The Indian share market staged a smart recovery to end higher for the third straight session on Tuesday, rebounding from their earlier losses. The market sentiments were lifted by strong earnings expectations with IT heavyweights TCS and Infosys, and banking major HDFC Bank, which are poised to release their third-quarter earnings report this week. However, weak global cues and concerns about rising Covid-19 cases limited the market’s gain.
The BSE Sensex ended 221.26 points, or 0.37%, higher at 60,616, while the NSE Nifty rose 52.45 points, or 0.29%, to settle at 18,055. Earlier today, the Indian benchmark indices opened lower, tracking weak cues from Wall Street and Asian peers, but soon rebounded with the help of gains in index heavyweights.
Underperforming the benchmark indices, the broader markets ended flat with marginal gains. The S&P BSE Midcap index closed 0.01% higher, while the S&P BSE Smallcap index rose 0.15%.
The overall market breadth on the BSE was positive, with 2,062 shares advancing out of total 3,784 traded stocks. Out of the total shares, 1,625 shares declined and 97 were unchanged.
On the sectoral front, power, IT and realty ended higher whereas metal, FMCG and telecom settled in negative terrain.
The BSE power index was the top performer with a 1.8% gain, led by Adani Green Energy, ABB India, Adani Transmission, Tata Power Company, and NTPC. The power sector was followed by the IT index, which ended 0.88% higher amid strong earnings expectations from IT majors Infosys, TCS and Wipro. The top gainers in the IT space were Kellton Tech Solutions, Xelpmoc Design and Tech, Sasken Technologies, Affle (India), and Hinduja Global Solutions.
Top gainers and losers
The top performer on the BSE Sensex pack was HCL Technologies, which ended 4.3% higher. Some of the other notable gainers include Housing Development Finance Corporation, Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, and Reliance Industries.
On the losing side, Tata Steel, the country’s largest steel producer, topped the losers’ chart by falling 3.32%. The other top laggards included Bajaj Finance, ITC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Asian Paints.
Newsmakers
Vodafone Idea: Share of telecom major ended 21% lower after its board approved conversion of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) and spectrum liabilities into equity. “The board of directors, at its meeting held on January 10, 2022, has approved the conversion of the full amount of interest related to spectrum auction installments and AGR dues into equity. The Net Present Value (NPV) of this interest is expected to be about ₹16,000 crore as per the company’s best estimates, subject to confirmation by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT),” Vi said in an exchange filing.
PB Fintech: The parent company of Policybazaar and Paisabazaar, saw its sharing falling more than 4% to hit a new low despite reporting strong growth in insurance premium collection during the December quarter of 2021. The company registered a 67% year-on-year rise in insurance premium collection during October-December month of 2021.
Hinduja Global Solutions: Shares of IT service management company surged 6% after its board announced stock buyback plan. “A meeting of the board of directors of Hinduja Global Solutions will be held on January 14, 2022, to consider and explore quantum/ timings of buy-back of equity shares of the company,” it said in an exchange filing.
JBM Auto: The share price of the automotive company hit an upper circuit of 5% to touch a new high in Tuesday’s trade. The stock ended higher for the fourth straight day, rising 27% during the period.
Cerebra Technologies: Shares of the computer manufacturing company ended marginally lower, paring early gains. During the day’s trade, the stock rose more than 4% to hit an all-time high after Barclays Securities India purchased half a per cent equity stake in the company via open market transaction.
Paytm (One 97 Communications): Shares of the e-commerce company extended its losing streak on Tuesday, with the stock ending 3.6% lower. The stock dropped even after the fintech company reported over four-fold jump in loan disbursals from its platform during the December quarter of 2021. The company in an exchange filing said it disbursed 44 lakh loans worth ₹2,180 crore during the quarter.
PVR: Shares of the movie theater chain closed 3.1% higher amid earnings optimism. Analysts at brokerage firm Edelweiss Securities expect PVR to report operating profits for the first time in seven quarters during the December quarter of 2021.
Adani Enterprises: Shares of Gautam Adani-led conglomerate ended 5.6% higher, with market capitalisation crossing to ₹2 lakh crore after its shares hit a record high. With this, Adani Enterprises became the fourth company of the Adani Group to breach the ₹2-lakh-crore mark in market capitalisation.
Asian stocks track Wall Street lower
Shares in the Asia-Pacific region ended mostly lower on Tuesday, following weak finish at Wall Street overnight. The persistent fear about potential shift in the U.S. monetary policy and rising Covid-19 cases in the region weighed on investor sentiment. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index emerged as the worst performer in the regional market by falling 0.9%. It was followed by Australia’s ASX 200 index, which ended 0.77% lower.
In mainland China, Shanghai Composite index ended 0.73% lower, while the Shenzhen Composite Index plunged 1.27%. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong ended marginally lower, while Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite dropped 0.64%.
Meanwhile, the Straits Times Index in Singapore surged 0.6%, while Thailand’s SET Composite rose 0.61%. South Korea’s KOSPI settled with marginal gain, while the Taiwan Weighted Index gained 0.27%.
In the overnight trade, the major U.S. indices ended a tad lower, paring sharp losses in early trade. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite managed to close marginally higher and snap a four-day losing streak, after falling almost 3% earlier in the day. The S&P 500 slipped 0.1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.5%.
European shares rebound
Snapping three-session losing streak, the European market opened higher on Tuesday. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC surged over 1% in early deals, while Spain’s IBEX index climbed 0.5%.
In a similar trend, the UK’s FTSE 100 index jumped 0.6% in opening trade, while Italy’s FTSE MIB index traded higher with 0.84% gain.
