Share Market News

After the December 10 rout, the market gained strength immediately on December 11 and remained positive for the remainder of the trading sessions to end last week a percent higher after outcome of the recently held state elections (which was a setback to the government) and appointment of a new Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor. Favourable macros like stable crude oil prices and positive global cues on easing trade tensions also boosted market sentiment, though global markets corrected on December 14 after China's economic data raised growth concerns. The Nifty rallied from around 10,333.85, the weekly low, to over 10,800 during last week, partly driven by short covering. "The market is giving an impression that it had factored in the election outcome. Softening consumer (CPI) inflation at 2.33 percent (November), pick-up in industrial production to 8.1 percent in October and the likelihood of a change in RBI's stance from 'calibrated tighten

The Nifty remained rangebound in the last two trading sessions, but witnessed a strong recovery last week from 10,333 to 10,838 levels. It formed an Inside Bar pattern on the daily scale and a strong bullish candle on the weekly scale, which indicates that declines are being bought into the market. It has to continue to hold above the 10,700 zone to extend its move towards the crucial hurdle of 10,880-10,929. On the downside, support exists at 10,650, then 10,600 zones. It has been flirting near its 50-day exponential moving average (DEMA) and needs to surpass this crucial hurdle to commence the next upmove in the market. The Nifty started last week on a negative note with the resignation of Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel and outcome of state election results, but managed to recover from the lows and bounced to 10,800 zones. Volatility index corrected sharply by 18.45 percent last week to 15 levels, while put-call ratio moved up from 1.3

The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has slashed the TRAI’s controversial rules on predatory pricing, providing a relief to Bharti Airtel Ltd and Vodafone Idea Ltd. which had complained that the rules unfairly benefitted Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. The whole issue rose when TRAI changed the definition of SMP to identify predatory pricing, and gave pricing freedom and flexibility only to operators with less than 30% of the subscribers or revenue and dropped previous parameters such as the volume of traffic including data and switching capacity. TDSAT in its ruling called TRAI’s new rules arbitrarily and without deliberation or effective consultation. The tribunal also rejected Trai’s new definition of “significant market player” (SMP), besides sparing telecom firms from disclosing on their websites segmented offers or tariff discounts aimed at retaining customers. TDSAT in its order, also said: “Authority (Trai) is required to take a fresh deci

State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC) has announced an interim dividend worth Rs 6,556 crores along with a share buyback of 29.76 crores worth Rs. 4,435 crores as per the government plan to tap cash-rich PSUs to meet its budget deficit. According to the IOC’s regulatory filings, “The board of directors declared an interim dividend of 67.5 per cent or ?6.75 a share (face value ?10) for the financial year 2018-19.” The company said that dividend will be credited to the account of the shareholders on or before December 31. IOC in the statement, also said that the record date for the purpose of ascertaining the eligibility of shareholders for payment of Interim Dividend as well as for Buyback of equity shares is fixed on Tuesday, 25th December 2018. IOC board which declared an interim dividend of 67.5% or Rs 6.75 per share for fiscal 2018-19 will ensure the total dividend payout (excluding tax) of Rs 6,556 crore, out of which the government will get Rs 3,544 crore plus

The Supreme Court in its verdict on Rafale deal today, gave Narendra Modi government a clean chit. The court who was hearing the case on the procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets from France, dismissed all the petitions seeking a direction to the CBI to register an FIR for alleged irregularities in the deal. Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi led-bench said there was no occasion to doubt the decision-making process in the multi-billion dollar deal. The court also said that there was no substantial evidence of commercial favouritism to any private entity. The 3 judge bench, accompanied by Justices S K Kaul and K M Joseph, said that there has been a necessity for fighter aircraft and the country cannot remain without jets. In the judgement which was pronounced today, CJI said that the court found no reasons to interfere in the procurement process for the fighter jets. The apex court also added that it is not the job of the court to deal with the comparative details of the pricin

A Red Corner Notice by the Interpol has been issued against fugitive billionaire Mehul Choksi who is accused of duping Punjab National Bank and defrauding the bank of Rs 13,000 crores in alleged collusion with his nephew Nirav Modi. CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal said, “The Interpol has issued a Red Corner Notice against Mehul Choksi on the request of CBI.” Choksi, who is now a citizen of Antigua, had escaped the country in the first week of January this year after he and his companies allegedly cheated the bank of Rs 7,000 crore. The CBI then filed a charge-sheeted against both Nirav Modi and Choksi separately in the scam. In the CBI charge sheets, Choksi is accused of swindling Rs 7,080.86 crores making it the country’s biggest banking scam at over Rs 13,000 crore. The other accused accomplice Nirav Modi allegedly cheated the bank of Rs 6,000 crores. A Red Notice is a request to locate and provisionally arrest an individual pending extradition. It serves as an in

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Central Board held the first ever board meeting under the leadership of the newly appointed governor Shri Shaktikanta Das, today in Mumbai. The central board was expected to address the ongoing liquidity crisis and the conflict between government and RBI on PCA norm, however, no major decisions were made. The issue of RBI’s structure of governance has been a point of conflict between the government and the central bank. While regarding the matter, RBI in a statement release said: “The Board deliberated on the Governance Framework of the Reserve Bank and it was decided that the matter required further examination.” RBI also said in the statement: “The Board reviewed, inter alia, the current economic situation, global and domestic challenges, matters relating to liquidity and credit delivery to the economy, and issues related to currency management and financial literacy. The draft report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India (2017-1

Benchmark indices have fallen more than 10 percent from their highs, and for the year, Indian market has turned negative but the big carnage has been seen in individual stocks. Most fund managers are using the opportunity to buy quality stocks. For the quarter ended September, fund managers increased their stake in as many as 310 stocks which have a market capitalisation of more than Rs 1,000 crore and have fallen up to 70 percent so far in 2018. Stocks in which they raised stake include Manpasand Beverages, Infibeam Avenues, Simplex Infrastructure, IIFL Holdings, JM Financial, Navkar Corporation, Indian Bank, Symphony, Kajaria Ceramics, Dilip Buildcon, Greenply Industries. Most analysts agree that investors should look at the beaten-down stocks for their portfolio but the time horizon should now be 1-2 years. Picking the right stock will be more important because not every stock will qualify as a sound investment. “While it may be difficult to call a bottom,