4 percent to Rs 9.4 crore while Ebitda declined 34.1 percent from the previous year to Rs 14.5 crore. Ebitda margins narrowed to 9.9 percent from 11.9 percent.

In view of the prevailing situation due to the pandemic, the company has not declared any dividend. Declaration of a suitable dividend would be considered once the situation normalises, the company said in a statement.

Shares fell as much as 12.3 percent - its biggest one-day fall since February 2015 to Rs 3,985.

Private equity firm KKR will be investing Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms, making it the fifth large investor that the company has sold stake to.

The sum invested amounts to a 2.32 percent stake in Jio Platforms. The deal values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore.

The press release further stated that this was KKR's largest investment in Asia.

Shares gained as much as 1.2 percent to Rs 1,458 and are up for the third straight day.

The company has informed the exchanges that the class action lawsuit, filed against the company in the U.S. District court, was dismissed by the plaintiff, without prejudice.

The lawsuit was filed against the company and some of its currenct and former officials on behalf of a class of persons or entities who purchased the shares of the company between July 2018 and October 2019, the statement said.

Shares gained as much as 2.34 percent to Rs 687.95. The stock is up for the fifth straight day - its longest winning streak since December 2019 and also the top performer on the Nifty 50 index.

Indian equity markets opened lower due to rising tensions between U.S. and China along with India adding the highest number of Covid-19 cases in a single day.

Most of the Asian markets are trading with losses while futures on the Dow Jones are trading lower by 140 points.

The S&P BSE Sensex opened 0.36 percent lower at 30,822 while the NSE Nifty 50 opened 0.42 percent lower at 9,067. Only 8 out of the 50 Nifty constituents opened with gains.

Banking stocks are underperforming among sectoral indices, with the Nifty Bank index opening 1 percent lower, as has the Nifty Metal index. Other indices have opened with a flat to negative bias.

Market breadth is equal at the start of trade with 630 stocks on the NSE opening with gains while 649 trade with losses.

• Total global cases top 5 million
• Death toll rises to 3.31 lakh
• China abandons its annual growth target for 2020
• Outlook for Australia's credit rating cut
• Brazil reports another day of record deaths with 1,118 fatalities
• A report from a London college estimates 4.1 percent of the U.S. population to be infected
• Bank of Japan launches a new lending program
• India adds 6,088 new cases, 3,234 recoveries and 148 deaths due to Covid-19 in the last 24 hours. Total cases in India now at 1,18,447.

Bear Put Spread On Ashok Leyland

• Buy 45 Put and Sell 40 Put
• Total spread of Rs 1.5
• Target of Rs 3.5 and stop loss of Rs 0.5

• Buy Coal India's 120 Put for target of Rs 2.5 and stop loss of Rs 0.5

• Reliance Industries: KKR to invest Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms becoming the fifth major investor on board. The transaction values Jio platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. The investment translates into a 2.32 percent equity stake in Jio platforms.
• InterGlobe Aviation: Will be resuming domestic flights from May 25, in a phased manner as per government directives. It also said that it will operate 97 Kerala reparation flights to the Middle-East.
• Bandhan Bank: 49 banking units in 5 districts were impacted due to cyclone AMPHAN. Business of approximately Rs 260 crore can be impacted due to the same. AMPHAN affected portfolio may regularise by Q3FY21.
• ONGC and NTPC: Signed MoU to set up joint venture for renewable energy business. As per the MoU, NTPC and ONGC will explore and set up Renewable Power assets including offshore wind, in India and overseas, and explore opportunities in the fields of sustainability, storage, E-mobility and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) compliant projects.
• PFC: Has incorporated 5 SPVs for development of transmission schemes in Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh.
• SRF: Stated that its BOPET film line has been commissioned and capitalized on May 21, at a cost of Rs 385 crore.
• Coforge (formerly NIIT Technologies): Buyback opens on May 29 and closes on June 11.
• Music Broadcast: Partners with Spotify to provide the former’s content. The radio channel’s audio intellectual property rights will be available to millions of users on Spotify.
• Emami: CCI has approved acquisition of 100 percent stake in Emami Cement by Nuvuc Vistas.
• TTK Prestige: In its update due to Covid-19, the company says that sales that could not be effected in the March quarter due to shutdown is estimated at Rs 70 crore.

For all that you need to know going into today’s trade, click here.

• Benchmark indices ended lower as tensions between U.S. and China rise
• S&P 500 ended lower by 0.8 percent with losses led by energy, technology and utility stocks
• S&P 500 fails to end above its 100-Day Moving Average. It hasn't managed to do so since February this year.
• A report showed another 2.44 million Americans claiming jobless benefits.
• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.2 percent.
• Yield on the 10-year treasury stood at 0.67 percent.
• West Texas Intermediate Crude rose 1.2 percent to $33.94 per barrel. The commodity trades flat today.

Get all the live action from the global markets here.

Good Morning!

Indian markets are poised to open on a negative note on the final trading day of the week. Investors will be focused on the address by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das at 10 a.m.

The Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50 Index’s performance in India, fell 0.63 percent to 9,024 as of 7:15 a.m.

As of market close on Thursday, the Nifty was down 0.4 percent, while the Sensex was down 0.6 percent for the week.

Asian markets have slipped after a subdued start led by markets in Hong Kong, as China announced plans to impose a national security law on the city. Losses are modest in Japan and South Korea, while Australian markets are advancing.

Futures on the Dow Jones, too, have reversed gains of as much as 100 points and now trade lower by 60 points.

Short on time? Well, then listen to this podcast for a quick summary of All You Need To Know before the opening bell.