Nifty below 22,450 mark; European mkt opens higher

The benchmark indices traded with minor losses in afternoon trade. The Nifty traded below the 22,450 mark. Realty, IT and FMCG stocks were in demand while PSU banks, consumer durables and media shares witnessed a bit of a selling pressure.

At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 35.58 points or 0.08% to 73,821.36. The Nifty 50 index lost 62.15 points or 0.28% to 22,413.70.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index slipped 1.16% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 1.05%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,315 shares rose and 2,477 shares fell. A total of 178 shares were unchanged.

Economy:

Despite falling from 61.2 at the end of the previous fiscal quarter to 60.8 in April, the seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services Business Activity Index highlighted one of the strongest growth rates seen in just under 14 years. Survey members attributed the latest upturn in output to favorable economic conditions, demand strength and rising intakes of new work.

Despite coming in below the Flash estimate (62.2), the final HSBC India Composite PMI Output Index still signaled a substantial rate of expansion across the private sector. At 61.5 in April (March: 61.8), the latest reading was one of the highest seen in close to 14 years.

As was the case for output, manufacturers continued to note a stronger increase in new business intakes than service providers. Aggregate sales rose sharply, and at one of the fastest rates since mid-2010. Goods producers also led April`s rise in payroll numbers, with softer growth in the service economy curbing job creation at the composite level.

Meanwhile, in the third consecutive weekly decline, India�s forex reserves dropped $2.412 billion to $637.922 billion during the seven days ended April 26, according to the RBI data.

For the week ended April 26, the foreign currency assets � a major component of the reserves � decreased $1.159 billion to $559.701 billion, the data released on Friday showed.

Gold reserves decreased $1.275 billion to $55.533 billion during the week. The special drawing rights (SDRs) were up $15 million to $18.048 billion, said the RBI.

India�s reserve position with the IMF was also up $8 million to $4.639 billion in the reporting week, the apex bank data showed.

Gainers & Losers:

Britannia Industries (up 7.46%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 5.31%), Tata Consultancy Sercives (up 2.02%), JSW Steel (up 1.20%) and Infosys (up 0.99%) were major Nifty gainers.

Titan Company (down 7.03%), Adani Enterprises (down 4.44%), BPCL (down 3.20%), Coal India (down 3%) and SBI Life Insurance Company (down 2.98%) were major Nifty losers.

Titan Company dropped 7.03% after the company�s standalone net profit tumbled 24.42% to Rs 786 crore on 22.18% decrease in revenue from operations to Rs 10,047 crore for Q4 FY24 over Q3 FY24. For year on year basis, The Tata Group company reported 7.08% rise in standalone net profit and 17.47% jumped in Revenue from operations for Q4 FY24 over Q4 FY23.

Kotak Mahindra Bank jumped 5.31% after the bank reported 18% rise in standalone net profit to Rs 4,133 crore in Q4 FY24 from Rs 3,496 crore in Q4 FY23. Total income of the bank increased by 27% YoY to Rs 15,285.35 crore during the period under review.

Britannia Industries jumped 7.46% after the company said that its consolidated net profit declined 3.76% to Rs 536.61 crore in Q4 FY24 as compared with Rs 557.60 crore in Q4 FY23. Revenue from operations increased 5.45% to Rs 4,104.07 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2024 as compared with Rs 3892.02 crore posted in the quarter ended 31 March 2023.

Earnings Impact:

Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals (MRPL) slipped 6.68% after the company reported 40.41% decline in standalone net profit to Rs 1,136.84 crore in Q4 FY24 from Rs 1,907.98 crore recorded in Q4 FY23. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) fell marginally to Rs 25,328.67 crore in Q4 FY24 as compared to Rs 25,365.43 crore recorded in Q4 FY23.

Tata Technologies fell 3.31% after the IT firm reported 7.63% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 157.24 crore in Q4 FY24 as compared with Rs 170.22 crore in Q3 FY24. Revenue from operations rose marginally to Rs 1,301.05 crore in Q4 FY24 as compared with Rs 1,289.45 crore in Q3 FY24.

Avenue Supermarts (Dmart) shed 0.59%. Dmart said that its consolidated net profit jumped 22.41% to Rs 563.25 crore in Q4 FY24 as compared with Rs 460.13 crore in Q4 FY23. Revenue from operations increased 20.13% to Rs 12,726.55 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2024.

Global Markets:

Markets in Europe advanced while Asian stocks traded mixed on Monday as a softer-than-expected U.S. jobs report fueled hopes that the Federal Reserve could start cutting rates soon.

Investors, meanwhile, awaited the Reserve Bank of Australia�s rate decision on Tuesday and China�s April trade data on Thursday. Japan and South Korea�s markets are closed for a public holiday.

U.S. stocks closed sharply higher Friday, as Treasury yields fell after a softer-than-anticipated April jobs report.

The Berkshire Annual Meeting 2024 on Saturday proceeded in Omaha with Warren Buffett, Greg Abel, and Ajit Jain fielding shareholder queries. Buffett spoke on a variety of issues, including the India opportunity, stock market outlook, US dollar, AI, Apple stake cuts, global investments and more.

The U.S. economy added fewer jobs than expected in April while the unemployment rate rose. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 175,000 on the month. The unemployment rate ticked higher to 3.9%, compared to 3.8% in the prior month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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