Sensex jumps 295 pts, Nifty settles above 17,000; Tech Mahindra rises 3.5%

Domestic equity benchmarks reversed from early lows and ended with modest gains on Monday. Investors factored the low mortality rate of the omicron Covid-19 variant. Pharma and healthcare stocks were in demand. Media and FMCG stocks were under pressure. The Nifty settled above the 17,000 mark after hitting the day`s low of 16,833.20 in early trade.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 295.93 points or 0.52% to 57,420.24. The Nifty 50 index added 82.50 points or 0.49% to 17,086.25.

Tech Mahindra (up 3.57%), Dr. Reddy`s Laboratories (up 1.95%), Power Grid Corporation of India (up 1.60%) and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 1.16%) boosted the indices.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.27% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.52%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,143 shares rose and 1,328 shares fell. A total of 149 shares were unchanged.

The NSE`s VIX index, a gauge of market`s expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 6% at 17.1175.

Economy:

India looks set to overtake France next year and then Britain in 2023 to regain its place as the world`s sixth-biggest economy.

In a report, the British consultancy CEBR said the world`s economic output will exceed 100 trillion dollar for the first time next year and it will take China a little longer than previously thought to overtake the United States as the No.1 economy. CEBR predicted China will become the world`s top economy in dollar terms in 2030, two years later than forecast in last year`s World Economic League Table report.

CEBR deputy chairman Douglas McWilliams said, the important issue for the 2020s is how the world economies cope with inflation, which has now reached 6.8 per cent in the U.S.

The report showed Germany was on track to overtake Japan in terms of economic output in 2033. Russia could become a Top 10 economy by 2036 and Indonesia looks on track for ninth place in 2034.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.465% as compared with 6.462% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 75, compared with its close of 75.03 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 4 February 2022 settlement shed 0.08% to Rs 48,081.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, rose 0.16% to 96.17.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for February 2022 settlement fell $1.01 or 1.32% to currently trade at $75.63 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia were mixed on Monday, as traders kept a watchful eye on the latest developments around the omicron COVID-19 variant. New studies in South Africa and the U.K. suggest omicron has a reduced risk of hospitalization and severe illness.

China`s industrial profits in November jumped 9% from last year, data released by China`s National Bureau of Statistics showed. The US markets were shut on Friday, 25 December 2021 on account of Christmas holiday.

US airlines have cancelled or delayed thousands of flights over the past three days due to COVID-19-related staff shortages, while several cruise ships had to cancel stops after outbreaks on-board.

Buzzing Segment:

The Nifty Bank rose 0.58% to 35,057.90. The index reversed from the day`s low of 34,233 hit in early trade today. The index fell 0.95% in the previous session.

Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.44%), ICICI Bank (up 1.29%), PNB (up 1.22%), HDFC Bank (up 0.98%), Axis Bank (up 0.85%), Federal Bank (up 0.62%), and SBI (up 0.54%) advanced.

RBL Bank tumbled 18.10%. The bank`s board on 25 December 2021 accepted the request of Vishwavir Ahuja to proceed on medical leave and appointed Rajeev Ahuja (existing executive director of the bank) as the interim managing director & CEO of the bank subject to regulatory and other approvals. Further, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed Yogesh Dayal as an additional director on the board of RBL Bank for a period of two years till 23 December 2023 or till further orders, whichever is earlier.

Separately, RBI clarified that RBL Bank is well capitalised and the financial position of the bank remains satisfactory. Further, it added that there is no need for depositors and other stakeholders to react to the speculative reports.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Paras Defence and Space Technologies jumped 6.72%. The Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has awarded Transfer of Technology (ToT) for development of Border Surveillance System to the company.

GMR Infrastructure rose 8.09%. The letter of award for the project was received on 23 November 2021. GMR Airports Netherlands B.V., a step down subsidiary of GMR Airports (GAL), on 23 December 2021, signed the shareholders` agreement (SHA) and share subscription agreement (SSA) with Angkasa Pura II (AP II) for the development and operation of Kualanamu International Airport (project) in Medan, Indonesia. AP II is the state-owned enterprise and the bidding authority for the Kualanamu International Airport.

Lupin gained 2.32%. The company said that it has received approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) Sevelamer Carbonate for oral suspension. The drug is a generic equivalent of Renvela for oral suspension of Genzyme Corporation. Sevelamer is used to control high blood levels of phosphorus in people with chronic kidney disease who are on dialysis.

Adani Transmission (ATL) fell 1% after the company said that it has received a letter of intent (LoI) for the acquisition of Karur Transmission. The company won the Karur Transmission project through the tariff-based competitive bidding (TBCB) process and has received the LoI for the central renewable energy (RE) evacuation project. ATL will build, own, operate and maintain the transmission project in Tamil Nadu for a period of 35 years.

New Listing:

Shares of HP Adhesives settled at Rs 334.95 on BSE, at a premium of 22.24% as against the issue price of Rs 274. The scrip was listed at Rs 319, representing a premium of 16.42% to the initial public offer (IPO) price. The scrip hit a high of 334.95 and a low of 319 during the day. Over 1.95 lakh shares of the company have changed hands in the counter till now.

The IPO of HP Adhesives was subscribed 20.96 times. The issue opened for bidding on 15 December 2021 and it closed on 17 December 2021. The price band of the IPO was fixed at Rs 262-274.

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