The domestic equity benchmarks ended near the day's high on Thursday. Trading was volatile due to expiry of weekly index options on the NSE. Banks, financials, metals and realty stocks advanced while FMCG, IT and pharma shares corrected.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 374.87 points or 0.79% to 48,080.67. The Nifty 50 index added 109.75 points or 0.77% to 14,406.15.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.25% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index advanced 0.59%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1768 shares rose and 1153 shares fell. A total of 163 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 14,38,63,870 with 30,58,640 deaths. India reported 22,91,428 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,84,657 deaths while 1,34,54,880 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

The Maharashtra government on Wednesday imposed additional restrictions on travel within the state and the city, and a further reduction in attendance in government offices and such private offices that fall under the essential or exempted category. These curbs will kick in at 8 PM Thursday and be in force till 7 AM on 1 May 2021.

In its second-highest single-day jump thus far, Maharashtra reported 67,468 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking its tally beyond the 40-lakh mark. Maharashtra also recorded an all-time high of 568 deaths. The toll rose to 61,911.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has urged the industry to wait and watch for next few days to assess the situation amid the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and assured them of full government support. She was addressing the FICCI National Executive Committee Members through virtual mode.

Economy:

With economic activities getting affected across the country due to curbs imposed by states amid surge in COVID-19 cases, Care Ratings has revised down its forecast for GDP growth to 10.2% in 2021-22 from earlier projection of 10.7-10.9%. This is the third revision by the rating agency in the last one month.

Domestic rating agency ICRA on Tuesday cut its 2021-22 growth estimate by 0.5% on the upper end, as a newer spate of lockdowns and restrictions get imposed in pockets to arrest the rising COVID-19 cases. The agency now expects the economy to grow 10-10.5% in 2021-22, against the 10-11% estimated earlier.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index rose 1.99% to 31,732.20. The index fell 3.11% in the past three sessions.

ICICI Bank (up 3.45%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 2.14%), HDFC Bank (up 2.13%), RBL Bank (up 1%), IDFC First Bank (up 0.89%) and Axis Bank (up 0.79%) advanced while IndusInd Bank declined 1.18%.

State Bank of India (SBI) advanced 2.03% to Rs 336.30. The insurance regulator IRDAI has imposed a penalty of Rs 25 lakh on SBI General lnsurance Company, an unlisted subsidiary of SBI. The penalty has been imposed for non-compliance with minimum obligations under Motor Third-Party Business as specified in IRDA regulation 2015.

Earning Impact:

Network18 Media & Investments rallied 12.47% to Rs 43.30. The company's consolidated net profit surged 241.91% to Rs 205.80 crore on 3.40% decline in revenue from operations to Rs 1,414.70 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20.

TV18 Broadcast hit an upper circuit of 20% at Rs 33.05. On a consolidated basis, the company's net profit surged 77.02% to Rs 251.08 crore on 5.40% decline in revenue from operations to Rs 1,347.94 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. The group debt sharply reduced to Rs 893 crore in March 2021, from Rs 1,775 crore in March 2020.

Tata Steel BSL jumped 4.08% to Rs 59.95 after the company's consolidated net profit surged to Rs 1913.35 crore in Q4 FY21 from Rs 5.93 crore in Q4 FY20. Net sales during the quarter increased by 66.6% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 6773.81 crore.

Nestle India fell 1.80% to Rs 16778.90. On a standalone basis, the company's net profit jumped 14.6% to Rs 602.25 crore on 8.9% increase in net sales to Rs 3,600.20 crore in Q1 FY21 over Q1 FY20. During the quarter ended, domestic sales soared 10.2% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) driven by volume & mix and was broad based. Export sales tumbled 12.9% Y-o-Y due to lower exports to affiliates. Demand in out of home channel further improved in the quarter but continued to be impacted by COVID-19, the company said.

While the Nestlé India family has learnt to cope with the operating volatility in the pandemic, recent sharp escalations in key raw material prices poses challenges that we will resolutely respond to, while maintaining the integrity of our business model, Suresh Narayanan, the chairman and managing director (MD) of Nestle India said.

ICICI Securities soared 6.68% to Rs 453.95. The company's consolidated profit after tax (PAT) for Q4FY21 stood at Rs 329 crore as against Rs 156 crore in Q4FY20, up 111%, on account of growth in revenue and improvement in margins. Consolidated revenue of Rs 739 crore in Q4FY21 as compared to Rs 482 crore in Q4FY20, up 53%, aided by strong all-round performance in equities & allied business, distribution business, distribution business, private wealth management business, as well as investment banking business.

In Q4FY21, equities and allied business revenue rose 46% year-on-year to Rs 482 crore. Distribution revenue stood at Rs 141 crore in Q4FY21 up 22% against Q4FY20. I-Sec's Private Wealth Management (PWM) business reported Rs 158 crore of revenue in Q4FY21 up 82% on-year. The company's Issuer Services and Advisory business revenue stood at Rs 53 crore in Q4FY21, up 441% on-year.

Tejas Networks hit an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 176.05 after the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 33.55 crore in Q4 FY21 compared with net loss of Rs 126.53 crore in Q4 FY20. Revenue from operations increased by 269.34% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 201.55 crore.

Sanjay Nayak, managing director and CEO of Tejas Networks said, We are seeing positive tailwinds for our business in India due to increased demand for high-speed broadband connections and Government policy for promoting domestic telecom equipment. We continued to see strong order inflows as well as new customer wins, resulting in a VoY booking growth of 54% and we ended the year with an order book of Rs 679 crore.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Indiabulls Housing Finance jumped 6.75% to Rs 176.25. The company entered into a strategic co-lending partnership with HDFC to offer housing loans to homebuyers at competitive rates. Indiabulls Housing Finance will originate retail home loans as per jointly drawn up credit policy and retain 20% of the loan in it's books and 80% will be on HDFC books. The arrangement is part of Indiabulls Housing Finance's balance sheet light growth model.

Caplin Point Laboratories rose 2.42% to Rs 519.45 after the company said its subsidiary received a final approval from the US drug regulator for its Abbreviated New Drug Application, neostigmine methylsulfate injection. The injection is indicated for the reversal of the effects of non-depolarizing neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) after surgery. According to IQVIA (IMS Health), neostigmine methylsulfate injection had US sales data of approximately $20 million for the 12-month period ending December 2020.

Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company gained 2.45% to Rs 519.45. The company's board said that it will consider issuing non‐convertible debentures (NCDs) in its meeting on 7 May 2021. The company's board will consider issuing non‐convertible debentures (secured debentures and unsecured debentures in the nature of subordinated debt and perpetual debt) in FY2021‐22. The board will also consider final dividend for the financial year ended 31 March 2021.

Global Markets:

European shares rose across the board while most Asian stocks advanced on Thursday following an overnight bounce on Wall Street.

The European Central Bank is scheduled to deliver its latest monetary policy announcement today, although no major shifts are expected.

In US, Wall Street rebounded on Wednesday after a two-day decline in a broad rally as a tilt toward stocks poised to benefit from a recovering economy offset Netflix Inc's sell-off after its disappointing results a day earlier. Both the S&P 500 and Dow hit all-time highs.

The domestic equity barometers ended with modest losses after a volatile trade on Tuesday. IT shares declined sharply while banks shares extended recent losses. Auto and pharma stocks bucked the trend. The Nifty closed below the 14,300 mark.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 243.62 points or 0.51% to 47,705.80. The Nifty 50 index lost 63.05 points or 0.44% to 14,296.40.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index, both advanced 0.49%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1654 shares rose and 1228 shares fell. A total of 167 shares were unchanged.

The domestic equity market will remain shut on Wednesday (21 April 2021) on account of Ram Navami.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 14,21,12,632 with 30,30,299 deaths. India reported 20,31,977 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,80,530 deaths while 1,31,08,582 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

PM Narendra Modi announced an important decision of allowing vaccination to everyone above the age of 18 from 1 May 2021. Phase-I of the National COVID-19 vaccination was launched on 16 January 2021, prioritizing protection for Health Care Workers (HCWs) and front line workers (FLWs). Phase-II was initiated from 1 March 2021 and 1 April 2021, focusing on protecting all people above 45 years of age, accounting for more than 80% COVID-19 mortality in the country.

Economy:

The Reserve Bank of India on 19 April said it has decided against activating the countercyclical capital buffer (CCyB) framework as the current situation does not warrant such an action.

The RBI had in February 2005 put in place CCyB guidelines with the overall objective of strengthening the banking sector. It was envisaged that the CCyB would be activated as and when the circumstances warranted.

Based on the review and empirical testing of CCyB indicators, it has been decided that it is not necessary to activate CCyB at this point in time, the RBI said in a release.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index slipped 0.32% to 31,108.05. The index has lost 3.13% in three sessions.

HDFC Bank (down 1.55%), Bank Of Baroda (down 1.10%), RBL Bank (down 0.91%), SBI (down 0.53%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 0.34%) declined.

Bandhan Bank (up 1.67%), Punjab National Bank (up 1.66%), IndusInd Bank (up 1.23%) and Axis Bank (up 0.55%) advanced.

ICICI Bank shed 0.17% to Rs 558.65. The bank said that the board of the bank at its meeting scheduled on 24 April 2021 will consider fund raising by way of issuance of debt securities in single/multiple tranches in any currency through public/private placement. The board will also consider the financial results for the quarter and the year ended 31 March 2021 on the same day.

Earnings Today:

Nestle India (up 0.25%), 5paisa Capital (down 0.35%), Tata Steel Long Products (up 4.11%), Swaraj Engines (down 1.51%), Network18 (up 4.31%) and TV18 Broadcast (up 0.55%) will announce quarterly earnings today.

Earnings Impact:

CRISIL fell 1.27% to Rs 1835.20. On a consolidated basis, CRISIL's net profit fell 5.22% to Rs 83.5 crore on 15.8% rise in income from operations to Rs 495.20 crore in Q1 March 2021 over Q4 March 2021. Foreign exchange loss for Q1 March 2021 was Rs 4.7 crore compared with a gain of Rs 16.6 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

ACC slipped 2.34% to Rs 1832.95. The cement major's consolidated net profit surged 74.2% to Rs 563 crore on 22.7% increase in net sales to Rs 4,213 crore in Q1 FY21 over Q1 FY20. Cement sales volume jumped 21.49% to 7.97 million tonnes in Q1 FY21 as against 6.56 million tonnes in Q1 FY20. Sale of ready mix concrete dropped 10.75% to 0.83 million cubic metres in Q1 FY21 compared with 0.93 million cubic metres in Q1 FY20.

EBITDA margin improved to 20.4% in Q1 FY21 as compared to 17.1% in Q1 FY20. Operating EBIT margin expansion of 450 basis points to 17% in Q4 FY21 compared with 12.5%, driven by capex led strong cost actions and higher growth in premium products.

In its outlook, ACC said it believes that the government is taking all possible steps to intensify the vaccination program and control the spread of COVID-19. With government's increased spending and its strong focus on infrastructure development, ACC maintains a cautious yet positive outlook for overall cement demand in the coming months.

ICICI Prudential Life jumped 5.82% to Rs 478.55. On a standalone basis, the company's net profit tumbled 64.5% to Rs 63.78 crore on 364.5% surge in total income to Rs 19,897.44 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. Net premium income increased by 13.40% to Rs 11,879.28 crore in Q4 FY21 over Rs 10,475.12 crore in Q3 FY20.

New business Annualised Premium Equivalent (APE) grew 27% Y-o-Y (year-on-year) in Q4 FY2021 to Rs 2,509 crore, on the back of 108% Y-o-Y growth in March 2021 to Rs 1,101 crore. The Value of New Business (VNB) for the quarter surged 26% Y-o-Y to Rs 591 crore. VNB margin was at 23.6% in Q4 FY21 as against 23.8% in Q4 FY20.

The solvency ratio stood at 217% on 31 March 2021, well above the regulatory requirement of 150%. Assets under Management (AUM) stood at Rs 2,14,218 crore at 31 March 2021, registering a growth of 40% Y-o-Y over 31 March 2020.

Global Markets:

European shares declined while most Asian stocks traded higher on Tuesday.

China kept its benchmark lending rate unchanged. On the economic data front, China kept its benchmark lending rate for corporate and household loans steady for the 12th straight month at its April fixing on Tuesday, matching market expectations. The one-year loan prime rate (LPR) was kept at 3.85%. The five-year LPR remained at 4.65%.

U.S. stocks slipped from record levels to start the week on Monday as weakness in the technology sector weighed on the broader market.

On the coronavirus front, White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said he expects the U.S. will resume administration of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The Food and Drug Administration asked states last week to temporarily halt using the single dose vaccine “out of an abundance of caution” after six women developed a rare blood-clotting disorder.

The key equity indices ended with significant losses on Monday. Shares fell across the board with banks and financials correcting the most. The Nifty index closed above the 14,350 level. A spike in domestic coronavirus cases and localized lockdown being announced by various state governments dented investors sentiment.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, dropped 882.61 points or 1.81% to 47,949.42. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 258.40 points or 1.77% to 14,359.45.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, surged 10.20% to 22.49.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index lost 1.93%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 1.64%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 776 shares rose and 2194 shares fell. A total of 202 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 14,14,14,180 with 30,19,660 deaths. India reported 19,29,329 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,78,769 deaths while 1,29,53,821 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Several states like Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka etc. continued to witness a record surge on Sunday. In view of the unprecedented surge, governments have imposed weekend lockdowns, night curfews etc. in their respective states. The state of Rajasthan, for example, began a self-discipline fortnight on Monday which will be in effect till 5 AM on 3 May 2021.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a six-day lockdown in Delhi from 10 pm tonight to 5 am next Monday, amid rising Covid cases.

Economy:

According to the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) weekly statistical supplement, India's foreign exchange reserves rose $4.344 billion to stand at $581.213 billion during the week ended 9 April 2021 from $576.869 billion reported for the week ended 2 April 2021.

Similarly, the value of the country's gold reserves rose $1.297 billion to $35.320 billion. The SDR value climbed $6 million to $1.492 billion. The country's reserve position with the IMF inched higher by $24 million to $4.946 billion during the same tenure.

New Listing:

Shares of Macrotech Developers closed at 454.50 at 15:30 IST on the BSE, at a discount of 6.48% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 486.

The stock was listed at Rs 439, a discount of 9.67% to the IPO price. So far, the stock hit a high of Rs 477.90 and low of Rs 421.15. On the BSE, 3.30 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far.

The initial public offer (IPO) of Macrotech Developers was subscribed 1.36 times. The issue opened for bidding on 7 April 2021 and closed on 9 April 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 483-486 per share.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index fell 2.32% to 31,236.25. The index has lost 2.73% in two sessions.

RBL Bank (down 6.63%), Federal Bank (down 5.89%), Bank Of Baroda (down 5.49%), Bandhan Bank (down 5.47%), IDFC First Bank (down 5.22%), Punjab National Bank (down 5.03%), IndusInd Bank (down 3.64%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 3.52%), Axis Bank (down 3.17%), SBI (down 2.78%) and ICICI Bank (down 1.16%) declined.

Earnings Today:

ACC (down 0.10%), CRISIL (down 1.60%) and ICICI Prudential (up 0.08%) are some of the companies that will announce their quarterly earnings today.

Earnings Impact:

HDFC Bank skid 0.89% to Rs 1415.80. The private lender reported 18.2% rise in net profit to Rs 8,186.51 crore in Q4 FY21 compared with Rs 6,927.69 crore in Q4 FY20. Total income of the bank rose 5.8% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 38,017.50 crore during the quarter. Net interest income for the quarter ended 31 March 2021 grew by 12.6% to Rs 17,120.20 crore from Rs 15,204.10 crore for the quarter ended 31 March 2020, driven by advances growth of 14%, and a core net interest margin of 4.2%. Other income stood at Rs 7,593.90 crore in Q4 FY21, up by 25.9% from Rs 6,032.60 crore in Q4 FY20.

On the asset quality side, Gross non-performing assets were at 1.32% of gross advances as on 31 March 2021, as against 1.38% (proforma approach) as on 31 December 2020 and 1.26% as on 31 March 2020. Net non-performing assets were at 0.40% of gross advances as on 31 March 2021, as against 0.40% (proforma approach) as on 31 December 2020 and 0.36% as on 31 March 2020. Provisions and contingencies for the quarter ended March 31, 2021 were Rs 4,693.7 crore (including a build of approximately Rs 1,300 crore in contingent provisions) as against Rs 3,784.5 crore for the quarter ended 31 March 2020.

The bank continues to hold provisions as on 31 March 2021 against the potential impact of COVID-19 based on the information available at this point in time and the same are in excess of the RBI prescribed norms. The bank held floating provisions of Rs 1,451 crore and contingent provisions of Rs 5,861 crore as on 31 March 2021. Total provisions (comprising specific, floating, contingent and general provisions) were 153% of the gross non-performing loans as on 31 March 2021.

Given that the current second wave has significantly increased the number of COVID-19 cases in India and uncertainty remains, the board of directors of the bank, at its meeting held on 17 April 2021, has considered it prudent to currently not propose dividend for the financial year ended 31 March 2021, the private lender said in a statement. Separately, the bank informed that the board of directors of the bank approved issuance of Perpetual Debt Instruments (part of Additional Tier I capital), Tier II Capital Bonds and Long Term Bonds (financing of infrastructure and affordable housing) up to a total amount of Rs 50,000 crore in the period of next twelve months through private placement mode.

ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company declined 3.72% to Rs 1364.25. Its net profit jumped 22.6% to Rs 345.68 crore on a 22.2% surge in net sales to Rs 3,628.23 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. Gross Direct Premium Income (GDPI) of the company stood at Rs 3,478 crore in Q4 FY2021 compared to Rs 3,181 crore in Q4 FY2020, registering a growth of 9.4% Y-o-Y (year-on-year). The industry growth for Q4 FY2021 was at 14%.

Den Networks fell 1.45% to Rs 47.60. Its consolidated net profit surged 50.5% to Rs 33.89 crore on a 0.5% decline in net sales to Rs 326.23 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. On a consolidated basis, subscription revenues fell 15% to Rs 190 crore and activation revenues surged 63% to Rs 34 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. EBITDA margin stood at 20% in Q4 FY21 over 19% in Q4 FY20.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Bharti Airtel lost 2.85% to Rs 525.15. The government of Ghana, Bharti Airtel and Millicom International Cellular S.A. on Friday announced execution of the definitive agreement for transfer of 'AirtelTigo' to Government of Ghana, on a going concern basis.

Jubilant Pharmova surged 6.32% to Rs 769.85. The company's subsidiary, Jubilant Pharma announced the development of a novel oral formulation of Remdesivir with successful completion of safety and pharmacokinetic/absorption studies in animals and healthy human volunteers. Jubilant has sought authorization for additional studies for this novel oral formulation from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI).

Caplin Point Laboratories jumped 5.53% to Rs 492. Caplin Steriles, a subsidiary company of Caplin Point Labs, has been granted final approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) Milrinone Lactate Injection. It is indicated for the short-term intravenous treatment of patients with acute decompensated heart failure.

Kolte-Patil Developers dropped 6.54% to Rs 220. The company's volume jumped 27.1% to 0.85 million square feet (sq. ft.) in Q4 FY21 over 0.67 million sq. ft. in Q4 FY20. Strong sales momentum sustained in Q4 FY21 across regions, projects and product categories.

Sale value surged 42.7% to Rs 510.90 crore in Q4 FY21 as against Rs 358.10 crore in Q4 FY20. Sales realization soared 12.3% to Rs 5,988 per sq. ft. in Q4 FY21 from Rs 5,333 per sq. ft. in Q4 FY20. Collections spurted 16.8% to Rs 441.50 crore in Q4 FY21 as compared to Rs 378.10 crore in Q4 FY20.

There has been a further reduction in net debt during Q4 FY21. Hence, strong collections and low debt have resulted in healthy OCF in FY21, despite being a year impacted by COVID-related disruptions. The company signed three new projects with a combined saleable area of 2.2 msf in Pune under capital light models.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Monday as the global economic recovery and corporate earnings prospects bolstered sentiment despite rising COVID-19 infections. Chinese stocks outperformed amid easing concerns about the health of state enterprise China Huarong Asset Management Co., a bad-debt manager.

China's financial regulator on Friday reportedly said Huarong had ample liquidity, the first official comments since the company missed a deadline to report earnings. That was enough to cement a rally in Huarong bonds and ease contagion fears.

Japan's exports posted their strongest growth in more than three years in March. Ministry of Finance data showed on Monday exports surged 16.1% in March from a year earlier, marking the steepest rise since November 2017. That was followed by a 4.5% contraction in February.

U.S. stocks rose again on Friday as the market's rally to records carried on amid strong earnings from blue-chip companies as well as solid data signaling a snapback in the economy. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said Friday the U.S. economy is set to take off, but there's still no reason to start tightening policy.

The University of Michigan said Friday its preliminary consumer sentiment index rose to a one-year high of 86.5 in the first half of this month from 84.9 in March.

As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, added 28.35 points or 0.06% at 48,832.89. The Nifty 50 index was up 9.86 points or 0.07% at 14,617.45.

The broader market outperformed the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 1.17% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.05%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1,648 shares rose and 1,253 shares fell. A total of 159 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,91,09,041 with 29,86,608 deaths. India reported 15,69,743 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,74,308 deaths while 1,25,47,866 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India crossed the grim milestone of over 2 lakh COVID-19 cases being reported in a day. Tough restrictions are in place in major cities like Delhi and Mumbai with weekend curfews and weekday restrictions being imposed by the administration, to check the spread of the virus.

Economy:

India's merchandise exports rose 60.3% at $34.50 billion in March as compared to the same month last year, while country's imports jumped 54% to $48.40 billion, Ministry of Commerce & Industry data showed.

During the 2020-21 financial year, India's overall Merchandise and Services exports dipped 6.6% to $493.20 billion over the same period last year. Overall imports in April-March 2020-21 declined 16.5% to $505.90 billion.

Earnings Impact:

Wipro jumped nearly 9% after the IT major's consolidated net profit grew 27.78% to Rs 2,972.30 crore while revenue increased 3.4% to Rs 16245.40 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. The IT major's consolidated net profit rose 0.14% and its revenue climbed 3.67% in Q4 FY21 over Q3 FY21. Profit before tax (PBT) declined by 2.6% on quarter-on-quarter basis and it rose by 26.44% on year-on-year basis to Rs 3749.90 crore in Q4 FY21. Wipro expects revenue from its IT services business to be in the range of $2,195 million to $2,238 million for the quarter ending 30 June 2021. This translates to a sequential growth of 2% to 4%. The company added 52 new customers in the quarter ending 31 March 2021. The IT major's attrition rate (on TTM basis) stood at 12.1% in Q4 FY21 as against 11% in Q3 FY21 and 14.7% in Q4 FY20.

GTPL Hathway jumped 5% after the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 56.89 crore in Q4 FY21 compared with net loss of Rs 13.62 crore in Q4 FY20. Net sales during the quarter increased by 17.82% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 748.72 crore in Q4 FY21. The company posted a pre-tax profit of Rs 85.67 crore in Q4 March 2021 as against a pre-tax loss of Rs 18.40 crore in Q4 March 2020.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) fell 1.25%. The construction arm of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) secured significant orders from clients for its various businesses. According to L&T's classification, the value of the said orders lies between Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 2,500 crore. The company's power transmission and distribution business won orders to design and construct two 132/11 kV substations in Dubai, UAE. The factories business also secured an order from a leading cement manufacturer to construct a 3.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) brownfield cement plant in Nimbahera, Rajasthan. The scope includes civil, mechanical and equipment erection works. The railways strategic business unit that resides within the transportation infrastructure business has won an order from the Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE).

Antony Waste Handling Cell rose 2.4% after the economic activity in the regions serviced by the firm has seen a sequential improvement for the third consecutive quarter. The company's total operating revenue (tipping revenue from C&T and waste processing) has shown a growth of approximately 4.4% for Q4 FY21 as compared to Q3 FY21. Total tonnage handled by the collection & transportation (C&T) business (excluding those projects with fixed shifts/trips) in Q4 FY21 has reported approximately 2.1% growth over Q3 FY21. Additionally, total waste processed by the company, during Q4 FY21, has improved by approximately 2.9% as compared to Q3 FY21. Total compost sales during Q4 FY21 stood at 4,834 tons as compared to 2,291 tons in Q3 FY21.

National Aluminium Company (NALCO) rose 1.55% after the company said it has been granted the mining lease of Utkal-E coal block in Odisha. The lease has been granted by the Department of Steel & Mines, Government of Odisha, through a notification issued on April 12. As per the notification, the mining lease of Utkal-E coal block is over an area of 523.73 hecatres in villages Nandichhod, Gopinathpur Jungle, Kundajhari Jungle, Kosala & Korada under Chendipada Tahasil of Angul District.

National Fertilizers advanced 0.64%. The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), Ministry of Finance, Government of India has intimated regarding issue of RFP for engagement of Legal Advisors, Merchant Bankers and Selling Brokers for the Disinvestment of 20% paid up equity capital in the company out of Government of India's shareholding through the Offer for Sale by promoters through the Stock Exchanges method in the domestic market.

Ashoka Buildcon jumped 3% after the company received a Letter of Award (LOA) from Gujarat Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation. The received LOA is for gauge conversion of Bechraji to Ranuj section to broad gauge with 25 KV AC electrification in Ahmedabad Division of Western Railway. The company announced that the accepted project cost is Rs 333.625 crore and has a total length of 38.153 kilometer.

Quess Corp fell 1.76%. The company announced the acquisition of 30% stake in Conneqt Business Solutions Ltd. (Conneqt) pursuant to the Put Option notice by Tata Sons. With this transaction, Conneqt will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Quess. Conneqt is India's second largest domestic CLM and BPM player delivering unparalleled customer experience to 120+ clients in India, US, UK and Middle East. Quess had acquired 51% of Conneqt in November 2017 and further increased its stake in Conneqt from 51% to 70% in May 2019 via infusion of primary capital, which was used to fund the acquisition of Allsec Technologies (Allsec), a listed CLM and HRO services provider.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Friday as investors reacted to the release of Chinese economic data. China's gross domestic product surged 18.3% in the first three months of the year from a year ago, the country's National Bureau of Statistics said Friday. The surge in growth comes off a contraction in the first quarter of last year, when the economy shrank by 6.8% during the height of the domestic outbreak of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, China's retail sales jumped 34.2% and industrial production rose 14.1% in March.

In the US, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones indexes hit record highs on Thursday, as upbeat earnings reports from companies including Bank of America and BlackRock as well as a strong rebound in March retail sales bolstered hopes of a broader economic rebound.

US retail sales surged 9.8% in March as additional stimulus sent consumer spending soaring, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. A separate report on Thursday showed that first-time filings for unemployment insurance dropped to the lowest level since March 2020. The Labor Department reported 5,76,000 new jobless claims for the week ended April 10.

As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, gained 259.62 points or 0.53% to 48,803.49. The Nifty 50 index added 76.65 points or 0.53% to close at 14,581.45.

TCS (up 3.96%), ICICI Bank (up 2.7%) and HDFC Bank (up 2.42%) pushed the benchmarks higher.

The broader market ended near the flat line. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.1% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was down 0.03%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1255 shares rose and 1638 shares fell. A total of 164 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 138,056,297 with 2,971,539 deaths.

India reported 14,71,877 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 173,123 deaths while 124,29,564 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India on Wednesday reported 2,00,739 new COVID-19 cases and 1,038 deaths in last 24 hours, according to data from the Union Health Ministry.

The total COVID19 vaccinations have crossed the 11.43 crore mark with more than 31.39 lakh vaccine doses were administered till 8 pm yesterday. A total of 69,974 COVID Vaccination Centres (CVCs) were operational, marking a rise of an average of 24,000 operational Vaccination Centres ( 45,000 CVCs on an average are functional on any given day). Workplace vaccinations have also enabled a high turnout of beneficiaries.

Economy:

India's wholesale price-based inflation shot up to over 8-year high of 7.39% in March on rising crude oil and metal prices. This is the third straight month of up-tick seen in the wholesale price index (WPI) based inflation. The WPI inflation was 4.17% in February and 0.42% in March 2020.

The prices of crude oil, petroleum products and basic metal substantially increased in March 2021 compared with the corresponding month of last year. Also, due to nationwide lockdown, the WPI index for the month of March 2020 (120.4) was computed with relatively low response rate.

Result Today:

IT major Wipro (up 3.52%) will announce its fourth quarter result today.

Earnings Impact:

Infosys dropped 2.33%. On a consolidated basis, Infosys reported 2.3% decline in net profit to Rs 5,076 crore on 1.5% increase in revenues to Rs 26,311 crore in Q4 March 2021 over Q3 December 2020. The company's consolidated net profit rose 17.5% and revenues rose 13.1% in Q4 March 2021 over Q4 March 2020. In its outlook for FY22, Infosys has guided for 12% to 14% sales growth in constant currency terms in 2021-22 and an operating margin band of 22% to 24%.

Tata Metaliks fell 3.34% after the company posted a 2.7% decline in net profit to Rs 74.99 crore in Q4 March 2021 from Rs 77 crore posted in Q4 March 2020. Net sales rose 26.7% to Rs 660.87 crore in Q4 March 2021 from Rs 521.60 crore registered in Q4 March 2020. Profit before tax increased by 28.5% year on year to Rs 123.73 crore in Q4 March 2021 over Q4 March 2020.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Tata Motors fell 0.02%. The Tata Motors Group global wholesales in Q4 FY21, including Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), stood at 3,30,125 units, higher by 43%, compared with Q4 FY20. Global wholesales of Tata Motors' commercial vehicles and Tata Daewoo range in Q4 FY21 were at 1,09,428, higher by 55% over Q4 FY20. Global wholesales of all passenger vehicles in Q4 FY21 stood at 2,20,697 as against Q4 FY20, registering a growth of 39% year-on-year (Y-o-Y).

L&T rose 0.16%. The heavy engineering arm of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) won significant contracts for its various business segments in Q4 of FY21. According to L&T's classification, the value of the said orders lie between Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 2,500 crore.

NMDC added 2.03%. The PSU miner hiked prices of iron ore with effect from Wednesday, 14 April 2021. The prices of lump ore rose 18.80% to Rs 6,950 per ton and the prices of iron ore fines jumped 10.96% to Rs 5,060 per ton. The prices are effective as on 14 April 2021.

UPL rose 0.69%. The Queensland Supreme Court has ruled in favour of Advanta Seeds, a subsidiary of UPL. The company, in a regulatory filing, said that: We are pleased that the Supreme Court of Queensland in Australia has dismissed a class action litigation against Advanta Seeds Pty Ltd, Company's subsidiary in Australia. This class action, funded by a UK based litigation funder, alleged that seeds sold by Advanta in 2010/2011 to certain growers in Queensland and News South Wales region of Australia, were contaminated.

Larsen & Toubro Infotech (L&T Infotech) dropped 1.43%. The board approved the appointment of Anil Rander as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Key Managerial Personnel (KMP) of the company.

Global Markets:

European shares were trading higher while Asian market closed on a mixed note on Thursday. In the US, Wall Street indexes closed mixed on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 falling despite another record intraday high for the latter and big banks' stellar results on the first day of earnings season.

Shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Wells Fargo & Co rose on bumper first-quarter profits. Goldman capitalized on record levels of global deal making activity, and Wells reduced bad loan provisions and got a grip on costs tied to its sales practices scandal.

The Federal Reserve will continue to support the recovery, and will start tapering asset purchases well before policy makers consider raising interest rates, Chairman Jerome Powell told the Economic Club of Washington Wednesday.

In coronavirus developments, a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention panel decided Wednesday to postpone a decision on Johnson and Johnson's Covid-19 vaccine following the development of a rare but potentially life-threatening blood-clotting disorder in six women. On Tuesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked states to temporarily halt using J&J's COVID-19 vaccine out of an abundance of caution.

As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 660.68 points or 1.38% at 48,544.07. The Nifty 50 index gained 214.9 points or 1.5% at 14,525.90.

M&M (up 7.78%), Bajaj Finserv (up 6.58%), Bajaj Finance (up 4.85%), Maruti Suzuki (up 4.67%) and HDFC (up 4.22%) boosted the indices.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1.49% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 1.19%.

Buyers outpaced sellers. On the BSE, 1,809 shares rose and 987 shares fell. A total of 173 shares were unchanged.

The domestic equity market will remain shut on Wednesday (14 April 2021) on account of Dr.Baba Saheb Ambedkar Jayanti.

Monsoon Update:

Private forecaster Skymet Weather has predicted Monsoon rains at 103% of the Long Period Average rains for India, ranging between normal and above normal, with a model error of 5%. This is the third year in succession that India may see above normal rains during the season. The last time it happened was in 1996, 1997, and 1998, Skymet said.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,66,76,442 with 29,46,124 deaths.

A total of 1,61,736 new Covid-19 cases have been reported on Tuesday, pushing India's tally of cases to 1,36,89,453, according to data updated by the Health Ministry. With 879 fatalities in the last 24 hours, the death toll increased to 1,71,058. The number of active cases continued to increase for the 34th day in a row to touch 12,64,698 and account for 9.24 per cent of the total infections.

Economy:

India's indirect tax collection rose in the fiscal ended March 2021. The provisional figures for indirect tax collections (GST & non-GST) for the financial year 2020-21 show that net revenue collections are at Rs 10.71 lakh crore compared with 9.54 lakh crore for the financial year 2019-20, thereby registering a growth of 12.3%.

Net tax collections on account of GST of centre (CGST+IGST+ Compensation Cess) during financial year 2020-21 is Rs 5.48 lakh crore, lower than Rs 5.99 lakh crore in the previous financial year.

The GST collections were severely affected in the first half of the financial year on account of Covid. However, in the second half, the GST collections registered a good growth and collections exceeded Rs 1 lakh crore in each of the last six months. March saw an all-time high of GST collection at Rs 1.24 lakh crore after very good figures in the month of January and February. Several measures taken by the Central Government helped in improving compliance in GST.

Net tax collections on account of Central Excise and Service Tax (Arrears) during financial year 2020-21 stood at Rs 3.91 lakh crore as compared to Rs 2.45 lakh crore in the previous financial year, thereby registering a growth of more than 59%.

Meanwhile, the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) showed industrial output in India once again shrink in February, going down by 3.6%. IIP had contracted by an updated 0.9% in January after rising by 1.6% in December.

The all-India general CPI inflation rose to 5.52% in March 2021 (new base 2012=100), compared with 5.03% in February 2021. The corresponding provisional inflation rate for rural area was 4.61% and urban area 6.52% in March 2021 as against 4.19% and 5.96% in February 2021.

Stocks in Spotlight:

TCS tanked 4%. The IT major reported a 6.3% growth in consolidated net profit to Rs 9,246 crore in Q4 March 2021 over Q3 December 2020. Consolidated revenue grew by 4% to Rs 43,705 crore in Q4 March 2021 over Q3 December 2020. On a year-on-year (YoY) basis, TCS' net profit rose 14.87% and revenues rose 9.41% in Q4 March 2021. In constant currency terms, the company's revenues grew 4.2% on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis and 5.9% on a YoY basis during the March quarter. The IT major's operating margin expanded 0.2% QoQ and 1.7% YoY to 26.8% in Q4 March 2021. TCS' order book at $9.2 billion in Q4 March 2021, was the highest ever total contract value (TCV) in a quarter, taking the total yearly order book at $31.6 billion, a 17.1% growth compared to previous financial year.

All verticals showed good sequential growth, but a couple continue to lag prior year level - BFSI (+7% QoQ, +13.3% YoY), Retail and CPG (+4% QoQ, -0.9% YoY), Life Sciences and Healthcare (+3.8% QoQ, +19.3% YoY), Manufacturing (+3.9% QoQ, +1.3% YoY), Technology & Services (+2.8% QoQ, +3.9% YoY) and Communications & Media (+1.8% QoQ, -4% YoY). The company's board has proposed a final dividend of Rs 15 per share.

Tata Motors rose 5.46% after the company announced that Jaguar Land Rover achieved retail sales of 123,483 vehicles in Q4 March 2021, 12.4% higher than the same quarter last year. While sales of Jaguar declined by 17.1% to 23,463 units, Land Rover sales jumped 22.6% to 100,020 units in Q4 March 2021 over Q4 March 2020. China sales were up 127% compared to a year ago when that market was heavily impacted by COVID-19. Sales in North America were also up year-on-year (up 10.4%), while other regions remain lower than pre-COVID levels, including Overseas markets (down 10%), the UK (down 6.8%) and Europe (down 4.9%).

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) fell 1.78% to Rs 731.25 after the S&P Dow Jones Indices announced the removal of the stock from the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices. APSEZ will be removed from the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices following a media & stakeholder analysis triggered by recent news events pointing to heightened risks to the company regarding their commercial relationship with Myanmar's military, who are alleged to have committed serious human rights abuses under international law, S&P Dow Jones Indices said.

Inox Leisure fell 1.44%. The multiplex chain operator has commenced the commercial operations of a multiplex cinema theatre taken on lease basis in Bangalore from Tuesday, 13 April 2021. The multiplex is located at 2nd floor, SBR Horizon, Seegehalli, Whitefield-Hoskote Road, Bangalore - 560 067. It has 5 screens and 694 seats. INOX said it is now present in 69 cities with 153 Multiplexes, 648 screens and a total seating capacity of 147,436 seats across India.

Dr. Reddy's slipped 4.3%. The drug major received the permission from the Drug Controller General of India to import the Sputnik V vaccine into India for restricted use in emergency situations as per the provisions of the New Drug and Clincial Trials rules, 2019. In September 2020, Dr Reddy's Laboratories had partnered with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to conduct the clinical trials of Sputnik V and distribute the vaccine in India. In addition to the trials conducted in Russia by RDIF. Phase II / III clinical trials of the vaccine were carried out by Dr Reddy's Laboratories in India.

Bandhan Bank gained 1.34% after the bank's total deposits jumped 37% to Rs 77,972 crore at the end of 31 March 2021 as against Rs 57,082 crore on 31 March 2020. The bank's loans & advances at the end of the March 2021 stood at Rs 87,054 crore, up by 21% from Rs 71,846 crore in the same period last year. The loan book of the private lender has increased by 8% sequentially compared with Rs 80,255 crore at the end of the 31 December 2020. Retail to Total Deposits ratio was at 79% as on 31 March 2021 as against 81% as on 31 December 2020 and 78% as on 31 March 2020.

Yes Bank rose 1.73%. Yes Bank said that Sebi vide its Order dated April 12, 2021 has imposed a penalty of Rs. 25 crore against the Bank under Section 15 HA of SEBI Act, 1992 for the alleged mis-selling of AT-1 Bonds in the secondary market. The bank shall be preferring an appeal before the Securities Appellate Tribunal, it said.

Satin Creditcare Network fell 3.88%. The company said its asset under management (AUM) stood at Rs 7,274 crore as on 31 March 2021, recording a growth of 5.3% Q-o-Q (quarter-on-quarter). For FY21, Satin Creditcare Network maintained sufficient liquidity of Rs 1,469 crore. During FY21, the company raised Rs 4,312 crore including direct assignment transactions of Rs 743 crore.

Muthoot Finance gained 1.03% after the NBFC's board approved payment of an interim dividend of Rs 20 per equity share. The company has fixed 23 April 2021 as the record date for the purpose of payment of interim dividend.

NBCC (India) advanced 4.6% after the company said it has been engaged as project management consultant for the construction of FCIL office building at Noida (Uttar Pradesh) on 9 April 2021. NBCC (India) is the project management consultant (PMC) for a project worth Rs 65.10 crore charging a PMC fee of 7%.

Global Markets:

European markets traded higher while Asian stocks closed on a mixed note on Tuesday, following a muted finish overnight on the Wall Street.

China's exports in dollar terms rose by 30.6% in March from one year earlier while imports jumped 38.1% compared to the same time last year.

US stocks settled near their record levels on Monday as dull trading resumed before the release of widely-watched inflation data and the start of first-quarter corporate earnings.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell on Sunday reiterated that the Fed wants to see inflation rise above its 2% for an extended period before officials move to raise interest rates. He added that amid an accelerated COVID-19 vaccine rollout and strong fiscal support, the U.S. economy appears to be at a turning point.

As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slumped 1,707.94 points or 3.44% at 47,883.76. The Nifty 50 index tanked 524 points or 3.53% at 14,310.65.

Tata Motors (down 9.65%), Adani Ports & SEZ (down 8.94%), Bajaj Finance (down 7.25%), ICICI Bank (down 4.58%), Reliance Industries (down 3.4%) and HDFC Bank (down 3.28%) were major drags.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index lost 5.32% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index tumbled 4.81%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 509 shares rose and 2,478 shares fell. A total of 174 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,60,56,956 with 29,36,768 deaths. India reported 12,01,009 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,70,179 deaths while 1,21,56,529 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India on Monday reported 1,68,912 new COVID-19 cases and 904 deaths in last 24 hours, according to data from the Union Health Ministry.

The media reported that a total lockdown may be impending in Maharashtra. With rising COVID cases, a total lockdown is mulled by state government officials. State health minister Rajesh Tope said that a decision could happen after it is discussed during Wednesday's cabinet meeting.

Economy:

India's foreign exchange reserves declined $2.415 billion to stand at $576.869 billion in the week ended 2 April 2021, RBI data showed on Friday. The reserves had touched a record high of $590.185 billion in the week ended 29 January 2021.

The gold reserves dropped by $884 million to $34.023 billion in the reporting week, as per the central bank data. The special drawing rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) dipped by $4 million to $1.486 billion.

Meanwhile, commercial banks in India gave almost one fourth of loans (about Rs 1.55 trillion) in the last fortnight of the financial year. The total lending was Rs 5.80 trillion in FY21 lower than about Rs 6 trillion in FY20. The outstanding credit stood at Rs 109.51 trillion as of 26 March 2021, according to Reserve Bank of India data. On a year-on-year (Y-o-Y) basis, the lending by commercial banks rose by 5.6% in the financial year (FY21), a period marked by economic contraction due to COVID-19 pandemic as against 6.1% in FY20.

Nifty Result Today:

IT bellwether TCS was down 2% ahead of its Q4 earnings today, 12 April 2021.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Infosys was down 0.82%. The IT major said its board will consider a share buyback proposal on Wednesday, 14 April 2021. On the same day, the company will announce its audited consolidated financial results for the quarter and year ending 31 March 2021. Infosys said its board will also recommend a final dividend for the financial year ending 31 March 2021.

Coforge fell 1.86%. The IT company has signed definitive agreements to acquire a controlling interest in SLK Global Solutions, a business process transformation enterprise offering BPM and digital solutions for the financial services industry. The transaction is being funded by Coforge with a combination of internal accruals and external borrowings. Coforge shall initially acquire 60% stake in SLK Global, with SLK Global's founders completely exiting. Aggregate consideration paid by the company for the acquisition of 60% of the total issued and paid up share capital of SLK Global is Rs 918.321 crore.

Biocon fell 3.68%. Biocon Pharma, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Biocon, received a certificate of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) compliance from the Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the United Kingdom (UK), for its manufacturing facility at Biocon Park in Bengaluru (Karnataka). The certificate, which includes manufacturing and packaging of tablets and capsules in the non-potent and potent blocks of the facility, was issued based on a remote inspection in the week of 22 March 2021, in the wake of travel restrictions amidst COVID-19.

Praj Industries declined 5.14%. The company bagged an order to set up India's largest capacity syrup based ethanol plant from Godavari Biorefineries (GBL) in Karnataka. As a part of this project, Praj Industries will expand the existing ethanol manufacturing capacity to 600 kilo litre per day (KLPD), using sugarcane syrup. When commissioned, this will become India's largest capacity syrup-based ethanol plant.

Castrol India down 2.48%. The company on Friday (9 April) announced that it has entered into an exclusive supply arrangement with ki Mobility Solutions in India. As part of the arrangement, Castrol India will supply lubricant products to ki Mobility's multi-brand workshops in India.

Ratnamani Metals & Tubes fell 2% after the company received a domestic order of Rs 594 crore for coated carbon steel pipes from oil and gas sector. The said order is to be executed between September 2021 and July 2022.

Music Broadcast declined 0.62%. The board of Music Broadcast has decided not to pursue the proposed investment in Big FM and the company will be terminating the definitive transaction documents with immediate effect. The parties have not yet received the approval from the MIB and the long stop date under the definitive agreements has expired.

Anupam Rasayan India fell 0.36%. The company has re-paid certain identified borrowings aggregating to Rs 470.73 crore as on 31 March 2021 of its total outstanding debt from the net proceeds of its recently completed initial public offering. The repayment of debt will result in significant savings in the finance cost. The company's total debt as on 31 December 2020 stood at Rs 841.975 crore.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia saw a mixed trend on Monday as global stocks continue to search for direction after record highs in several regions last week.

The U.K. government is relaxing lockdown measures in England on Monday, with outdoor dining and hospitality venues, hairdressers, gyms, shops and outdoor attractions allowed to reopen.

In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 index closed at record highs Friday as investors remain cautiously optimistic about economic growth and progress against the pandemic. Stocks linked to the recovering economy led the gains again amid the accelerating vaccine rollout.

On the data front, the U.S. producer-price index rose 1% in March, the U.S. Labor Department said Friday. The rate of wholesale inflation over the past 12 months climbed to 4.2% in March. That's the highest level since September 2011.

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with small losses after a volatile day on Friday. Pharma, IT, FMCG and PSU banks shares were in demand. As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 154.89 points or 0.31% to 49,591.32. The Nifty 50 index lost 37.05 points or 0.25% to 14,836.75.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index slipped 0.08% while The S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.69%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1666 shares rose and 1234 shares fell. A total of 178 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,39,71,287 with 29,02,493 deaths. India reported 9,79,608 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,67,642 deaths while 1,19,13,292 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Ten states including Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Kerala and Punjab have shown a steep rise in the daily COVID-19 cases, accounting for 84.21% of the 1,26,789 new infections, the health ministry said on Thursday. The national weekly COVID-19 positivity rate has increased by 6.21% from 2.19% to 8.40% in the first seven days of March and April, the ministry said.

Primary Market:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Macrotech Developers received bids for 4.08 crore shares as against 3.64 crore shares on offer, according to the stock exchange data at 15:10 IST on Friday (9 April 2021). The issue was subscribed 1.12 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Wednesday, 7 April 2021, and it will close on Friday, 9 April 2021. The price band for the IPO is set at Rs 483-486 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 30 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty IT index rose 0.74% to 27,348.25, extending gains for sixth day. The index has added 5.78% in six sessions.

Coforge (up 3.02%), Mphasis (up 2.37%), Tech Mahindra (up 2.33%), Wipro (up 1.83%), Larsen & Toubro Infotech (up 1.36%), HCL Tech (up 0.84%) and MindTree (up 0.57%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Alkem Laboratories jumped 4.45% to Rs 2826.75. The company's board has approved approved the commencement of commercial production/ operations at the Chakan manufacturing facility of Enzene Biosciences, subsidiary of the company, located at Pune, Maharashtra, w.e.f. today, i.e. 09th April, 2021.

Ashok Leyland fell 1.55% to Rs 120.90. Switch Mobility, the company's subsidiary, and Siemens entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) towards building a co-operative technological partnership in electric commercial mobility segment and execute eMobility projects in India. The MOU is aimed at delivering efficient, cost-effective and sustainable E-Mobility solutions to various commercial vehicle customers in India.

Thyrocare Technologies added 3.34% to Rs 1042.60. The company said that Arindam Haldar, who had joined the company as a chief executive officer (CEO) in September 2020, expressed his intention of resigning from his current post for personal reasons.

Westlife Development rose 1.31% at Rs 426. In wake of the new restrictions announced to curb the spread of COVID-19 infections in Maharashtra, Westlife Development owned McDonald's restaurants will operate 24/7 for contactless McDelivery from select stores in Mumbai.

Global Markets:

Most European shares advanced while most Asian stocks declined on Friday. In the US, the S&P 500 rose to another record high on Thursday amid a strong rally in major technology stocks.

Federal Reverse chairman Jerome Powell signaled on Thursday that the economic rebound from the pandemic still has room to go as the recovery thus far hasn't been well-rounded. Powell also repeated that inflation is not expected to be serious even though near-term price pressures are likely.

Data showed an unexpected rise in the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits. A total of 744,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits for the first time during the week ended April 3, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with minor gains after a volatile day on Thursday. Metal stocks surged while banks and financials corrected. The Nifty closed below the 14,900 mark.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, gained 84.45 points or 0.17% to 49,746.21. The Nifty 50 index rallied 56.70 points or 0.38% to 14,875.75.

The broader market rallied. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.60%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.73%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1873 shares rose and 1046 shares fell. A total of 166 shares were unchanged.

Investors risk appetite improved after the minutes of last month's meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve suggested that Fed officials were united on the need to see more progress on economic recovery before scaling back their bond-buying program.

Domestic sentiment also received a boost after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday kept its monetary policy accommodative to support economic growth.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,31,31,285 with 28,87,888 deaths. India reported 9,10,319 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,66,862 deaths while 1,18,51,393 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India detected 1,26,789 new cases of the novel coronavirus in the last 24 hours, the highest so far. Of the total, Maharashtra recorded a new high of 59,907 cases, while Chhattisgarh's count went past the 10,000-mark for the first time. Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, too, reported more than 6,000 cases. The country also recorded 685 related deaths.

Primary Market:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Macrotech Developers received bids for 1.09 crore shares as against 3.64 crore shares on offer, according to the stock exchange data at 15:20 IST on Thursday (8 April 2021). The issue was subscribed 0.30 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Wednesday, 7 April 2021, and it will close on Friday, 9 April 2021. The price band for the IPO is set at Rs 483-486 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 30 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Metal index jumped 4.13% to 4,504.10, extending gains for ninth day. The index has added 21.16% in nine sessions.

Jindal Steel & Power (up 7.38%), SAIL (up 6.68%), Tata Steel (up 5.42%), Hindalco Industries (up 3.92%), Welspun Corp (up 3.68%), NMDC (up 3.33%), Mishra Dhatu Nigam (up 3.20%), Hindustan Zinc (up 3.07%), National Aluminum Co. (up 2.28%), APL Apollo Tubes (up 2.01%) and MOIL (up 1.15%) advanced.

JSW Steel gained 9.42% to Rs 615.25. The steel major's crude steel production jumped 6% to 4.19 million tonnes (MT) in Q4 FY21 from 3.97 million tonnes (MT) in Q4 FY20. The company's average capacity utilisation improved to 93% for Q4 FY21 from 91% of Q3 FY21. However, the capacity utilisation during the month of March 2021 stood at 96%.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Muthoot Finance rose 2.66% at Rs 1236.55. The NBFC announced its 25th series of public issue of secured redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs) of face value of Rs 1,000 each. The issue is with a base issue size of Rs 100 crore with an option to retain oversubscription up to Rs 1600 crore aggregating up to tranche limit of Rs 1700 crore. The funds raised through this issue will be utilized primarily for lending activities of the company. The issue opens on 08th April, 2021 and closes on 29th April, 2021 with an option to close on such earlier date or extended date as may be decided by the board of directors or NCD committee,” the non-banking finance company said in a statement.

Kalyan Jewellers India jumped 4.01% to Rs 72.70. The jewellery maker witnessed a robust increase in consumer demand in Q4 FY 2021, resulting in a revenue growth of approximately 60% for India operations, as compared to the same quarter in the prior year. The company believes a significant driver of recent revenue growth momentum in India has been a meaningful shift in consumer demand from the unorganized to the organized segment, which has been evident in the increase in footfalls seen across the company's store network.

Cadila Healthcare added 1.99% to Rs 470.45. The pharma company announced that it has received final approval from the USFDA to market macitentan tablets, 10 mg. The drug is used to manage the symptoms of pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Ashok Leyland jumped 5.61% to Rs 123.30. The commercial vehicles maker's subsidiary Switch Mobility, the U.K. based EV producer of buses and vans, announced its global expansion plans into India and its plan to create two subsidiary companies. The first, Switch Mobility Automotive, is being formed to carry on the EV strategy in India, which forms part of its global entity. The second is OHM Global Mobility, which will focus on providing mobility as a Service offering.

Minda Corporation rose 1.24% to Rs 101.90. the company announced its partnership with Israel-based Ride Vision, a leading ADAS (rider assistance systems) solutions company, to bring its range of artificial intelligence-enabled collision avoidance technology products for the Indian two-wheeler market.

Hester Biosciences jumped 9.92% to Rs 2212.70. The company announced signing of agreement with ICAR-IVRI (Indian Council of Agri Research - Indian Veterinary Research Institute) for acquiring technologies for the production and commercialisation of classical swine fever vaccine & sheep pox vaccine.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Thursday. Meanwhile, shares in Japan declined amid concerns that Tokyo is reportedly planning stricter steps to curb rising virus infections.

In the US, the S&P 500 gained to hit a record high on Wednesday. The U.S. Federal Reserve released minutes from its March 16-17 meeting during which it kept its accommodative policy in place. The meeting summary indicated that while officials saw the economy was gaining considerably, they see much more progress needed before ultra-easy policy changes.

President Joe Biden recently unveiled details of his $2 trillion infrastructure plan that includes a corporate tax rate hike to 28%. He said Wednesday that he is willing to negotiate on the proposed tax increase.

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with strong gains on Wednesday. The Nifty ended above the 14,800 mark. Bank stocks advanced after the RBI maintained status quo on interest rates while announcing its latest monetary policy outcome today.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, advanced 460.37 points or 0.94% to 49,661.76. The Nifty 50 index added 135.55 points or 0.92% to 14,819.05.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.82% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 1.30%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1847 shares rose and 1104 shares fell. A total of 181 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,24,47,475 with 28,73,334 deaths. India reported 8,43,473 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,66,177 deaths while 1,17,92,135 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India detected 115,736 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Tuesday, the highest daily increase so far. Nearly 55,000 cases were detected in Maharashtra, while Chhattisgarh scaled a new peak of 9,921 cases. Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi reported more than 5,000 cases each.

Economy:

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has upgraded its growth projection for India to 12.5% for the Financial Year 2021-22. In its latest World Economic Outlook report, the IMF has pegged India's GDP to grow 1% higher than its previous report published in January this year.

The Washington based International Financial Institution has projected a contraction of 8% in the growth in the last fiscal while it has forecasted a growth of 6.9% in the next financial year beginning in 2022. The IMF has also said that inflation will taper down to 4.9% in the current financial year.

RBI Policy Outcome:

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), announcing its first bi-monthly monetary policy of the 2021-22 fiscal today, voted to leave policy repo rate unchanged at 4%. MPC maintained accommodative stance in unanimous vote.

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said that the CPI inflation trajectory likely to be subject to both upside and downside pressures. The central banker further said that the projection for CPI inflation has been revised to 5% in Q4 of financial year 2020-21, 5% in Q1 FY22, 5.2% in Q2, 4.4% in Q3 and 5.1% in Q4 with risks broadly balanced.

While the RBI maintained its FY22 real GDP growth projection at 10.5%, the RBI Governor said that the recent surge in COVID-19 infections has given greater uncertainty on growth outlook.

In an endeavour to sustain congenial financing conditions, the RBI has decided to put in place a secondary market G-sec acquisition programme (G-SAP). The central bank has decided to announce a G-SAP of Rs 1 lakh crore in Q1FY22.

The RBI also extended the deadline for TLTRO on-tap liquidity scheme to 30 September 2021 from 31 March 2021. It has also decided to conduct such auctions of longer tenors, following the success of variable reverse repo rate auctions. The amount and the tenor of these auction will be announced later by the RBI.

The central bank will provide liquidity support of Rs 50,000 crore to all-India financial institutions and it has also proposed to constitute a committee to comprehensively review the functioning of asset reconstruction companies.

The RBI has decided to accept the recommendations of an advisory committee that reviewed ways and means advance limits to states and union territories. The aggregate ways and means advance limit of all states and UTs will be enhanced to Rs 47,010 crore, an increase of 46%.

Consequently, the Nifty Bank index rose 1.45% to 32,973.

IDFC First Bank (up 4.25%), Bandhan Bank (up 3.48%), Federal Bank (up 2.73%), SBI (up 2.27%), IndusInd Bank (up 2.02%), ICICI Bank (up 1.95%), RBL Bank (up 1.70%), Punjab National Bank (up 1.62%), Bank Of Baroda (up 1.44%), Axis Bank (up 1.43%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.14%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.40%) advanced.

New Listing:

Shares of Barbeque-Nation Hospitality were trading at Rs 590.40 at 15:26 IST on the BSE, a premium of 18.08% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 500.

The stock was listed at Rs 492, a discount of 1.6% to the IPO price. So far, the stock hit a high of Rs 590.40 and low of Rs 481.35. On the BSE, 8.97 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far.

The initial public offer (IPO) of Barbeque Nation Hospitality was subscribed 5.98 times. The issue opened for bidding on 24 March 2021, and closed on 26 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 498-500 per share.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Titan shed 0.50% to Rs 1518.25. The company said it continued to witness strong business momentum as the Covid impact on the consumer sentiments seemed to fade in the early part of the quarter. After recording the best ever revenue in Q3, which was a festive season, the company again recorded very strong revenues in Q4.

Titan said its jewellery division emerged very strongly from the crisis and witnessed strong growth in the quarter, the Watches & Wearables and the Eyewear divisions also made very good progress on recovery. However, Titan said that the second half of March 2020 was impacted by the emerging Covid situation. Titan's jewellery division continued to see the strong sales momentum in Q4, reflecting the strong market share gains.

IDFC First Bank rose 2.08% to Rs 56.45 after the bank successfully raised about Rs 3000 crore through qualified institutional placement (QIP) route. The capital raising committee of board of directors of the bank, at their meeting held on Tuesday (6 April 2021) approved allotment of 52.31 crore shares to eligible qualified institutional buyers at the issue price of Rs 57.35 per equity share. The QIP issue opened on 30 March 2021 and closed on 6 April 2021.

Separately, the IDFC First Bank informed that the bank's total customer deposits increased 43.15% to Rs 82,628 crore as on 31 March 2021 as against Rs 57,719 crore as on 31 March 2020.

CASA deposits of the bank improved 122.74% to Rs 46,022 crore at the end of 31 March 2021 from Rs 20,661 crore on 31 March 2020. CASA ratio improved to 51.95% on 31 March 2021 from 48.31% in 31 December 2020 and 31.87% as on 31 March 2020.

Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company jumped 7.16% to Rs 578.05. The company announced that it is one of the companies participating in a consortium of Vishwakarma Payments, that has applied for a new umbrella entity license for retail payments with RBI. Vishwakarma Payments is a company incorporated in India under the Companies Act, 2013. FSS, Zoho, Zerodha, RazorPay, Ujjivan and Airpay are also part of the Vishwakarma Payments consortium along with Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company.

Dixon Technologies (India) rose 4.09% to Rs 3624.40. Bharti Enterprises and Dixon Technologies (India) signed MoU to form a joint venture (JV) company to apply for Government of India's production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturing telecom & networking products.

Tata Steel gained 1.37% to Rs 874.70. The company's Indian arm achieved its highest ever quarterly crude steel production of 4.75 million tons, registering a 0.42% YoY growth in Q4 FY21. The company's delivery volume increased by 16% YoY to 4.67 million tons in Q4 FY21.

Equitas Small Finance Bank fell 2.72% to Rs 57.15. The bank's total deposits jumped 52% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 16,391 crore while its gross advances grew by 16% YoY to Rs 17,896 crore in the quarter ended on 31 March 2021 as compared to the same period last year.

RailTel Corporation of India added 0.98% to Rs 123.80. The company bagged an order worth to Rs 22.38 crore from Controller General of Defence Accounts for setting up network operation centre. It also received order amounting to Rs 11.99 crore from Axom Sabra Siksha Abhiyan Mission for deployment of artificial intelligence-based identification system for capturing attendance and management of SDMIS.

GRM Overseas hit an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 1950.90 after the company said its subsidiary, GRM Foodkraft, has entered into an agreement with Walmart to place its products in Walmart stores.

Global Markets:

Markets in Europe advanced while Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Wednesday. US stocks fell from record levels on Tuesday as the recent rally driven by signs of strong economic rebound took a pause.

On Tuesday, California Governor Gavin Newsom said that the state will reopen its economy by June 15 provided that coronavirus vaccine and hospitalization cases remain stable.

The IMF on Tuesday projected an impressive 12.5% growth rate for India in 2021, stronger than that of China, the only major economy to have a positive growth rate last year during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Indian economy is expected to grow by 6.9% in 2022.

The IMF revised up its forecast for the world economy. On Tuesday, the organization said it expects growth at 6% in 2021, up from a January prediction of 5.5%, and Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said that despite lingering uncertainties around the pandemic, a way out of this health and economic crisis is increasingly visible.

The key equity indices ended almost flat with some positive bias after a volatile trade on Tuesday. Pharma stocks were in demand. The Nifty closed just shy of the 14,700 mark. Gains were capped amid a spike in Covid-19 cases in the country.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, advanced 99.76 points or 0.20% to 49,259.08. The Nifty 50 index added 61.75 points or 0.42% to 14,699.55.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 1% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.84%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1680 shares rose and 1203 shares fell. A total of 188 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,18,28,728 with 28,61,100 deaths. India reported 7,88,223 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,65,547 deaths while 1,17,32,279 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India, on Monday, reported 96,982 fresh coronavirus cases and 446 related deaths. Of these, 47,288 cases were reported in Maharashtra. While cases in Chhattisgarh scaled a new high of 7,302, and the count in Karnataka crossed the 5,000-mark. The country's active case tally now stands at 7,88,223. While 164 people died in Maharashtra, 72 deceased in Punjab. Over 43 lakh people were also inoculated on Monday, pushing the vaccination count up to 8,31,10,926.

Meanwhile, the Delhi government has imposed a night curfew from 10 pm to 5 am till April 30 in the wake of rising cases. This comes a day after Maharashtra imposed full lockdown on weekends and fresh restrictions to last through April.

Economy:

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das-led rate-setting panel Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) started its three-day deliberation on the next monetary policy on Monday. The Reserve Bank will announce the resolution of the MPC on Wednesday, 7 April 2021.

Buzzing Segment:

The Nifty Pharma index rose 1.79% to 12,552.60. The index declined 0.37% yesterday.

Cadila Healthcare (up 3.85%), Divi's Labs (up 2.27%), Sun Pharma (up 1.97%), Cipla (up 1.96%), Biocon (up 1.92%), Lupin (up 1.54%), Torrent Pharma (up 1.52%), Dr. Reddy's Labs (up 1.43%) and Aurobindo Pharma (up 1.18%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Bajaj Finance added 0.51% to Rs 4989.05 after the company's customer franchise as of 31 March 2021 stood at 48.6 million, up by 14.08% from 42.6 million as of 31 March 2020. New loans booked during Q4 FY21 were 5.5 million as against 6 million in Q4 FY20.

Assets under management (AUM) stood at approximately 1.53 lakh crore as of 31 March 2021 compared with Rs 1.47 lakh crore as of 31 March 2020, registering a year-on-year (YoY) growth of 4.08%. The company's deposit book increased by 20.41% as it stood at approximately Rs 25,800 crore as of 31 March 2021 as compared to Rs 21,427 crore as of 31 March 2020.

Panacea Biotec hit an upper circuit of 20% at Rs 220.85 after the company announced cooperation with the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) to produce 100 million doses per year of Sputnik-V vaccine. Production of Sputnik-V at Panacea Biotec sites will help facilitate global supply of Sputnik V to international partners of RDIF.

IRCON International rose 1.96% to Rs 90.95. The company said that its board of directors approved and recommended the issuance of one bonus share for each share held as on the date of record date.

Avenue Supermarts shed 0.06% to Rs 2846.80. The supermarket-chain operator said its standalone revenue from operations in Q4 March 2021 stood at Rs 7,303.13 crore compared with Rs 6,193.53 crore in the same period last year, recording a growth of 17.91% Y-o-Y. As of 31 March 2021, the total number of stores stood at 234.

The company added that its two years and older stores growth for the months of January-February 2021 was 6% as compared to same period last year. These stores saw a negative growth of 9.4% for the first 15 days of March 2021 as compared to first 15 days of March 2020. This is primarily due to full or partial lockdowns implemented from the start of March 2021 across cities due to increase in COVID-19 cases.

Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL) added 1.82% to Rs 389.55. The steel maker reported a 34.4% jump in production to 2.07 million tonnes in Q4 March 2021 from 1.54 million tonne reported in Q4 March 2020.

Sales for Q4 March 2021 grew by 37.4% to 1.91 million tonnes from 1.39 million tonnes in Q4 March 2020. Exports accounted for 27% of sales in Q4 March 2021 compared with 15% in Q4 March 2020.

Mahindra Logistics slipped 0.42% to Rs 544.25. The company announced that it has partnered with Flipkart as one of its key logistics partners to help fast track deployment of electric vehicles across its logistics fleet in the country.

RBL Bank advanced 2.88% to Rs 212.30. The bank's total deposits jumped 26% to Rs 73,123 crore as on 31 March 2021 as against Rs 57,812 crore as on 31 March 2020. Gross advances rose 2% to Rs 60,012 crore as on 31 March 2020 as against Rs 58,966 crore as on 31 March 2020. Current Account-Savings Account (CASA) soared 36% to Rs 23,264 crore in 31 March 2021 from Rs 17,116 crore in 31 March 2020. CASA ratio stood at 31.8% as on 31 March 2021 as against 29.6% as on 31 March 2020.

Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) surged 13.63% to Rs 843.30. The company handled cargo volume of 73 MMT (million metric tonnes) in Q4 FY21, registering a growth of 27% on Y-o-Y (year-on-year) basis. APSEZ handled cargo volume of 247 MMT in FY21, registering a growth of 11% on Y-o-Y basis.

Sobha spurted 13.78% to Rs 489.20. The company's total new sales jumped 47.69% to 13,37,707 square feet in Q4 FY21 over 9,05,710 sq ft. in Q4 FY20. Total sales value grew 54.35% to Rs 1,072 crore in Q4 FY21 as against Rs 694.50 crore in Q4 FY20.

Mukand added 0.54% to Rs 84.55. In the past one month, the stock has zoomed 43.34% while the benchmark Sensex has lost 2.48%.

With reference to recent price movement, Mukand on Monday (5 April) clarified that in the recent past, there have been several internal or external positive developments concerning the company. The company has reduced its debt and other interest-bearing liabilities by more than Rs 975 crore via a promoter backed line of credit; it has completed the first tranche of the sale of 30% stake in Mukand Sumi Special Steel, joint venture company, for Rs 713.61 crore; and it has also transferred approximately 55 acres of the company's surplus leasehold land at Thane for a consideration of Rs 801.51 crore.

Global Markets:

European shares advanced on Tuesday as trading resumed after the Easter holiday. Most Asian indices rose on Tuesday, 6 April 2021. Markets in Hong Kong were closed today for a holiday.

China's services sector activity grew in March, according to a private sector survey released Tuesday. The Caixin/Markit services Purchasing Managers' Index for March came in at 54.3, as compared to February's reading of 51.5.

U.S. stocks rallied on Monday with the Dow and S&P 500 closing at record levels, as a round of strong economic data buoyed investor optimism for the economic reopening.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 373.98 points to 33,527.19, a record closing high. The S&P 500 gained 1.4% to 4,077.91, also hitting a new record close. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite also climbed 1.7% to 13,705.59.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Monday pushed for a global minimum corporate tax in an effort to keep companies from relocating to find lower rates.

Meanwhile, a measure of U.S. services industry activity soared to a record high in March. The Institute for Supply Management's non-manufacturing activity index jumped to a reading of 63.7 last month. That was the highest in the survey's history and followed 55.3 in February.

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with significant cuts on Monday, led by weakness in banks and financial shares. After hitting the day's low of 14,459.50 in mid-morning trade, the Nifty pared losses and closed above the 14,600 mark. IT and metal stocks bucked the broader selloff. A spike in domestic coronavirus cases and fresh curbs imposed by the state government dented investors' sentiment.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slumped 870.51 points or 1.74% to 49,159.32. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 229.55 points or 1.54% to 14,637.80.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index slipped 1.13% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 1.08%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1061 shares rose and 1897 shares fell. A total of 183 shares were unchanged.

Politics:

Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh submited resignation to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. On petition of Dr Jaishri Patil, Bombay High Court asked Central Bureau of Investigation to start a preliminary inquiry within 15 days into corruption allegations of former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh against Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh. Former Mumbai top cop, Singh had earlier claimed that Deshmukh had asked police officers, including suspended assistant police inspector Sachin Waze, to collect at least Rs 100 crore from city bars and hotels every month, a charge which Deshmukh denied.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 13,13,34,009 with 28,53,360 deaths. India reported 7,41,830 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,65,101 deaths while 1,16,82,136 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Meanwhile, in the wake of rising COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray-led state government on April 4 imposed new curbs to control the transmission rate of the contagion. As part of the new rules, a night curfew would be in place across the state from 8 pm to 7 am and a weekend lockdown will be effective from 8 pm on Friday to 7 am on Monday. The restrictions, which come into effect from today (April 5), also include a ban on gatherings of five or more people throughout the day. Essential and medical services are exempt from this.

Economy:

The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell from 57.5 in February to a seven-month low of 55.4 in March. However, the latest reading was indicative of a substantial improvement in the health of the sector that outpaced the long-run series average.

Meanwhile, GST Revenue collection for March 2021 has set a new record with highest ever collection of Rs 1,23,902. The GST revenue collected in the last month is 27% higher than that collected in March last year.

The Finance Ministry has informed that GST revenues of March are the highest since the introduction of Goods & Services Tax in the country. During the month, revenue from import of goods was 70% higher and the revenues from domestic transaction are 17% higher than the revenues from these sources during the same month last year.

Further, India's merchandise exports in March 2021 increased an impressive 58.23% to $34 billion as against $21.49 billion in March last year.

Exports during April-March 2020-21 were $290.18 billion, as compared to $313.36 billion during the same period of last year, exhibiting a negative growth of 7.40%.

India's merchandise imports in March 2021 were $48.12 billion as compared to $31.47 billion in March last year. This is an increase of 52.89%. Merchandise imports during April-March 2020-21 were $388.92 billion, as compared to $474.71 billion during the same period of last year, exhibiting a negative growth of 18.07%.

India is thus a net importer in March 2021, with a trade deficit of $14.11 billion, as compared to trade deficit of $9.98 billion. This is an improvement by 41.4%.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Ordinance, 2021:

The government has amended the insolvency law to provide for a pre-packaged resolution process for micro, small and medium enterprises. An ordinance was promulgated to amend the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) on Sunday, 4 April 2021.

As per the ordinance, it is considered necessary to urgently address the specific requirements of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) relating to the resolution of their insolvency, due to the unique nature of their businesses and simpler corporate structures.

It is considered expedient to provide an efficient alternative insolvency resolution process MSMEs to ensure a quicker, cost-effective and value maximising outcomes for all stakeholders, in a manner which is least disruptive to the continuity of their businesses and which preserves jobs.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty IT index rose 2.03% to 26,509. The index has added 2.53% in two sessions.

Larsen & Toubro Infotech (up 4.19%), Info Edge India (up 3.92%), Coforge (up 3.63%), HCL Tech (up 3.13%), TCS (up 2.44%), Wipro (up 2.14%) and Infosys (up 2.11%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Marico fell 1.15% to Rs 402.50. The FMCG company witnessed healthy momentum building across its key portfolios. General Trade put up a strong show led by rural growth. E-Commerce continued to gain salience. Modern Trade was affected by the high base on account of the pre-lockdown pantry loading in March last year, but has been in recovery mode. While, Canteen Stores Department (CSD) rebounded to post healthy growth.

Marico's India business delivered a very strong double-digit volume growth, albeit on a low but relatively stronger base when compared to key peers in the sector. The FMCG company's International business, too, posted strong double-digit constant currency growth on the back of recovery across markets. As operating margin is likely to dip significantly owing to the severe input cost pressure, Marico expects to deliver low double-digit bottom line growth in the quarter.

HDFC Bank declined 2.46% to Rs 1450. The bank announced that its advances grew around 13.9% to approximately Rs 11,32,000 crore as of 31 March 2021 compared with Rs 993,700 crore as of 31 March 2020. The bank's deposits aggregated to approximately Rs 13,35,000 crore as of 31 March 2021, up by around 16.3% compared with Rs 11,47,500 crore as of 31 March 2020. CASA deposits aggregated to approximately Rs 6,15,500 crore as of 31 March 2021, a growth of around 27% over Rs 4,84,600 crore as of 31 March 2020. CASA ratio stood at around 46% as of 31 March 2021, as compared to 42.2% as of 31 March 2020

Federal Bank tumbled 3.23% at Rs 76.30. The private lender said that its total deposits increased by 13% to Rs 172,655 crore as of 31 March 2021 compared to Rs 152,290 crore reported on 31 March 2020. Gross advanced grew by 9% to Rs 134,876 crore as of 31 March 2021 from Rs 124,153 crore posted on 31 March 2020. CASA rose 26% to Rs 58381 crore as of 31 March 2021 from Rs 46450 crore registered in 31 March 2020. CASA ratio improved to 33.81% at the end of 31 March 2021 from 30.5% recorded on 31 March 2020.

Yes Bank fell 1.27% at Rs 15.55. The bank's loans & advances rose 0.8% to Rs 172,850 crore as on 31 March 2021 compared with Rs 171,443 crore as on 31 March 2020. Deposits increased by 54.7% to Rs 162,947 crore as on 31 March 2021 from Rs 105,364 crore on 31 March 2020. The bank's CASA improved by 51.8% to Rs 42,587 crore as on 31 March 2021 from Rs 28,063 crore as on 31 March 2020. CASA ratio was at 27.3% as on 31 March 2021 as against 28.5% as on 31 March 2020.

Maruti Suzuki India declined 2.02%. Suzuki Motor Gujarat (SMG), a 100% subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation for the production of automobiles in India, has completed construction of the Plant C in Gujarat and started production from April 2021. Suzuki established SMG in March 2014, aiming to secure production ability in preparation for the automobile market growth in India, as well as for expansion of exports from India.

Steel Authority of India (SAIL) surged 7.10% to Rs 89.75. The Maharatna PSU's crude steel production rose 6% to 4.55 million tonnes (MT) while its steel sales jumped 14% to 4.27 MT in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. In line with its focus on reducing the borrowings, the company has reduced its gross debts by around Rs 16,150 crore to stand at Rs 35,330 crore (provisional) as on 31 March 2021 vis-a-vis Rs 51,481 crore as on 31 March 2020.

Hero MotoCorp skid 2.26% to Rs 2891.15. The two-wheeler major reported a 72% increase in total sales at 5,76,957 units in March 2021 from 3,34,647 units sold in the same month last year.

TVS Motor Company shed 0.70% to Rs 584.95. The company's total auto sales grew 122.94% registering 3,22,683 units in March 2021 as against 1,44,739 units in March 2020. While the company's total two-wheeler sales surged 130% recording a sale of 3,07,437 units, three-wheeler sales jumped 42% to 15,246 units in March 2021 over March 2020.

Eicher Motors dropped 4.26% to Rs 2518.60. The sale of Royal Enfield motorcycle soared 84% to 66,058 units in March 2021 from 35,814 units in March 2020.

Escorts declined 2.92% to Rs 1236.55. The company's Construction Equipment segment (ECE) in March 2021 sold 680 machines, its highest ever March sales, and registered a growth of 252.3% as against 193 machines sold in March 2020.

Global Markets:

European stock markets were closed for Easter Monday. Asian shares rallied across the board on Monday as investors cheered a strong bounce in U.S. job growth last month amid accelerating vaccine rollout. Markets in mainland China and Hong Kong were closed for holidays.

Investors monitored the progress of debate over U.S. President Joe Biden's $2.25 trillion infrastructure proposal, as Republicans reportedly expressed guarded support for a more limited plan. The response so far in bond markets has been muted, with inflation concerns easing amid doubts over the viability of more-generous spending, even as central banks remain reportedly committed to keeping interest rates lower for longer.

China is reportedly ramping up its COVID-19 vaccination push, aiming to be twice as fast as the U.S., and a leader of the World Health Organization's program has reportedly said the rollout of shots will be expanded to 100 countries in the next couple of weeks, from 84 at present.

In US, the S&P 500 surged on Thursday to its first-ever close above the 4,000 mark, lifted by gains in Microsoft, Amazon and Alphabet, as well as optimism about a recovering U.S. economy.

The Labor Department reported Friday that nonfarm payrolls increased by 916,000 in March, the highest since August 2020, while the unemployment rate fell to 6%.

The buying was supported by positive global cues, backed by strong factory activity data in euro zone and Asia last month, and the optimism around the U.S. government's $2 trillion spending plan.

US President Joe Biden unveiled a massive infrastructure package on Wednesday, which includes roughly $2 trillion in spending over eight years. The government will raise the corporate tax rate to 28%, combined with measures designed to stop offshoring of profits, to fund the infrastructure plan within 15 years.

The broader market outperformed the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rallied 1.68% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index surged 2.05%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 2,143 shares rose and 748 shares fell. A total of 152 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,89,13,887 with 28,16,081 deaths. India reported 5,84,055 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,62,927 deaths while 1,14,74,683 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Among the total active caseload of 5.52 lakh cases, five states - Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab and Chhattisgarh - cumulatively account for 79.30% of the cases. Maharashtra leads with more than 61% of the active caseload.

Economy:

The gross GST revenue collected in the month of March 2021 stood at a record of Rs 1,23,902 crore of which CGST is Rs 22,973 crore, SGST Rs 29,329 crore, IGST Rs 62,842 crore and Cess is Rs 8,757 crore. The GST revenues during March 2021 are the highest since introduction of GST. In line with the trend of recovery in the GST revenues over past five months, the revenues for the month of March 2021 are 27% higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year.

India's current account balance recorded a deficit of $1.7 billion (0.2% of GDP) in Q3 FY2021 after a surplus of $15.1 billion (2.4% of GDP) in Q2 FY2021 and $19 billion (3.7% of GDP) in Q1 FY2021; a deficit of $2.6 billion (0.4% of GDP) was recorded a year ago. Underlying the current account deficit in Q3 FY2021 was a rise in the merchandise trade deficit to $34.5 billion from $14.8 billion in the preceding quarter, and an increase in net investment income payments.

The combined Index of Eight Core Industries stood at 127.8 in February 2021, which declined by 4.6% as compared to the Index of February 2020. All sectors reported decline in output during the month under review. Its cumulative growth during April to February, 2020-21 has been (-) 8.3%.

Meanwhile, World Bank has raised Indian GDP growth prediction for 2021-22 fiscal to 10.1% from 5.4% projected in January. The international bank said given the significant uncertainty amid COVID-19 effects on the economy, the real India GDP growth could be in the range from 7.5% to 12.5%.

The World Bank in its South Asia Economic Focus Spring update report said that it has revised the projection amid a strong rebound in private consumption and investment growth. The international bank noted that government consumption is expected to rise by about 16.7% during the reported fiscal.

The World Bank, however, sounded a warning as economic activity is well below pre-COVID-19 estimate. It said that businesses need to make up for lost revenue and millions of workers, most of them in the informal sector, still reel from job losses and falling incomes should be taken care.

No change in Small Savings Scheme:

The government on Thursday decided to withdraw the rate cut order on the small saving schemes. Finance Minister said interest rates on small savings schemes will continue to be at the levels as in March 2021.

“Interest rates of small savings schemes of GoI shall continue to be at the rates which existed in the last quarter of 2020-2021, i.e., rates that prevailed as of March 2021. Orders issued by oversight shall be withdrawn,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a tweet early Thursday morning.

The government on Wednesday had announced the new interest rates on post office small savings schemes for the three months ending 30 June 2021. The rates notified for the April to June 2021 quarter were 40 basis points (0.4%) to 110 basis points (1.1%) lower on various instruments including PPF, Senior citizen savings scheme, monthly income account scheme, etc.

March Auto Sales:

Escorts fell 1.23%. The company's Agri Machinery Segment (EAM) in March 2021 sold 12,337 tractors, its highest ever March sales, and registered a growth of 126.6% against 5,444 tractors sold in March 2020. Sequentially, the company's tractor sales have increased by 9.86% last month from 11,230 units sold in February 2021. Domestic tractor sales in March 2021 stood at 11,730 tractors, registering a growth of 124.4% from 5,228 tractors sold in March 2020. Escorts said the tractor demand is expected to continue to be strong led by higher Rabi output, favourable crop prices, and initial positive forecast of 2021 monsoon season, all supporting rural customer sentiments.

Maruti Suzuki rose 0.71%. The car major's total sales surged 99.31% to 1,67,014 units in March 2021 as against 83,792 units March 2020. Sequentially, the company's total auto sales rose 1.54% in March 2021 as against 1,64,469 units sold in February 2021. Total domestic sales (PV+LCV) jumped 94.23% to 1,49,518 units while total export sales surged 146.11% to 11,597 units in March 2021 over March 2020. Total domestic sales (domestic+OEM) grew 96.53% to 1,55,417 units in March 2021 over 79,080 units in March 2020.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) gained 1.55%. The company announced that its overall auto sales (passenger vehicles+ commercial vehicles + exports) for March 2021 stood at 40,403 units, up 505% compared with 6,679 units in March 2020. Sequentially, the company's auto sales surged 40.40% in March 2021 from 28,777 units sold in February 2021. Mahindra's Farm Equipment Sector (FES) said that its total tractor sales (domestic + exports) during March 2021 were at 30,970 units, up by 128% from 13,613 units for the same period last year. While total domestic tractor sales increased by 122% to 29,817 units, total tractor exports increased by 491% to 1,153 units in March 2021 over March 2020.

Ashok Leyland gained 3.35% after the company's total sales (domestic+exports) stood at 17,231 units in March 2021, up 710% over 2126 units sold in March 2020. The company's total domestic sales surged 809% to 15,761 units in March 2021 compared with 1,734 units in March 2020.

Tata Motors rose 1.89% after the auto major's total sales in the domestic & international market for Q4 FY21 stood at 191,720 vehicles, up by 89.04% from 101,420 units sold during Q4 FY20. The company's total domestic sales have increased by 94% to 182,824 units in Q4 FY21 from 94,256 units in Q4 FY20. In March 2021, the Tata Group company sold 66,609 vehicles in the domestic market, as compared to 11,012 vehicles sold in March 2020. The company's total commercial vehicle (CV) sales (domestic + exports) were at 40,609 units in March 2021 as against 7,123 units in March 2020.

Eicher Motors rose 0.81%. VE Commercial Vehicles, an unlisted subsidiary of Eicher Motors, sold 7037 vehicles in March 2021 compared with 1499 vehicles sold in March 2020. Total domestic sales were at 6054 units in March 2021 as against 1409 units sold in March 2020. The company exported 816 vehicles during the month compared with 67 vehicles exported in the same period last year. Total Volvo Trucks & Buses sales stood at 167 units in March 2021 as against 23 units in March 2020.

SML Isuzu gained 3.54% after the auto maker's total sales jumped 95.1% to 952 units in March 2021 as against 488 units in March 2020. Sequentially, the company's auto sales soared 25.26% in March 2021 as against 760 units sold in February 2021. The vehicle maker's sales in Q4 FY21 dropped 9.4% to 2,247 units from 2,479 units sold in Q4 FY20. For FY21, total sales tumbled nearly 52% to 5,043 units from 10,494 units sold in FY20.

VST Tillers Tractors rose 2.67% after the company's total sales jumped to 3,787 units in March 2021, up 91.75% as against 1,975 units sold in March 2020. The company sold 3056 units of power tillers in March 2021, higher than 1585 units sold in March 2020. Total tractor sales stood at 731 units last month, higher than 390 units sold in the same period last year.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Bharti Airtel rose 0.62% after Airtel Africa's mobile money business received $100 million investment from Mastercard. In a regulatory filing made during market hours today, the company said that its subsidiary, Airtel Africa, signed an agreement under which Mastercard, a leading innovator and global technology company in the payments industry, will invest $100 million in Airtel Mobile Commerce BV (AMC BV), a wholly owned subsidiary of Airtel Africa. AMC BV is currently the holding company for several of Airtel Africa's mobile money operations and is intended to own and operate the mobile money businesses across all of Airtel Africa's fourteen operating countries. The transaction values Airtel Africa's mobile money business at $2.65 billion on a cash and debt free basis.

Tata Consumer Products (TCPL) rose 1.74% after the company said that its step-down subsidiaries in the USA have decided to divest their entire membership interest in Empirical Group and Southern Tea to the joint venture partner, Harris Tea Company, USA. Empirical Group is engaged in the business of selling primarily white label tea and coffee in the foodservice channel and to contract customers. Southern Tea is a manufacturing entity acting as a supplier to Harris Tea and TCPL (Empirical, Tetley and Good Earth brands).

Axis Bank rose 2.07%. The private lender said that it has entered into a share purchase agreement for sale of 100% stake in its subsidiary, Axis Bank UK to OpenPayd Holdings. For the transaction, the bank received the completion net asset value (book value of the bank on the date of completion) plus a fixed premium of $5.5 million.

Wipro rose 0.6%. The IT major announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Ampion, an Australia-based provider of cyber security, DevOps and quality engineering services. The entire divestment transaction will take place for a total cash consideration of $117 million. The deal is expected to be completed during the quarter ending 30 June 2021, subject to requisite regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.

Sunteck Realty added 0.75% after the company said it has secured a 7-acre land parcel at Borivali (West), Mumbai to develop a luxury residential project. Acquired under the asset light Joint Development Agreement (JDA) model, the residential project in the western suburbs of the city is spread across 7 acres and will have approximately 1 million sq. ft of development potential. It is expected to generate a project top line of around Rs 1,750 crore over the next 4-5 years further strengthening the cash flow and the balance sheet of the company.

Welspun India surged 4.81% after the company said that it has prepaid term loans of Rs 374.27 crore as on 31 March 2021 along with other installments which were due as on the year end on standalone basis. The weighted average interest rate of the loans prepaid by the company was 8.48% p.a., the company said in a BSE filing made after trading hours yesterday.

GMR Infrastructure added 2.67%. The company's subsidiary Delhi International Airport (DIAL) successfully completed the issuance of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) worth Rs 3257 crore on 30 March 2021. The NCDs have been priced at interest rate of 10.96% per annum and have been subscribed by Cliffton (a FPI, registered under SEBI). The proceeds from the NCD's will be utilized to refinance the outstanding debt of around USD 289 Mn due in FY22 and to partly finance the Phase 3A Expansion, DIAL said in a statement.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia rallied on Thursday, supported by the US government's $2 trillion spending plan.

Euro zone manufacturing activity grew at its fastest pace on record in March, with IHS Markit's final manufacturing PMI coming in at 62.5 compared to February's 57.9.

A private survey released Thursday showed slowing growth of Chinese factory activity in March. The Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for March came in at 50.6, compared with February's reading of 50.9. In comparison, China's official manufacturing PMI released Wednesday came in at 51.9, higher than February's reading of 50.6. PMI readings above 50 signify expansion while those below that level represent contraction.

Japan's factory activity expanded at a faster pace in March. The final au Jibun Bank Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to a seasonally adjusted 52.7 in March from the previous month's 51.4 reading.

In US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose on Wednesday, boosted by gains in technology shares as investors positioned themselves for President Joe Biden's massive infrastructure plan.

As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 627.43 points or 1.25% at 49,508.84. The Nifty 50 index dropped 154.40 points or 1.04% at 14,690.60.

A surge in India's COVID-19 cases spooked investors as states move to impose partial restrictions, curb large public gatherings and order random testing at malls.

HDFC (down 4%), HDFC Bank (down 3.88%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 1.35%) Infosys (down 1.3%) and Reliance Industries (down 1.18%) were major drags.

The broader market ended with minor gains. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.07% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.52%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,390 shares rose and 1,491 shares fell. A total of 198 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 128,152,416 with 2,803,009 deaths. India reported 552,566 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 162468 deaths while 114,34,301 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Economy:

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) said on Tuesday that India's economic output in 2021 is expected to remain below the 2019 level. According to the report, India is estimated to record an economic growth of 7% in 2021-22, over a contraction of 7.7% witnessed in the previous fiscal on account of the pandemic's impact on normal business activity. Observing that India entered the pandemic with subdued GDP growth and investment, the report said: “Following one of the most stringent lockdowns in the world, the economic disruptions that the country experienced mounted in the second quarter of 2020,” it said.

Global Markets:

Most shares in Europe and Asia declined on Wednesday as rising Covid-19 cases stoked worries about its near-term economic impact.

China's factory activity expanded at a faster-than-expected pace in March. The official manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose to 51.9 from 50.6 in February, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed today.

Japan's industrial output fell in February. Official data released today showed factory output shrank 2.1% from the previous month in February, dragged down by falls in production of cars, electrical machinery and information and communication equipment.

US stocks fell Tuesday as major technology shares came under pressure again after the 10-year Treasury yield touched its highest level since January 2020.

The 10-year Treasury yield climbed 6 basis points to top 1.77% earlier Tuesday, hitting its highest level in 14 months as vaccine rollouts and expected infrastructure spending boosted the outlook for a broad economic recovery and rising inflation. The benchmark rate was currently hovering at 1.724%.

The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index surged in March to 109.7, its highest reading in a year.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 0.15%. M&M's Japanese subsidiary, Mitsubishi Mahindra Agricultural Machinery Company, and Japan's Kubota Co. announced collaboration for Japanese domestic operations.

Ultratech Cement lost 0.67%. The cement major said that it has prepaid its long-term loans amounting to Rs 5,000 crore, in line with the company's endeavour to maintain optimal capital structure. The company said that the loan repayments have been done through free cash flows that the company has generated over the last few quarters despite the challenging circumstances and severe business interruptions during the first quarter of the current fiscal year.

TCS rose 0.65%. The IT major announced that it has renewed its strategic partnership and services footprint with Nationwide Building Society, the world's largest building society and one of the largest savings and mortgage providers in the UK, to help strengthen the latter's enterprise agility and operational resilience.

SpiceJet rose 1.68%. The airliner has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Avenue Capital Group, New York for a strategic alliance in respect of the financing, acquisition and sale and lease‐back of 50 new planes to be ordered by the airline.

Kalpataru Power Transmission fell 0.09% after the company received new orders worth Rs 625 crore across various businesses. The global EPC player in the power and infrastructure contracting sector bagged orders from Africa in the power transmission business. The company also won an order for railway electrification in India. Meanwhile, Kalpataru Power's international subsidiary has secured new power transmission projects in Europe.

IDFC First Bank slumped 4.29%. The private lender launched a qualified institutional placement (QIP) of equity shares on Tuesday (30 March 2021). The capital raising committee of the board of directors of the bank, at its meeting held on 30 March 2021, authorised the opening of the QIP issue and approved the floor price of Rs 60.34 per equity share, the private sector bank said in a regulatory filing made after market hours yesterday. The floor price is at 3.50% premium of IDFC First Bank's closing price of Rs 58.30 recorded on Tuesday. The capital raising committee of the bank will meet on 6 April 2021, to determine the QIP issue price.

SJVN slipped 2.25%. The company won a solar power project in Gujarat. In terms of the letter of acceptance (LoA) issued by Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL), SJVN will develop 70 megawatt (MW) solar power project in Gujarat, including arrangement of land with long term connectivity with grid. Tariff of the electricity supplied will be Rs 2.21/KWh and power generated from this project will be procured by GUVNL for 25 years.

KNR Constructions jumped 3.24% after the company said it received letter of acceptance for a road project in Kerala. The project involves six laning Ramanattukara Junction to start of Valanchery bypass section of NH-66 on Hybrid Annuity Mode under Bharatmala Pariyojana in Kerala. The project bid cost is Rs 2,367 crore and company bid price is Rs 2,116 crore.

Sterling and Wilson Solar (SWSL) gained 1.63%. Sterling and Wilson Solar Solutions, Inc (SWSS), the US subsidiary of Sterling and Wilson Solar (SWSL), announced that it has signed an order worth $121.7 million (about Rs 890 crore) in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The order has been received from a leading sustainable energy company and is scheduled to be commissioned by Q4 FY2022. SWSS will be managing the entire turnkey execution for the PV project.

IRB Infrastructure Developers spurted 5.27% after the company said that its total order book stood at Rs 14,509 crore, providing revenue visibility of more than 2 years.

Insecticides (India) rose 0.23%. The company's board on Tuesday approved a proposal to buyback equity shares worth upto Rs 60 crore. The company proposes to buyback shares at a maximum price of Rs 575.

Punjab & Sindh Bank rose 4.76%. The state-run bank informed on Tuesday that the NPA account IL&FS Transportation Network (ITNL) with outstanding dues of Rs 149.98 crore has been declared as fraud. The bank said it has reported it to the RBI on Tuesday as per regulatory requirement. The account has been fully provided for as per existing RBI norms, the bank said.

Saurashtra Cement jumped 10.15% after the company said its board has approved to take over the paint business of Snowcem Paints on slump sale basis and as a going concern. The closure of transaction is subject to successful negotiation and execution of the definitive agreements including the business transfer agreement and other such agreements customary to the transaction of this nature, the company said in a BSE filing made after market hours yesterday.

As per the provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, soared 1128.08 points or 2.3% at 50,136.56. The Nifty 50 index surged 337.80 points or 2.33% at 14,845.10.

The broader indices lagged the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rallied 1.43%.

Buyers outpaced sellers. On the BSE, 1,562 shares rose and 1,392 shares fell. A total of 208 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 50.13 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 1,703.14 crore in the Indian equity market on 26 March 2021, provisional data showed.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,76,54,979 with 27,92,044 deaths. India reported 5,40,720 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,62,114 deaths while 1,13,93,021 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India saw 68,020 new coronavirus cases in a span of 24 hours on Monday, the highest single-day rise so far this year, taking the country's COVID-19 tally to above 1.20 crore, according to Union Health Ministry data. Registering a steady increase for the 19th day in a row, the active cases have increased to 5,21,808, which comprise 4.33% of the total infections, while the recovery rate has further dropped to 94.32%, the data stated.

Maharashtra on Monday added 31,643 fresh infections, but the lower tally was attributed to reduced testing because of Holi. The state has recorded close to six lakh cases this month and registered over 2,100 deaths. State officials said that for now, local trains will continue to run but fresh restrictions will be introduced to reduce overcrowding at restaurants, malls, public places, private offices and pubs.

Politics:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address election rally in Puducherry today, 30 March 2021, to seek support for the NDA in the union territory.

All eyes will be on outcome of state assembly elections. Polls are to be held for 294 seats in West Bengal, 234 seats in Tamil Nadu, 140 seats in Kerala, 126 seats in Assam and 30 seats in the Union Territory of Puducherry.

The eight-phase election in West Bengal which began from March 27 will continue till April 29. Elections in Kerala will be held in a single phase on April 6. Puducherry will vote in a single phase on April 6. Elections in Tamil Nadu will be held in a single phase on April 6. Assam will vote in three phases on March 27, April 1 and April 6. The counting of votes for all states will be held on May 2 and the results will be declared the same day.

New Listing:

Shares of Nazara Technologies hit 20% lower circuit at Rs 1,576.80 at 15:22 IST on the BSE. It was still trading at a premium of 43.2% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 1,101. The stock was listed at Rs 1,971, a premium of 79.02% from the IPO price. The stock hit an intraday high of Rs 2,026.90. On the BSE, 8.36 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far.

The IPO of Nazara Technologies received bids for 51.25 crore shares as against 29.20 lakh shares on offer, according to the stock exchange data. The issue was subscribed 175.46 times. The issue opened for bidding on 17 March 2021 and closed on 19 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 1,100-1,101 per share.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia advanced on Tuesday, as investors were encouraged by the roll-out of coronavirus vaccines. Japan's retail sales declined 1.5% in February from a year earlier, according to a preliminary report released Tuesday by the country's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

The Dow Jones Futures were trading 66.5 points higher, indicating a positive start in US markets today.

Wall Street ended lower on Monday after US hedge fund Archegos Capital defaulted on margin calls. The S&P 500 ended just slightly in the red, with bank shares falling amid warnings of potential losses from a hedge fund's default on margin calls, while optimism over the economy limited the day's declines.

President Joe Biden's announcement that 90% of adults will be eligible for the Covid-19 vaccine next month helped U.S. stocks recover from their lows, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at another all-time peak.

The COVID-19 vaccines of Moderna Inc and Pfizer-BioNtech were found effective in real-world conditions, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - the United States' national public health agency- said in a report released on March 29. Both the vaccines were found to be 90% effective if two doses of the vaccine were given to the beneficiaries, it said.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Transmission (ATL) rose 1.73% after the company said it has signed definitive agreements with Essel Infraprojects (EIL) for the acquisition of Warora-Kurnool Transmission (WKTL). ATL's acquisition values the enterprise valuation of the target at Rs 3,370 crore. WKTL will develop, operate and maintain transmission system aggregating to about 1,750 ckt km in Maharashtra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and a 765/400 kV substation at Warangal.

Minda Industries jumped 2.93% after the company's board approved expansion in four wheel lighting and alloy wheel businesses. The company said the capacity expansion is undertaken considering the improved market scenario and increased demand, wherein the said businesses have been operating at near capacity. The expanded facilities are expected to commence operations by quarter ending March 2022 and expected to stabilize by June 2022.

HPCL rose 0.3%. The PSU OMC has entered into a share purchase agreement (SPA) for acquisition of shares of HPCL Shapoorji Energy from SP Ports, a joint venture (JV) partner of the company. HPCL Shapoorji Energy, an associate unlisted company of HPCL, is in process of setting and development of 5 million tonnes per annum (MMTPA) LNG terminal storage and regasification terminal at Chhara, Gujarat. HPCL held 50% of the equity share capital of HPCL Shapoorji Energy as of 31 December 2020. Since the target entity is still in construction phase, there has been Nil revenue from operations. The LNG terminal project of the target entity is expected to bring long-term value to the company being a growing segment of the energy basket of the nation.

Lumax Industries gained 3%. Lumax Industries said the company's board approved capital expenditure (capex) amounting up to Rs 80 crore for setting up of the company's new manufacturing unit(s) in Sanand, Gujarat to cater to the orders received from MG Motors and other customers.

Biocon surged 3.47% after the company announced a partnership between Biocon Pharma, its wholly owned subsidiary and Libbs Farmaceutica, a leading pharmaceuticals company in Brazil. As part of the out-licensing deal with Libbs, Biocon Pharma will be responsible for drug development and manufacturing, while Libbs will leverage its deep expertise and reach in Brazil to import, distribute and market, subject to approvals from the Brazilian health regulatory agency, ANVISA. This partnership, which marks the entry of Biocon's generic formulations into Latin America, builds upon a successful association with Libbs, which began in 2017 to launch biosimilar Trastuzumab in Brazil.

Kalyan Jewellers India tumbled 5.38%. The jewellery retailer is planning to increase its retail footprint by 13% in the first quarter and enhance operations across seven states, adding 14 new showrooms all on 24 April 2021. Kalyan Jewellers India said that it will also focus on the Tier-II and Tier-III markets, with mid-size showrooms. In the Tier-I cities, the company plans to launch a total of five new outlets including a flagship showroom. The company plans to open another flagship store in Chennai's North Usman Road. The company will also be strengthening its presence in Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad, with a showroom each in Dwaraka, Matunga, Lower Parel Phoenix Palladium and Dilsukhnagar.

Shriram Transport Finance Company fell 0.51%. The company said that it will consider raising funds by issuing redeemable non-convertible debt securities in onshore/offshore market via private placement and/or public issue during April 2021.

Mukand hit an upper circuit of 20% to Rs 69.35 after the company said it completed the transfer of leasehold land in Thane to NTT Global Data Centers NAV2 and received an aggregate consideration of Rs 679.25 crore. Mukand said it will utilise the funds received from the sale of land for repaying its debt.

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with strong gains on Friday, mirroring firm global stocks. All the sectoral indices on the NSE ended in the green. The Nifty closed above the 14,500 mark on bargain hunting after correcting 3.31% in the past two sessions.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 568.38 points or 1.17% to 49,008.50. The Nifty 50 index surged 201.05 points or 1.40% to 14,525.95.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, slumped 9.02% to 20.65.

The broader market was trading higher. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1.66%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.08%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1658 shares rose and 1299 shares fell. A total of 177 shares were unchanged.

The stock markets will remain shut on Monday, 29 March 2021, on account of Holi.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,54,92,163 with 27,55,210 deaths. India reported 4,21,066 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,60,949 deaths while 1,12,64,637 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India recorded its highest single-day COVID-19 count in over five months on Thursday with 59,118 people testing positive for the virus.

Five States, Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat have reported a surge in daily new cases. Maharashtra continues to report the highest daily new cases at 35,952. It is followed by Punjab with 2,661 while Karnataka reported 2,523 new cases. Three States, Maharashtra, Kerala and Punjab together account for over 73% of the total active cases in the country.

Economy:

The Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das on Thursday reiterated that RBI is fully committed to use all policy tools to secure a robust recovery of the economy from the debilitating effects of the pandemic. He was speaking at the Economic conclave organised by a private media house. He said that the collective endeavour resulted in stabilisation of the financial sector and provided necessary liquidity support to maintain the flow of credit in the economy.

Tata Group SC Verdict:

A Supreme Court (SC) bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde and also comprising Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian ruled in favour of the Tatas in their battle with the Mistry group by setting aside the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order which had re-instated Mistry on Tata Sons' board and had termed current Chairman N Chandrasekaran's as ''illegal.

The country's apex court also rejected Mistry group's plea against the conversion of Tata Sons into a private company. The bench also refused to entertain Mistry group's plea for fair compensation for their 18.5% stake in Tata Sons saying the value of Mistry's stake will depend on valuation of Tata Sons assets and that it would not get into determining what should be a fair value.

SC's verdict in nearly five-year-old case puts an end to the corporate war between Tata Group and the Mistrys. A legal tussle erupted between the two sides after Cyrus Mistry was removed from Tata Sons' chairman post in October 2016.

Following the SC verdict, Tata Steel, Tata Communications, Indian Hotels Company, Tata Power, Tata Motors, Tinplate Company, Titan Company, Tata Investment Corporation, Tata Consumer Products, Voltas, Tata Coffee, Tata Chemicals, Tata Steel Long Products, Tata Metaliks, TCS and Rallis India rose by between 0.38% to 5.73%.

Meanwhile, shares of Pallonji Group's Sterling and Wilson Solar tumbled 9.18% to Rs 247.40.

Primary Market:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Barbeque Nation Hospitality received bids for 2.52 crore shares as against 49.99 lakh shares on offer, according to the stock exchange data at 15:20 IST on Friday (26 March 2021). The issue was subscribed 5.06 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Wednesday, 24 March 2021, and it will close on Friday, 26 March 2021. The price band for the IPO is set at Rs 498-500 per share.

New Listing:

Shares of Kalyan Jewellers India were trading at Rs 74.30 at 15:21 IST on the BSE, a discount of 14.60% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 87.

The stock was listed at Rs 73.9, a discount of 15.06% to the IPO price. The stock hit a high of Rs 81 and low of Rs 73. On the BSE, 34.16 lakh shares were traded on the counter.

The IPO of Kalyan Jewellers India was subscribed 2.61 times. The issue opened for bidding on 16 March 2021 and closed on 18 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 86-87 per share.

Shares of Suryoday Small Finance Bank were trading at Rs 284.70 at 15:22 IST on the BSE, a discount of 6.66% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 305.

The stock was listed at Rs 293, a discount of 3.93% to the IPO price. The stock hit a high of Rs 295.95 and low of Rs 271.15. On the BSE, 4.27 lakh shares were traded on the counter.

The IPO of Suryoday Small Finance Bank was subscribed 2.37 times. The issue opened for bidding on Wednesday, 17 March 2021, and it closed on Friday, 19 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 303-305 per share.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index rose 1.33% to 33,445.25 amid value buying. The index declined by 3.45% in the past two sessions.

HDFC Bank (up 2.40%), Punjab National Bank (up 2.25%), Bank of Baroda (up 1.50%), ICICI Bank (up 1.48%), IDFC First Bank (up 1.22%), Axis Bank (up 1.04%), SBI (up 0.96%), Federal Bank (up 0.79%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.79%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Enterprises rose 0.56% to Rs 987. The company announced its entry into the copper business by incorporating a wholly-owned subsidiary, Kutch Copper (KCL).

Bajaj Auto added 2.80% at Rs 3599.95. The domestic two-wheeler maker on Friday announced that it is strengthening its strategic cooperation with PIERER Mobility for the development of electric products in the two-wheeler sector to meet the growing demand for innovative e-mobility concepts. The PIERER Mobility Group is Europe's leading manufacturer of powered two-wheelers.

PIERER Mobility AG and Bajaj Auto originally joined forces to make a sizeable and relentless footprint in the international motorcycle industry. The two companies have now decided to jointly explore the zero tailpipe emissions, low maintenance, and long-lasting benefits of light electric vehicles in urban settings and dense metropolitan areas.

Sun Pharma (up 1.69%), Torrent Pharma (up 0.66%), Cadila Healthcare (up 0.15%) and Lupin (down 1.19%) on Thursday announced they have subscribed to partnership interest in healthcare services firm ABCD Technologies at a cost of Rs 40 crore each.

The four pharmaceutical companies will acquire 20% stake each in ABCD Technologies, which will be renamed as IndoHealth Services.

The objective of acquisition is to facilitate, enable and promote efficiency and Good Distribution Practices including digitizing healthcare infrastructure in India, in support of the National Digital Health Mission of Government of India.

Confidence Petroleum jumped 6.88%. The company announced that it has signed an agreement with GAIL Gas for setting up 100 CNG stations on built & operate basis in Bengaluru city in next three years.

Godrej Properties jumped 7.86% to Rs 43.90 after the realty major announced that it has sold over 275 residences worth Rs 475 crore within one day at the launch of its project, Godrej Woods, in Noida.

Dilip Buildcon gained 0.70% to Rs 557.45. The company has incorporated a special purpose vehicle, DBL Poondiyankuppam Highways, which will undertake a road construction order worth Rs 1,228 crore. The project involves four laning of Puducherry-Poondiyankuppam section of NH-45A under the Phase I of the Bharatmala Pariyojana Project on HAM mode in the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry.

H.G. Infra Engineering added 3.94% to Rs 291.20 after the company was declared as L-1 (lowest) bidder by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for a road project in Andhra Pradesh, the cost of which is Rs 1,060.11 crore.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia rose across the board on Friday trade following an overnight rebound on Wall Street.

Crude oil prices rebounded overnight amid concerns that a massive container ship blocking the Suez Canal may take weeks to free up, squeezing global supply.

US stocks staged a late-day comeback on Thursday, boosted by economic comeback plays as the market rebounded from a two-day losing streak.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell acknowledged Thursday that fiscal help from Congress and accelerated vaccine distribution has allowed the U.S. to recover faster than expected.

Key equity indices ended near the day's low on Thursday amid across the board selling pressure. The Nifty ended below the 14,350 mark. Trading was volatile as the March 2021 F&O contracts expired today, 25 March 2021.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slumped 740.19 points or 1.51% to 48,440.12. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 224.50 points or 1.54% to 14,324.90.

Rising domestic coronavirus cases dented investors sentiment. Global cues were subdued as COVID-induced lockdowns in Europe and potential U.S. tax hikes hit investors' risk appetite.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 2.22% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 1.85%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 760 shares rose and 2185 shares fell. A total of 176 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,47,93,058 with 27,43,520 deaths. India reported 3,95,192 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,60,692 deaths while 1,12,31,650 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India recorded 53,476 new COVID-19 cases in a span of 24 hours, the highest single-day rise so far this year, taking the nationwide coronavirus tally to 1,17,87,534, the Union health ministry said on Thursday. Now, India has over 1.17 crore COVID-19 cases, the third-highest amount behind the United States and Brazil.

The government has expressed concern over the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra and Punjab. Maharashtra reported highest 28,699 cases in last 24 hours followed by Punjab with 2,254 cases. Addressing media in New Delhi yesterday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said top ten districts where maximum active cases are concentrated are Pune, Nagpur, Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, Aurangabad, Nanded, Jalgaon, Akola and Bengaluru Urban.

Economy:

Fitch has revised India's GDP growth estimate to 12.8% for next fiscal from the previous 11% on the back of a stronger carryover effect, a looser fiscal stance, and better virus containment.

The ratings agency, in its latest Global Economic Outlook GEO, anticipates the level of the country's GDP to remain well below its pre-pandemic forecast trajectory. Fitch also expects GDP growth to ease to 5.8% in Fiscal Year 2023.

In a report it said, India's recovery from the depths of the lockdown-induced recession in the second quarter of 2020 has been swifter than expected. GDP surpassed its pre-pandemic level in the fourth quarter of current fiscal.

It also added that High-frequency indicators point to a strong start to 2021. The manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index PMI remained elevated in February, while the pickup in mobility and a rise in the services PMI point to further gains in the services sector.

The ratings agency notes that it no longer expects the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to cut its policy rate, owing to a brighter short-term growth outlook and a more limited decline in inflation than it had forecast.

Primary Market:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Barbeque Nation Hospitality received bids for 91.29 lakh shares as against 49.99 lakh shares on offer, according to the stock exchange data at 15:20 IST on Thursday (25 March 2021). The issue was subscribed 1.83 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Wednesday, 24 March 2021, and it will close on Friday, 26 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 498-500 per share.

New Listing:

Shares of Laxmi Organic Industries were trading at Rs 165.30 at 15:14 IST on the BSE, a premium of 27.15% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 130.

The stock was listed at Rs 156.20, a premium of 20.15% to the IPO price. The stock hit a high of Rs 174.50 and low of Rs 143. On the BSE, 50.70 lakh shares were traded on the counter.

The IPO of Laxmi Organic Industries was subscribed 106.79 times. The issue opened for bidding on 15 March 2021 and closed on 17 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 129-130 per share.

Shares of Craftsman Automation were trading at Rs 1449 at 15:16 IST on the BSE, a discount of 2.75% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 1490.

The stock was listed at Rs 1350, a discount of 9.4% to IPO price. The stock hit a high of Rs 1489 and low of Rs 1,349.20. On the BSE, 1.65 lakh shares were traded on the counter.

The IPO of Craftsman Automation was subscribed 3.81 times. The issue opened for bidding on 15 March 2021 and closed on 17 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 1488-1490 per share.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Auto index fell 2.87% to 9,640.30. The index has lost 5.37% in two sessions.

Maruti Suzuki (down 3.97%), Hero MotoCorp (down 3.19%), Tata Motors (down 2.95%), Bajaj Auto (down 2.73%), Eicher Motors (down 2.69%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 2.46%), Ashok Leyland (down 2.05%), Bharat Forge (down 1.62%) and TVS Motor Company (down 1.35%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Jubilant FoodWorks fell 1.52% to Rs 2825.60. The company has entered into an exclusive Master Franchise and Development Agreement with PLK APAC Pte. to develop, establish, own and operate hundreds of Popeyes restaurants in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan in the coming years. Popeyes is one of the world's largest chicken quick service restaurants with over 3,400 restaurants in over 25 countries around the world.

Bank of India fell 3.88% to Rs 69.40. The PSU bank announced plans to raise capital via issue of Basel-III compliant Additional Tier-I (AT-1) bonds aggregating to Rs 750 crore. The issue comprises base issue of Rs 250 crore and green-shoe (over subscription) option of Rs 500 crore.

Ramco Systems fell 3.35% to Rs 550. The firm has secured an order from a leading global technology company to unify and transform its payroll operations across Japan, China, Philippines and Malaysia. The technology major will leverage Ramco's managed payroll services including last mile services on public cloud to streamline and digitally transform its payroll operations across four countries in phase-I.

Kirloskar Ferrous Industries shed 0.44% to Rs 158.60. The company has entered into a mining lease deed with the Government of Karnataka to conduct mining operations for a period of 50 years at Bharath Mines & Minerals. The operations at the mine commenced on 24 March 2021.

Pokarna jumped 11.36% to Rs 256.35. The company announced the commencement of commercial operations of its second quartz surface manufacturing facility located at Mekaguda Village in Telangana.

Global Markets:

European shares declined while most Asian stocks advanced on Thursday, following a subdued session overnight on Wall Street yesterday.

Investors are on edge as many regions of the world are seeing rising COVID-19 cases as highly contagious variants continue to spread. Germany and France are extending or enforcing new lockdown measures.

US stocks gave up earlier gains and closed in the red Wednesday as tech stocks sold off, continuing a market rotation out of high-flying growth names.

On Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen appeared for a second day for virtual Capitol Hill testimony. Talking with members of the Senate Banking Committee, Powell said he expects the economy to experience superior growth in 2021 amid a recovery from the pandemic.

Domestic equity benchmarks ended near the day's low amid significant selloff on Wednesday. Barring the Nifty Pharma index, all the sectoral indices on the NSE ended in the red. Banks, auto and metal shares witnessed steep selling. The Nifty ended tad above the 14,550 mark, after hitting the day's low at 14,535.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 871.13 points or 1.74% to 49,180.31. The Nifty 50 index slumped 261.75 points or 1.77% to 14,553.

Cipla (up 1.82%), Asian Paints (up 1.36%) and Power Grid Corporation of India (up 0.94%) bucked the trend.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 8.86% to 22.50.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.63% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 1.50%.

Balrampur Chini Mills (up 4.32%), Adani Total Gas (up 3.89%), Gujarat State Petronet (up 3.83%), Solara Active Pharma Sciences (up 3.80%) and eClerx Services (up 3.62%) were top gainers in the broader market.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 840 shares rose and 2116 shares fell. A total of 168 shares were unchanged.

Domestic shares mirrored the weakness in other global stock markets as rising COVID-19 cases drove demand for safe assets, resulting into flight of capital into treasuries and the dollar. Germany, France and Italy have widened virus-related curbs. The head of the World Health Organization called recent increases in deaths and cases truly worrying trends. Consequently, the crude oil was struggling to hold above the $60 mark after it dropped nearly 6% in the previous session as renewed possibility of lockdowns clouded hopes of recovery in consumption.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 124,143,841 with 2,733,634 deaths. India reported 368,457 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 160,441 deaths, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India recorded 47,262 new cases of the coronavirus disease in a timespan of 24 hours, according to Union health ministry update on Wednesday. Maharashtra recorded 28,699 new Covid-19 cases and 132 deaths. The five most affected states by total cases are Maharashtra (2,533,026), Kerala (1,105,467), Karnataka (971,647), Andhra Pradesh (894,044), and Tamil Nadu (868,367).

Meanwhile, the government has decided to open up its vaccination drive for all above 45 years of age from 1 April 2021, and requested that all eligible people should “immediately register and get vaccinated”. The rest of the population could be considered for vaccination coverage once the current stage is over.

New listing:

Shares of Anupam Rasayan India were trading at Rs 522.40 at 15:25 IST on the BSE, a discount of 5.87% over the initial public offer (IPO) price of Rs 555.

The stock was listed at Rs 534.70, a discount of 3.66% to IPO price. The stock hit a high of Rs 548.95 and low of Rs 501.15. On the BSE, 15.61 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far.

The IPO of Anupam Rasayan was subscribed 44.06 times. The non-institutional investors category was subscribed 97.42 times. The qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) category was subscribed 65.74 times. The retail individual investors category was subscribed 10.77 times.

The issue opened for bidding on 12 March 2021 and closed on 16 March 2021. The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 553-555 per share. The offer comprised of a fresh issue aggregating up to Rs 760 crore by the company.

The company intends to utilize Rs 563.698 crore of the net proceeds towards repayment/prepayment of certain indebtedness availed by the company (including accrued interest) and balance for general corporate purposes. The company's total debt as on 31 December 2020 stood at Rs 841.975 crore.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty PSU Bank index fell 3.32% to 2,152.80. The index gained 2.91% in the previous session.

Bank of India (down 4.72%), Punjab National Bank (down 4.65%), UCO Bank (down 4.42%), SBI (down 3.56%), Canara Bank (down 3.54%), Indian Bank (down 3.53%), Bank of Baroda (down 3.37%), Union Bank of India (down 3.06%) and Jammu and Kashmir Bank (down 2.22%) declined.

Central Bank of India (up 0.90%) and Indian Overseas Bank (up 0.30%) bucked the trend.

Bank of Maharashtra added 3.83% to Rs 21.70. The bank said it has successfully raised Rs 100 crore through private placement of Basel III compliant Tier II bonds.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Grasim Industries slipped 1.55% to Rs 1388.80. The board of the company at its meeting held on 24 March 2021 approved raising funds by availing term loans or by issuing debt securities in India or overseas within the overall borrowing limit of Rs 10,000 crore.

Dalmia Bharat shed 0.87% to Rs 1555.90. The company said its a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, Dalmia Cement (Bharat), has commenced commercial production of Line II having a capacity of 2.25 million tons at its Bengal Cement Works (BCW) unit in West Midnapore in the state of West Bengal. This addition will increase the overall capacity of the BCW unit to 4 million tons per annum.

Cadila Healthcare rose 0.41% to Rs 432.80. The company and its subsidiary Zydus Pharmaceuticals (USA) Inc. have reached an agreement with Celgene Corporation (Celgene), a wholly owned subsidiary of Bristol Myers Squibb relating to patents for Revlimid (lenalidomide).

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals fell 1.33% to Rs 459.45. The company has received a final approval from the USFDA for chlorpromazine hydrochloride tablets, a generic version of Thorazin tablets of GlaxoSmithKline. The antipsychotic medication is primarily used to treat psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia. According to IQVIA sales data for the 12-month period ended January 2021, Thorazine Tablets, achieved annual sales of approximately $108.6 million.

Vascon Engineers rose 2.86% to Rs 18. The company emerged as the lowest bidder for two projects floated by the Uttar Pradesh Public Works Department. The projects are for the establishment of new medical colleges attached with existing district hospitals in Bijnor and Kaushambi valued at Rs 246.09 crore and Rs 269.54 crore, respectively.

Rossari Biotech declined 4.60% to Rs 1061.25. The board of the speciality-chemicals maker approved issuing 30,12,046 equity shares of face value of Rs 2 each, on a preferential basis. The board determined a floor price of Rs 996 per equity share or such higher price, aggregating to Rs 300 crore. This preferential issue is subject to necessary approvals, including from the company's shareholders.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia tumbled on Wednesday as concerns over the world's recovery from the pandemic weighed on investor sentiment.

An expansion of Japan's factory activity gathered pace in March, a private sector survey showed on Wednesday. The au Jibun Bank Flash Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to a seasonally adjusted 52.0 in March from a final 51.4 in February.

The World Health Organization said most regions of the globe are seeing an increase in new COVID-19 cases as highly contagious variants continue to spread. Germany is extending its lockdown until 18 April, while nearly a third of France entered a month-long shutdown on Saturday.

US stocks tumbled on Tuesday as concerns about the cost of infrastructure spending and potential tax hikes to pay for President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion relief bill weighed on investors.

Federal Reserve' Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen made their first joint appearance Tuesday before the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services. The duo acknowledged the richly valued asset prices in the markets, but said that they are not worried about financial stability.

Domestic equity benchmarks ended with decent gains after a volatile session on Tuesday. Banks stocks were in demand after the apex court refused to extend the moratorium on bad loans for borrowers hit by the pandemic brought on by COVID-19. The Nifty closed above 14,800 mark.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 280.15 points or 0.56% to 50,051.44. The Nifty 50 index advanced 78.35 points or 0.53% to 14,814.75.

The broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.95%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.75%.

Buyers outpaced sellers. On the BSE, 1663 shares rose and 1294 shares fell. A total of 216 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,36,91,979 with 27,23,315 deaths. India reported 3,45,377 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,60,166 deaths while 1,11,81,253 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved the vaccination for people above 45 years of age from 1 April 2021.

Yesterday, the country saw 46,951 fresh infections, the biggest single-day spike since early November. As per the Health Ministry data, Maharashtra (24,645), Punjab (2,299), Gujarat (1,640), Chhattisgarh (1,525) and Karnataka (1,445) are the five states with the highest surge in cases in the last 24 hours.

Supreme Court Judgement:

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to extend the six-month loan moratorium period offered by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last year, saying that it is 'policy decision' on the part of the Centre and RBI.

The top court also said that a complete waiver of interest during the moratorium period could not be granted as banks have to pay interest to account holders and pensioners.

However the apex court directed that no compound or penal interest shall be charged from borrowers for the six-month loan moratorium period and the amount already charged shall be refunded, credited or adjusted.

SC was pronouncing its verdict on a batch of pleas by various trade associations seeking an extension of loan moratorium and other reliefs in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The RBI had on 27 March 2020 issued the circular which allowed lending institutions to grant a moratorium on payment of instalments of term loans falling due between 1 March and 31 May 2020, due to the pandemic. Later, the moratorium was extended till 31 August 2020.

Following the SC verdict, the Nifty Bank index rose 1.73% to 34,184.40. The index declined 1.63% in the previous session.

Bandhan Bank (up 3.69%), IDFC First Bank (up 2.94%), Punjab National Bank (up 2.37%), IndusInd Bank (up 2.33%), ICICI Bank (up 2.29%), HDFC Bank (up 2.23%), Bank Of Baroda (up 2.14%), Axis Bank (up 1.95%), SBI (up 1.46%), Federal Bank (up 1.17%) and RBL Bank (up 0.49%), advanced while Kotak Mahindra Bank declined 0.55%.

Stocks in Spotlight:

TCS rose 0.52% to Rs 3145.95. The company announced partnership with Skanska to help it become the most digitally advanced company in the construction industry.

Bharti Airtel added 0.11% to Rs 528.50. Airtel Africa, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, announced the signing of agreements to sell its telecommunications tower companies in Madagascar and Malawi to Helios Towers, a leading independent telecommunications infrastructure company in Africa. Expected to close in or around calendar Q4 2021, the aggregate gross consideration for the transactions is expected to be approximately $108 million.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation fell 0.63% to Rs 436.60. The board of BPCL on Monday, 22 March 2021, approved the scheme of amalgamation of Bharat Gas Resources (BGRL) with itself and its respective shareholders. The merger will streamline the corporate structure and consolidate the assets and liabilities of BGRL within BPCL.

Mahindra & Mahindra fell 1.24% to Rs 843. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) signed a contract with Mahindra Defence Systems (MDSL), the company's subsidiary, worth Rs 1,056 crore. The contract is for supplying 1,300 light specialist vehicles to the Indian Army.

Maruti Suzuki India added 0.88% to Rs 7166. The car major on Monday announced that it will hike vehicle prices from April 2021 due to increase in various input costs. The car major added that price increase shall vary for different models.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals gained 1.53% to Rs 467 after the company received final approval from the US drug regulator for diltiazem hydrochloride extended‐release capsules. The drug is indicated for the treatment of hypertension.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) advanced 2% to Rs 736 after the company said it is acquiring the 58.1% stake held by DVS Raju and family in Gangavaram Port (GPL). The acquisition is valued at Rs 3,604 crore and subject to regulatory approvals.

APSEZ had announced acquisition of Warburg Pincus's 31.5% stake in GPL on 3 March 2021 and together with this acquisition, APSEZ would have 89.6% stake in GPL.

Varroc Engineering fell 3.83% to Rs 391.35. The auto ancillary company launched a qualified institutional placement (QIP) of equity shares on Tuesday (22 March 2021). The QIP issue committee of the board of directors of the company approved the floor price of Rs 395.41 per equity share, which is at 2.84% discount to Varroc Engineering's closing price of Rs 406.95 yesterday.

The company's QIP committee will meet on or after 25 March 2021 to to consider and approve the issue price for the said issue. The company intends to use the net proceeds from QIP to meet the capital expenditure and working capital requirements; repayment of debt, expansion and modernization; and general corporate purpose.

Global Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia were trading lower amid worries regarding rising inflation worldwide.

Chinese search giant Baidu made its debut in Hong Kong on Tuesday, with shares rising more than 1% in morning trade from their issue price.

US stocks jumped on Monday led by technology shares as investors flocked back into growth names amid declining bond yields. The moves came as the 10-year Treasury yield declined 5 basis points to around 1.68% (1 basis point equals 0.01%), following a 14-month high touched last week.

The stabilization in bond yields provided some relief for investors fretting that heavy U.S. spending on the recovery could reignite inflation and force tighter central-bank policy. The Biden administration is reportedly considering a multitrillion-dollar economic plan to follow the stimulus package signed earlier this month.

US trial data released Monday showed the Covid vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford is 79% effective in preventing symptomatic illness and 100% effective against severe disease and hospitalization.

Domestic equity benchmarks ended with minor cuts after a volatile session on Monday. Losses in private bank stocks offset the gains in IT shares. After briefly slipping below the 14,600 mark in afternoon trade, the Nifty 50 index recovered over 137 points from the day's low and ended near the flat line. Mixed global cues and rising Covid cases in India spoiled sentiment.

As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slipped 86.95 points or 0.17% to 49,771.29. The Nifty 50 index declined 7.60 points or 0.05% to 14,736.40.

The broader market bucked the trend. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 1.04% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.76%.

The market breadth favoured buyers. On the BSE, 1601 shares rose and 1439 shares fell. A total of 224 shares were unchanged.

On Saturday, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell reportedly said that the economic situation in the US is much improved since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, but the recovery is far from complete. The US central banker reiterated that the Fed will continue to provide aid to the US economy 'for as long as it takes.'

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 12,32,15,294 with 27,15,456 deaths. India reported 3,34,646 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,59,967 deaths while 1,11,51,468 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Economy:

Moody's Analytics stated that India's economy will grow by 12% in 2021 following a 7.1% contraction last year, as near-term prospects have turned more favourable. A stronger than expected December quarter GDP growth of 0.4% following a 7.5% contraction in the previous three months has turned India's near-term prospects more favourable, it said.

Meanwhile, gold imports, fell 3.3% to $26.11 billion during April-February 2020-21 from $27 billion in April-February 2019-20, according as per the commerce ministry data. India is the largest importer of gold.

India's consumption of petroleum products over the year-earlier fell at the worst pace since August 2020. The aggregate demand for petroleum and related products, including auto and industrial fuels, dropped 4.9% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in February 2021, according to provisional data released by the Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell. The consumption in absolute terms stood at 17.21 million metric tonnes (MMT) in February 2021 as compared with an average of 18.17 MMT over the last three months.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index fell 1.46% to 33,663.25. The index advanced 0.90% on Friday.

IndusInd Bank (down 4.19%), ICICI Bank (down 2.16%), Bank of Baroda (down 1.76%), HDFC Bank (down 1.61%), Punjab National Bank (down 1.56%), IDFC First Bank (down 1.49%), RBL Bank (down 1.38%), Axis Bank (down 1.25%), SBI (down 0.89%), Federal Bank (down 0.77%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 0.41%) declined. Bandhan Bank advanced 1.86%.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Green Energy (AGEL) hit an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 1251.05. The company on Monday announced that it has received Letter of Award (LOA) for 300 MW Wind Power Project from Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).

Majesco hit an upper circuit of 5% at Rs 66.55. Real estate developer Aurum Ventures acquired 42,31,679, or 14.78% in Majesco through a subsidiary, Aurum Platz IT, for total consideration of Rs 32,58,39,283. Aurum Platz IT will pay Rs 77 per share to buy the entire promoter shareholding in Majesco. As of 31 December 2020, the promoters held 14.78% stake in Majesco. As of 31 December 2020, public shareholding in Majesco stood at 85.22%.

Aurum Platz IT has also made a mandatory open offer to buy up to 74,43,720, or 26% stake in Majesco from the public at Rs 77 each, which is a premium of about 21.5% over its last traded price of Rs 63.45 on Friday.

NMDC rose 1.95% to Rs 128.08. The PSU miner hiked prices of iron ore with effect from 21 March 2021. The company increased lump ore prices by Rs 250, or 4.9%, to Rs 5,350 per tonne on 21 March 2021 from Rs 5,100 per tonne set on 7 February 2021. Prices of fines were hiked by Rs 100, or 2.38%, to Rs 4,310 per tonne on 21 March 2021 from Rs 4,210 per tonne set on 7 February 2021.

Sandhar Technologies rose 3.25% to Rs 220.55. The company said it entered into a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Unicast Autotech for acquiring aluminium die casting business.

RailTel Corporation of India jumped 7.35% to Rs 140.15. The PSU company received a work order amounting to Rs 153.15 crore from Central Coalfields. The order entails establishment of MPLS-VPN network of higher bandwidth on rental basis for 5 years.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals added 0.52% to Rs 461.10. The company's subsidiary, Glenmark Specialty S.A. located in Switzerland and an affiliate of Bausch Health Companies Inc. have entered into an exclusive licensing agreement for the commercialization of Glenmark's innovative nasal spray Ryaltris, under review by Health Canada. Under the terms of the agreement, Glenmark will be responsible for regulatory approvals and supply of Ryaltris for the Canadian market. Bausch Health, Canada will be responsible for the commercialization of Ryaltris in the Canadian market, following regulatory approval.

Thermax advanced 0.29% to Rs 1358.90. Thermax Babcock & Wilcox Energy Solutions (TBWES) signed a know how transfer and license agreement with Steinmtiller Babcock Environment (SBE), Germany for waste to energy technology. As a part of the agreement, TBWES will design, engineer, manufacture and sell municipal solid waste fired waste to energy solutions incorporating SBE's well established grate and boiler technology.

JSW Energy rose 2.01% to Rs 86.40. The company said its subsidiary JSW Future Energy received letters of award for 450 MW of wind capacity from Solar Energy Corporation of India.

Power Grid Corporation of India declined 3.15% to Rs 223.10. The company signed a share purchase agreement with Jaiprakash Power Ventures (JPVL) for acquiring its 74% stake in Jaypee Power Grid (JPL) at an aggregate consideration of Rs 351.64 crore. On completion of the transaction, Jaypee Power Grid (JPL) will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Power Grid Corporation of India.

Great Eastern Shipping Company (G E Shipping) added 1.20% to Rs 304.85. The company signed a contract to buy a secondhand midsize gas carrier of about 35,188 cubic metre (cbm). The 2006 Korean built vessel is expected to join the company's fleet in Q1 FY 2021-22.

Global Markets:

Most shares in Europe and Asia declined on Monday. Investors monitored the developments in Turkey closely following President Erdogan's surprise decision this weekend to replace the central bank's chief.

The Turkish lira weakened to as much as 8.1745 against the greenback. President Tayyip Erdogan stunned investors over the weekend by replacing the hawkish central bank governor with a critic of high interest rates, following a sharper-than-expected hike in interest rates.

Investor concerns about the possibility of higher interest rates are dominating equity and bond markets. Inflation expectations have climbed on an improving outlook for growth, which some suspect may force the Fed to tighten monetary policy sooner than its current guidance suggests.

China's one-year Loan Prime Rate (LPR) and five-year LPR were left unchanged at 3.85% and 4.65%, respectively, on Monday.

U.S. stocks closed mostly lower Friday and booked losses for the week, with bank shares under pressure after the Federal Reserve said it would not extend temporary relief from capital-requirement rules for banks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 234.33 points, or 0.71%, to 32,627.97, the S&P 500 lost 2.36 points, or 0.06%, to 3,913.10 and the Nasdaq Composite added 99.07 points, or 0.76%, to 13,215.24