Nifty climbs above 21,900; pharma shares advance

The benchmark indices traded with minor gains in mid-morning trade. The Nifty scaled above the 21,900 mark. Pharma shares gained for the second consecutive trading session.

At 11:26 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 67.20 points or 0.09% to 72,152.83. The Nifty 50 index rose 55.95 points or 0.26% to 21,909.75.

The broader market outperformed the headline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.92% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.54%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,081 shares rose and 1,716 shares fell. A total of 175 shares were unchanged.

Economy

The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index came at 61.8 in January, up from 59 in December, comfortably above the neutral level of 50 and pointed to the sharpest rate of expansion in six months. Moreover, the current sequence of uninterrupted increases was stretched to two-and-a-half years. According to survey participants, growth was spurred by demand buoyancy, productivity gains and rising intakes of new work.

The HSBC India Composite PMI Output Index rose to 61.2 in December from 58.5, indicating the sharpest upturn since mid-2023. January data highlighted a further acceleration in growth of Indian private sector output, amid quicker increases at both goods producers and service providers.

Meanwhile, India�s forex reserves increased $591 million to $616.733 billion for the week ended January 26, according to the latest RBI data. In the previous reporting week, the overall reserves had dropped $2.795 billion to $616.143 billion.

Gold reserves increased $269 million to $47.481 billion during the week, the RBI said. The special drawing rights (SDRs) were up $27 million to $18.248 billion, the apex bank said.

IPO Update:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels received bids for 3,47,61,903 shares as against 1,72,65,504 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 11:30 IST on Monday (5 February 2024). The issue was subscribed 0.50 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Monday (5 February 2024) and it will close on Wednesday (7 February 2024). The price band of the IPO is fixed at Rs 147-155 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 96 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Pharma index added 1.98% to 18,328.60. The index gained 2.74% in the two trading sessions.

Torrent Pharmaceuticals (up 5.65%), Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceuticals (up 4.72%), Lupin (up 4.17%), Alkem Laboratories (up 2.97%), Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries (up 2.79%), Cipla (up 2.51%), Pfizer (up 2.24%), Granules India (up 1.9%), Zydus Lifesciences (up 1.49%) and Gland Pharma (up 1.29%) rallied.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Jubilant Pharmova slipped 3.44% after the company informed that the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) has concluded audit of the solid dosage formulations facility on 2 February 2024 at Roorkee site of Jubilant Generics, a subsidiary of its wholly owned subsidiary Jubilant Pharma. The USFDA has issued 4 observations pursuant to the completion of audit. The company will submit an action plan on the observations.

Metropolis Healthcare gained 1%. The company reported 23.93% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 27.28 crore in Q3 FY24 as compared with Rs 35.86 crore in Q3 FY23. Revenue from operations rose 1.98% YoY to Rs 391.11 crore in Q3 FY24.

Affle (India) declined 2.47%. The company�s consolidated net profit increased 11.14% to Rs 76.81 crore on 32.61% jump revenue from operations to Rs 498.70 crore in Q3 FY24 over Q3 FY23.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks traded mixed on Monday after a robust US jobs report dashed any expectations of a near-term interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve.

US stocks ended sharply higher on Friday with the S&P 500 registering an all-time closing high as strong earnings and a blowout January employment report boosted confidence in the economy.

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