Sensex, Nifty, Nifty Bank Cross New Milestones

Indian equity benchmarks resumed gains after a one-day blip and closed at record highs.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 1.01 percent to end at an all-time high at 41,352.17 and the NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.92 percent to close at record high at 12,165. The broader markets represented by the NSE Nifty 500 Index rose 0.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty Bank Index, too, crossed a new milestone. The 12-share gauge rose 0.52 percent to end at an all-time high at 32,140.25.

There is ‘no question’ that banking, financial services and insurance will be driving the next big rally in terms of Nifty reaching 13,000 in the medium term. That’s according to Vikas Khemani of Carnelian Capital.

“BFSI sector- both credit and non credit will have to contribute to this (rally) which will be supported by IT and consumption-oriented stocks,” he said in an interview to BloombergQuint.

The market breadth was tilted in favour of buyers. About 1,064 stocks advanced and 714 shares declined on National Stock Exchange.

Nine out of 11 sectoral gauges compiled by NSE ended higher, led by the NSE Nifty Metal Index’s 2.9 percent advance. On the flipside, the NSE Nifty Pharma Index was the top sectoral loser, down 0.33 percent.

Stocks declined in Europe and U.S. index futures dipped on Tuesday as the global rally in equities eased, with the sugar rush of a partial trade deal between the two largest economies fading and investors on the hunt for fresh catalysts.

• The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dipped 0.6 percent.
• Futures on the S&P 500 Index dipped 0.1 percent.
• The U.K.‘s FTSE 100 Index was little changed.
• The MSCI World Index of developed countries decreased 0.1 percent.
• The MSCI Emerging Market Index jumped 1.2 percent.

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Source: Bloomberg

Shares of Hindustan Unilever fell as much as 1.3 percent to Rs 1,950.

Unilever’s Chief Executive Officer Alan Jope is falling short of his predecessor’s growth targets as the maker of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Dove soap succumbs to sluggish consumer demand, according to Bloomberg report.

“Sales gains will be slightly below guidance for 2019, and underlying growth will be in the lower half of the company’s multiyear range of 3-5 percent in 2020,” Bloomberg reported quoting the company.

Shares of Avenue Supermarts resumed gains after a one-day blip. The stock rose as much as 5.3 percent to Rs 1,865.

The stock returned 5.8 percent in the past five days and fell 1.8 percent in the past 30 days, according to Bloomberg data. The scrip traded at 85 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year.

Shares of Kolte-Patil Developers rose as much as 19.3 percent, the most since June 29, 2019, to Rs 266.70.

The company sold of 500 units of Pune project with booking value of Rs 205 crore, according to its statement on the exchanges.

Trading volume was more than 20 times its 20-day average, Bloomberg data showed.

Indian equity benchmarks resumed gains after a one-day blip and are set to close at record highs.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose as much as 0.94 percent to hit an all-time high at 41,324.25 and the NSE Nifty 50 rose as much as 0.89 percent to hit record high at 12,160.70. The broader markets represented by the NSE Nifty 500 Index rose as much as 0.75 percent.

The NSE Nifty Bank Index, too, hit an all-time high at 32,213.35 after gaining as much as 0.75 percent.

NIIT Technologies

• Stock rose as much as 11.5 percent to Rs 1,643.30.
• Trading volume was almost 30 times its 20-day average.

Federal-Mogul Goetze

• Stock rose as much as 19.9 percent to Rs 666.45.
• Trading volume was more than 20 times its 20-day average.

Linde India

• Stock rose as much as 10.7 percent to Rs 698.90.
• Trading volume was more than 11 times its 20-day average.

The Indian rupee reversed gains against the U.S. dollar. The home currency swung to trade little changed at 71.00 after appreciating as much as 0.2 percent against the greenback.

The declines in the local legal tender as state-run banks stepped up dollar purchases, was probably on behalf of the central bank, Bloomberg reported quoting two traders who asked not to be identified as they are not authorized to speak publicly.

Shares of Maruti Suzuki rose as much as 1.9 percent to Rs 7,276.50 after BofA Securities upgraded the stock rating and hiked price target.

Here’s what the research firm had to say:

• Upgraded to ‘Buy’ from ‘Neutral’, raised price target to Rs 8,650 from Rs 7,450.
• Well placed for cyclical uptick in 2021-22 with limited BS6 risks.
• Earnings downgrade cycle to bottom in 2019-20.
• Best placed for recovery in passenger vehicles segment.

Indian equity benchmarks extended opening gains to trade at day’s high.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose as much as 370 points or 0.9 percent to hit an all-time high at 41,308.61. The NSE Nifty 50 rose as much as 0.86 percent to 12,157.50, about one-point away from its record high of 12,158.80. The broader markets represented by the NSE Nifty 500 Index rose as much as 0.73 percent.

The NSE Nifty Bank Index, too, hit an all-time high at 32,213.35 after gaining as much as 0.75 percent.

Shares of the IT services provider rose as much as 7.1 percent, the most since August, to Rs 1,577.50.

The Noida-based firm's board will consider proposal for share-buyback on Dec. 23, according to its exchange filing.

The trading volume was 14 times its 20-day average for this time of the day, Bloomberg data showed.

• Supreme Court stays the Bombay High Court judgement which quashed the CRZ clearance granted to the coastal road project.
• The top court order allows work to resume on the coastal road project.
• The petitioners requested the Court that it should not allow any further reclamation of the area until the court decided on the issue.
• The top court will hear appeals against the Bombay High Court judgement in April 2020.

Shares of Hindustan Construction Company rose as much as 9.9 percent to Rs 11,70, while shares of Larsen & Toubro rose as much as 1.4 percent to 1,320.80.

• SAT has directed Axis Bank to approach SEBI's whole time member and seek relief.
• Status quo with respect to the shares in Karvy Stock Broking's demat account to be maintained till SEBI decides the matter and passes an appropriate order, says SAT.

Source: SAT Proceedings

Ten out of 11 sectoral gauges compiled by NSE traded higher, led by the NSE Nifty Metal Index’s 2.9 percent gain. On the flipside, the NSE Nifty Pharma Index was the only sectoral loser, down 0.16 percent.

Nifty’s 12,100 call option contract was among the most active Nifty option contracts on National Stock Exchange.

Premium on the contract, which is set to expire on Dec. 19, rose 95.30 percent to Rs 70.70. Over 2.99 lakh shares were removed from the open interest which stood at over 20.04 lakh shares.

Shares of the paper companies advance, led by the rally in Seshasayee Paper and JK Paper.

The government in its upcoming Union Budget is expected to take measures that will benefit the paper industry, Bloomberg reported quoting SKP Securities’s analyst Nikhil Saboo.

“Investors expect more curbs on single-use plastic, which benefits the paper industry,” Saboo told Bloomberg.

Indian equity benchmark—S&P BSE Sensex—crosses new milestone.

The 31-share index rose as much as 0.66 percent to hit an all-time high at 41,207.96 and the 50-stock gauge rose as much as 0.6 percent to 12,126.20. The broader markets represented by the NSE Nifty 500 Index rose 0.5 percent.

The NSE Nifty Bank Index, too, hit an all-time high at 32,197.60 after gaining as much as 0.7 percent.

The market breadth was tilted in favour of buyers. About 1,049 stocks advanced and 547 shares declined on National Stock Exchange.

Shares of Trident halted a two-day rally and fell as much as 12.1 percent, the most in over three years, to 7.25. The stock had rallied nearly 24 percent in the last two trading sessions.

Trading volume was more than 12 times its 20-day average, Bloomberg data showed. Of the shares traded, 60 percent were at the ask price and 39 percent were at the bid.

Trident traded at 7.9 times its estimated earnings per share for the coming year, according to Bloomberg data.

Shares of Bosch rose as much as 2.9 percent to Rs 15,436.

About 3,66,900 shares of the company hanged hands in a block deal during pre-market, Bloomberg data showed. Buyers and sellers were not known immediately.

The stock rose 1.3 percent in the past five days and returned 0.8 percent in the last 30 days, according to Bloomberg data.

Shares of Reliance Industries rose as much as 0.8 percent to Rs 1,579.

The Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate and BP Plc. signed a partnership agreement to jointly grow the Indian firm's network of petrol pumps to 5,500 from current 1,400, according to its statement. The venture is expected to be formed during the first half of 2020, subject to regulatory and other customary approvals.

Besides, RIL acquired 90.5 percent stake in Bengaluru-based education technology startup, Funtoot, for a cash consideration of Rs 71.64 crore.

The stock traded at 16.5 times its estimated forward earnings per share compared to a 15 times for the two-year historical average, Bloomberg data showed.

Shares of Federal-Mogul Goetze rose as much as 19.5 percent to hit an all-time high at Rs 663.80.

The Supreme Court has dismissed market regulator—Securities and Exchange Board of India’s—appeal of upholding the open offer price at 608.46, according to its statement on the exchanges.

Trading volume was almost 350 times its 20-day average, according to Bloomberg data. Of the shares traded on NSE, 45 percent were at the ask price and 41 percent were at the bid.

The stock advanced 13 percent in the past 12 months compared to 14 percent rally in the Sensex.

Indian equity benchmarks opened higher, resuming declines after a one-day blip.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.25 percent to 41,041 and the NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.22 percent to 12,080. The broader markets represented by the NSE Nifty 500 Index rose 0.17 percent.

The market breadth was tilted in favour of buyers. About 871 stocks advanced and 532 shares declined on National Stock Exchange.

All the 11 sectoral gauges compiled by NSE traded higher, led by the NSE Nifty Metal Index’s 0.75 percent gain.

Index Futures

• Nifty December futures closed at 12,082.5, premium of 28.6 points versus 55.6 points.
• Nifty December futures series open interest down 4 percent, sheds 5.4 lakh shares in open interest.
• Nifty Bank December futures closed at 32,010.3, premium of 36 points versus 88.5 points.
• Nifty Bank December futures series open interest up 0.4 percent, adds 56,000 shares in open interest.

Options

• Nifty PCR at 1.43 versus 1.62 (across all series).

Nifty Weekly Expiry: Dec. 19

• Max open interest on call side at 12,100 (23 lakh shares).
• Max open interest on put side at 12,000 (17.4 lakh shares).
• Open interest addition seen in 12,100C (+11.2k shares), 12,200C (+4.7 lakh shares).
• Open interest shedding seen in 12000P (-3.7 lakh shares).

Nifty Monthly Expiry: Dec. 26

• Max open interest on call side at 12,000 (23.7 lakh shares).
• Max open interest on put side at 12,000 (41.4 lakh shares).

• Electrosteel Castings promoter Electrocast Sales acquired 2.5 lakh shares from Dec. 11-12.
• KRBL promoters acquired 1.02 lakh shares on Dec. 16.
• Jaiprakash Power Ventures promoter Jaypee Infra Ventures sold 66.5 lakh shares on Dec. 13.
• Max Ventures and Industries promoter Siva Enterprises acquired 2.21 lakh shares from Dec. 12-13.

The Indian rupee opened higher against the U.S. dollar. The home currency appreciated as much as 0.12 percent to 70.91 against the greenback.

Indian equity benchmarks are set to open higher.

The S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.27 percent to 41,040 and the NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.16 percent to 12,073.

• Shriram EPC to move into ASM Framework.
• Jaypee Infratech, R Systems International to move out of short term ASM Framework.
• JBF Industries price band revised to 5 percent.

• Equitas Small Finance Bank filed draft red herring prospectus with SEBI for Rs 1,000 crore initial public offer, according to a PTI report.
• “The IPO comprises a fresh issue aggregating up to Rs 550 crore and an offer for sale of up to 80,000,000 equity shares by Equitas Holdings Ltd., the promoter,” the new agency reported quoting company’s statement.

• Cipla acquired the brand name and trademark rights of Vysov (anti-diabetic drug) for the Indian market.
• NIIT Technologies: Board will consider proposal for share-buyback on Dec. 23.
• Reliance Industries and British energy giant BP Plc. on Monday signed a partnership agreement to jointly grow the Indian firm's network of petrol pumps to 5,500 from current 1,400, according to its statement. The venture is expected to be formed during the first half of 2020, subject to regulatory and other customary approvals.
• Shriram Transport Finance: S&P Finance revised company’s outlook to ‘Negative’ from ‘Stable’. The rating agency has affirmed 'BB+' long-term and 'B' short-term issuer credit ratings on the company. The revision in the outlook is due to the increased risk of a deterioration in the company’s asset quality, which could also affect availability of credit to the company over the next 12 months or so.
• Magma Fincorp: ICRA revised company’s outlook from ‘Negative’ to ‘Stable’ for term loans and non-convertible debentures worth Rs 2,391.67 crore. The ratings for these instruments have been reaffirmed at ‘AA-’. The revision in the outlook on the Group’s rating factors in the deterioration in the asset quality indicators following the reduced collection efficiencies in certain geographies and loan segments of commercial vehicles and construction equipment.
• IRB Infra: Board approved allotment of NCDs amounting to Rs 1,400 crore on a private placement. About 50 percent of this issue has been subscribed by GIC affiliate and the balance by company’s arm.
• Raymond promoter JK Investo Trade increased the stake from 4.57 percent to 9.49 percent in the company via preferential allotment on Dec. 12.
• Elgi Equipments has acquired 100 percent stake in Michigan Air Solutions for Rs 42 crore. The target company is the distributor and specialist in air compressor sales, maintenance and services.
• Vikas Proppant & Granite has commenced production on Dec. 14 for making 3 containers (60 tonne) ordinary shipment to Algeria.
• Texmaco Rail & Engineering: Operational creditor Veekay General has filed an application under insolvency proceedings for an alleged operational debt of Rs 63 lakh, which has been admitted by National Company Law Tribunal Kolkata. Company has filed its appeal against the order before National Company Law Appellate Tribunal.
• Mcleod Russel: Financial creditor Techno Electric & Engineering filed an application under insolvency proceeding before NCLT Kolkata for recovery of term loan of Rs 100 crore. Them matter has been adjourned for hearing on Jan. 28.
• Whirlpool: Sunil D’Souza to resign as the managing director with effect from April 3, 2020. Vishal Bhola has been appointed the new MD.
• Punj Lloyd said that IOCL has invoked Bank Guarantees worth Rs 176 crore for two projects. The company said that it is taking legal recourse in the said matter.
• JM Financial to consider raising funds on Dec. 19.

• U.S. equities climbed to a new high Monday amid hopes that a partial trade deal between America and China will ease a key risk for investors heading into year-end.
• Oil edged higher to settle at a three-month high on optimism that a partial trade deal between the world’s two largest economies will spur demand for fuel to power trucks, trains, airplanes and cars.
• The pound slumped following reports U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to change the law to guarantee the Brexit phase isn’t extended beyond the end of next year, increasing the threat of a no-deal divorce.

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Good Morning!

The Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of NSE Nifty 50 Index’s performance in India, rose 0.3 percent to 12,106.50 as of 8:35 a.m.

Asian stocks saw modest gains, sufficient to leave them heading for their highest since mid-2018, as investors mull prospects for further gains after a banner year.

Stocks edged higher in Tokyo and Seoul, and were flat in Australia after outperforming in Asia today. Hong Kong stocks opened higher. S&P 500 futures slipped.

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