Indices trade near flat line; Nifty reclaims 15,850 mark

The key benchmarks were trading almost flat in afternoon trade. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 3.29 points or 0.01% at 52,979.09. The Nifty 50 index gained 4 points or 0.03% at 15,860.05.

Reliance Industries (down 0.84%), HDFC Bank (down 0.74%) and Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) (down 0.81%) were major drags.

The broader indices outperformed the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.51%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.77%.

Buyers outpaced sellers. On the BSE, 1,940 shares rose and 1,341 shares fell. A total of 155 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 163.31 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 2,187.80 crore in the Indian equity market on 23 July 2021, provisional data showed.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 19,41,65,023 with 41,59,142 deaths. India reported 4,11,189 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 4,20,967 deaths while 3,05,79,106 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India reported 39,361 new COVID-19 cases, 35,968 recoveries, and 416 deaths in the last 24 hours. The total active cases in the country has now reached 4,11,189, the total recoveries are 3,05,79,106 and the death toll stands at 4,20,967. The total vaccinations stands at 43,51,96,001.

Politics:

B.S. Yediyurappa has reportedly announced his resignation as the Karnataka chief minister after weeks of uncertainty. While resigning, Yediyurappa was seen breaking down on the stage from where he made the announcement. Yediyurappa even issued a word of caution to colleagues and said people have lost their faith in the government, reports added.

Gainers & Losers:

Hindalco Industries (up 2.30%), Bajaj Finserv (up 2%), Titan Company (up 1.70%), Divi`s Laboratories (up 1.65%) and Tata Steel (up 1.51%) were major gainers in Nifty 50 index.

JSW Steel (down 1.21%), Maruti Suzuki India (up 1.10%) and Wipro (down 1.03%) were major losers in Nifty 50 index.

Nifty Results Today:

Axis Bank (down 0.07%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.19%), Larsen & Toubro (L&T) (down 0.25%), SBI Life Insurance Company (up 0.08%) and Tata Motors (down 0.63%) will announce their quarterly results today.

Earnings Impact:

Ambuja Cements added 1.07% after the cement maker posted a 59.5% rise in standalone net profit to Rs 723 crore on a 55.8% increase in net sales to Rs 3,342 crore in Q2 2021 over Q2 2020. The company`s premium products volume grew at 69% compared to the same period last year. Total operating cost per ton saw a marginal decline, despite continuous headwinds faced on account of rising input costs. The operational efficiency programs in the plants along with logistics efficiencies partly mitigated the impact. Total operating cost spiked by 52.4% to Rs 2,411 crore in Q2 June 2021 over Q2 June 2020.

Standalone EBITDA surged higher by 61.2% to Rs 960 crore in Q2 June 2021 from Rs 595 crore posted in Q2 June 2020. EBITDA margin improved to 28.7% in Q2 2021 from 27.8% in Q2 2020. Standalone profit before tax rose by 51% to Rs 966 crore in Q2 2021 over Q2 2020. On the operational front, the cement maker`s sales volume grew 51% to 6.33 million tonnes in Q2 June 2021 from 4.19 million tonnes posted in the same period last year.

Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) skid 1% after the company`s consolidated net profit tanked 29.5% to Rs 39.80 crore on 20% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 87.60 crore in Q1 June 2021 over Q1 June 2020. Consolidated profit before tax dropped 28.1% to Rs 51.40 crore in Q1 FY22 as against Rs 71.46 crore in Q1 FY21. EBITDA tumbled 24% to Rs 58.19 crore in Q1 FY22 as against Rs 76.22 crore in Q1 FY21. EBITDA margin stood at 53% while profit margin was at 37% in Q1 June 2021.

Global Markets:

European markets skid across the board on Monday, 26 July 2021, tracking lackluster global sentiment as investors monitored corporate earnings and looked ahead to a key meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve. Investors continue to monitor a surge in COVID-19 cases across the continent driven by the highly-transmissible delta variant, which has led several countries to re-impose social restrictions.

Most Asian stocks declined on Monday, as Chinese tech stocks in Hong Kong plunged. China`s antitrust regulator ordered Tencent to give up its exclusive music licensing rights and slapped a fine on it for anti-competitive behavior, marking yet another development in Beijing`s ongoing crackdown on its domestic internet titans.

Investors likely continued to monitor the COVID-19 situation in Asia as it weighs on sentiment. In South Korea, the second highest level of virus restrictions will be reportedly applied to non-capital areas starting Tuesday. Indonesia on Sunday also reportedly extended its COVID-19 restrictions by a week.

U.S. equities rose Friday with the major averages hitting new records as they overcame concerns about economic growth from earlier in the week. The Dow closed above 35,000 for the first time ever. The blue-chip average rose 238.20 points, or 0.68%, to 35,061.55. The S&P 500 gained 1.01% to 4,411.79 and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.04% to 14,836.99, both new closing highs for the benchmarks.

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