On August 1, the Rupee declined five paise to settle at 83.73 against the U.S. dollar.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

The Rupee turned flat at 83.73 against the U.S. currency on August 2 amid weak equity markets and an upward movement in crude oil prices overseas.

According to forex traders, “the Indian currency found support due to softening the dollar against major rivals following the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to maintain the status quo on interest rates and some inflows of foreign capital into Indian equities.”

At the interbank currency exchange, the domestic currency opened at 83.74 and inched up to trade at 83.73 against the dollar, the previous day’s closing level. On August 1, the Rupee declined five paise to settle at 83.73 against the U.S. dollar.

Anand James, Chief Market Strategist of Geojit Financial Services, said the Rupee’s weakness was capped by “a likely intervention from the Reserve Bank of India”.

“The next key U.S. economic release is the July jobs report, expected on August 2,” he added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.07% to 104.13. Brent crude — the global oil benchmark — rose by 0.79% to $80.15 per barrel in futures trade.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex plunged 614.96 points or 0.75% to 81,252.59 in morning trade, while the broader Nifty declined 194.80 points or 0.78% to 24,816.10.

“Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital markets on August 1 and bought shares worth ₹2,089.28 crore, “ according to exchange data.

A monthly survey released on August 1 showed India’s manufacturing sector growth eased slightly to 58.1 in July from 58.3 in June on softer increases in new orders and output, while cost pressures and demand strength led to the steepest increase in selling prices since October 2013.

“The government’s GST collections in July rose 10.3% to more than ₹1.82 lakh crore, driven by domestic transactions in goods and services,” according to official data released on August 1.

A vendor walks past by a poster of bear and bull in south Mumbai, reflecting the mood of the stock markets, as the BSE sensex went down by 640 points in early trader on August 2, 2024. File photo
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled in early trade on Friday, August 2, 2024, as investors rushed to book profits after record-breaking rallies in the past few sessions as well as tracking cues from global sell-offs.

Economic Survey 2023-24 cautions against significant increase in retail investors in stock market

Massive selling in bellwether stocks like Reliance and ICICI Bank also dragged the investors’ sentiment.

The 30-share BSE Sensex plunged 640.13 points to trade at 81,227.42 in the morning trade. The NSE Nifty declined 271.40 points to 24,739.50. Both the indices slumped up to 1 per cent during early deals.

From the Sensex pack, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki India, Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Larsen & Toubro, Adani Ports, Tech Mahindra, NTPC, and Tech Mahindra were the laggards.

HDFC Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints, Nestle India and ITC were among the gainers.

“The rally in India has been sustained more by money flows into the market than by fundamentals. Without fundamental support the rally cannot sustain. It remains to be seen whether the buy on dips strategy will work this time too. Since valuations are high some profit booking, particularly in mid and small caps, can be considered,” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.78 per cent to USD 80.14 a barrel.

In Asian markets, Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul were trading lower.

The US stock market also ended lower on Thursday after a record rally.

Foreign institutional investors bought equities worth ₹2,089.28 crore in the capital markets on Thursday.

The 30-share Sensex climbed 126.21 points or 0.15 per cent to settle at a new lifetime high of 81,867.55, while NSE Nifty rose 59.75 points or 0.24 per cent to settle at an all-time closing peak of 25,010.90.

A monthly survey released on Thursday showed India’s manufacturing sector growth eased slightly in July, on softer increases in new orders and output, while cost pressures and demand strength led to the steepest increase in selling prices since October 2013.

The government’s GST collections in July rose 10.3 per cent to over Rs 1.82 lakh crore, mainly driven by domestic transactions in goods and services, according to official data released on Thursday.

Image used for representational purpose only.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Benchmark BSE Sensex jumped 388 points to breach the 82,000-level for the first time while broader Nifty spurted 108 points to hit the record 25,000-mark in early trade on August 1 after the U.S. Federal Reserve indicated a rate cut by September.

The 30-share BSE Sensex soared 388.15 points, or 0.47%, to hit an all-time intra-day high of 82,129.49 in early trade.

The broader Nifty of NSE scaled the record 25,000 level for the first time, rising 127.15 points, or 0.50%, to 25,078.30.

Among Sensex shares, Maruti rose 2.93% following its stellar June quarter results.

Adani Ports, Power Grid, JSW Steel, and Tata Steel were also among major gainers.

Gains in index heavyweights HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, and ICICI Bank shot the index to record high levels.

On the other hand, M&M, Sun Pharma, ITC, Infosys and TCS were among the losers, capping index gains.

“The Fed chief signalling a possible rate cut in September is positive for global equity markets. More important, his comments that the U.S. economy is normalising is a shot in the arm for bulls,” V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said.

Indicating a rate cut by September, U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that progress has been made in reducing inflation to the 2% target which is a sign that the Fed is moving closer toward reducing the key interest rate for the first time in four years.

In Asian markets, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong were trading in the negative territory while Seoul was in the green on Thursday.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital markets on Wednesday and offloaded shares worth ₹3,462.36 crore, according to exchange data.

At the interbank currency exchange, the domestic currency opened at 83.72, 1 paisa higher than the previous day’s close.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The rupee rose 2 paise to 83.71 against the U.S. currency in early trade on July 31 following a marginal dip in the dollar in overseas markets.

At the interbank currency exchange, the domestic currency opened at 83.72, 1 paisa higher than the previous day’s close.

The domestic unit moved in the tight range of 83.70-83.72 in early trade.

Forex traders said the rise in Brent crude oil prices offset the rupee’s gains following the decline in dollar rates overseas.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, declined 0.19% to 104.36.

Brent crude futures—the global oil benchmark—rose 1.49% to USD 79.80 per barrel.

Also Read: Sensex, Nifty retreat from record highs to close flat ahead of key US Fed rate decision

All eyes will be on the U.S. Fed rate announcement later in the day. Expectations are ripe that the Federal Reserve might signal a rate cut as early as September.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex showed volatility, rising over 200 points in early trade to reach a record high before trading at 81,517.75, up 62.35 points, at 9.35 a.m.

“Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital markets on July 30, offloaded shares worth ₹5,598.64 crore,” according to exchange data.

The bull statue at the Bombay Stock Exchange building, in Mumbai.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Equity benchmark indices climbed on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, as the markets saw volatile trading amid buying in bank stocks in tandem with mixed global trends.

Rallying for the fourth day running, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 116.94 points to 81,572.34 in early trade. The NSE Nifty went up 33.75 points to 24,891.05.

From the Sensex pack, NTPC, Asian Paints, JSW Steel, Bharti Airtel, ITC, ICICI Bank, Adani Ports, and Special Economic Zone and Tech Mahindra were the major gainers.

Power Grid, Tata Motors, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the laggards.

In the Asian markets, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Seoul are trading higher while Tokyo is quoting in the negative territory.

The U.S. markets settled on a mixed note on Tuesday.

“The global cues are likely to be supportive on expectations of a rate cut from the US Federal Reserve (Fed) in September. The Fed commentary expected tonight is likely to indicate the possibility of rate cut in September.

“It is time for investors to take a long-term call on the market and moderate their expectations to realistic levels. At this juncture in the market safety is important,” V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said. Chasing super normal returns from the broader market will be a risky game, he said.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude is rose 1.49 per cent to USD 79.80 a barrel.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth ₹5,598.64 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.

On Tuesday, the 30-share BSE Sensex closed higher by 99.56 points, or 0.12 per cent, at 81,455.40 — its all-time closing high.

The NSE Nifty edged up 21.20 points, or 0.09 per cent, to settle at an all-time closing high of 24,857.30.

Brokers react as Sensex ends above 79k, Nifty 50 surpasses 24,000 for the first time, in Kolkata on Thursday. (ANI Photo)
| Photo Credit: ANI

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty hit intra-day record high levels before closing almost flat on July 29 due to profit-taking in FMCG and IT shares by cautious investors ahead of the key U.S. Fed interest rate decision later this week.

The 30-share BSE Sensex closed higher by 23.12 points or 0.03% at 81,355.84, its all-time closing high, with 16 of its components advancing and 14 ending lower.

The index opened higher and jumped 575.71 points or 0.70% to hit a new intra-day record peak of 81,908.43 in late-morning deals following a decline in U.S. bond yields. However, investors preferred to book profits at record high levels amid high volatility dragging the index lower to close flat.

The NSE Nifty ended marginally up 1.25 points or 0.01% at an all-time closing high of 24,836.10. During the day, it surged 164.9 points or 0.66% to hit a fresh lifetime peak of 24,999.75.

Gainers and losers

From the Sensex pack, Larsen & Toubro rose the most by 2.77% after it announced bagging new large orders worth ₹2,500 crore to ₹5,000 crore.

UltraTech Cement, which announced the acquisition of 32.72% stake in India Cements from promoters and their associates for ₹3,954 crore, closed up 1.42%. India Cements closed lower by 0.65%.

Bajaj Finserv, Mahindra & Mahindra, State Bank of India, IndusInd Bank, Reliance Industries and Sun Pharma were among the biggest gainers.

On the other hand, Titan Ltd fell the most 2.38%. Bharti Airtel (2.22%), ITC (1.33%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (1.04%) and HDFC Bank (0.68%) were among the major losers, dragging the key indices from record highs. IT shares Tech Mahindra, TCS, Infosys, and HCL Tech fell up to 1% ahead of the U.S. Fed meeting on interest rates.

“Nifty ended almost flat after a volatile session. Asian stocks started the week with gains ahead of central bank policy meetings in the US, the UK and Japan,” said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities.

BSE smallcap index hits all-time high

In the broader market, the BSE smallcap gauge jumped 1.17% and the midcap index climbed 0.80%. The BSE smallcap index hit its all-time high level during the day.

Among the indices, capital goods surged 2.73%, industrials rallied 2.33%, realty (1.51%), oil & gas (1.17 per cent), energy (0.96%) and power (0.76%). IT, telecommunication, utilities and teck were the laggards.

Mixed global cues

“An ease in the U.S. personal consumption expenditure to 2.5% and the subsequent drop in the US 10-year yield have fuelled optimism that the Fed might cut rates in September, leading to a global rally. However, profit-booking was triggered in the domestic market given trading in the overbought territory and closed flat,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Mixed global cues and the underperformance of major banks are causing an intermediate pause in the index, Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd said.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong settled in the positive territory. European markets were trading on a mixed note. The US markets rallied on July 26.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹2,546.38 crore on Friday, according to exchange data. Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.31% to $80.88 a barrel.

The logo of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building is seen in Mumbai. File photo
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

Equity market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty hit their new all-time high levels in early trade on Monday, July 29, 2024, in-tandem with a rally in global peers and fresh foreign fund inflows.

The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 416.62 points to hit a new record peak of 81,749.34 in early trade. The NSE Nifty surged 145.6 points to hit a fresh lifetime peak of 24,980.45.

From the Sensex pack, NTPC, State Bank of India, IndusInd Bank, ICICI Bank and UltraTech Cement were among the biggest gainers.

Titan, Bharti Airtel, ITC and Tech Mahindra were among the laggards.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong were quoting in the positive territory.

The US markets rallied on Friday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹2,546.38 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

“The undercurrent of this bull market has turned stronger on positive cues. The soft landing scenario for the US economy and the expectation of a rate cut by the Fed in September are intact. This will provide global support to this bull market,” said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

In a departure from recent trends both FIIs and DIIs (Domestic Institutional Investors) turned buyers last Friday resulting in a total buying of Rs 5,320 crore pushing the market sharply up, he added.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.35 per cent to USD 81.41 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark jumped 1,292.92 points or 1.62 per cent to settle at 81,332.72 on Friday.

The NSE Nifty surged 428.75 points or 1.76 per cent to settle at an all-time closing high of 24,834.85.

Tech Mahindra saw its revenues decline by 1.2% to ₹13,005 crore during the reporting quarter.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Shares of IT services firm Tech Mahindra slumped nearly 6% on July 26 after the company’s revenues declined by 1.2% during the June quarter.

The stock tanked 5.52% to ₹1,445.50 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), it tumbled 5.60% and was trading at ₹1,444.25 per share.

Also Read: Sensex, Nifty tumble in early trade on weak global cues

The stock emerged as the biggest laggard among the Sensex and Nifty firms. Tech Mahindra on July 25 reported a 23% jump in consolidated net profit to ₹851 crore for the June 2024 quarter.

The Mahindra Group company posted a net profit of ₹692.5 crore in the past year. The company, which began a three-year strategic restructuring under a new head recently, saw its revenues decline by 1.2 % to ₹13,005 crore during the reporting quarter.

The new managing director and chief executive Mohit Joshi said the performance in FY25 will be better than the previous period.

People walk past the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building in Mumbai. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Equity market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded in early trade on July 26 after staying on the back foot for the past five straight sessions, helped by value buying at lower levels and rally in blue-chips Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Reliance Industries.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 235.23 points to 80,275.03 in early trade. The NSE Nifty went up 86.6 points to 24,492.70.

From the Sensex pack, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, Infosys, JSW Steel, Bajaj Finance, HCL Technologies, Tata Consultancy Services and Reliance Industries were the biggest gainers. Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Nestle and Maruti were among the laggards.

The unique feature of the bull market in India is its ability to climb all walls of worry. The market dismissed all concerns relating to elections, the Budget and the correction in the mother market U.S. The buy on dips strategy which has played out well in this rally continues to hold good, said V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

After a sharp fall in intra-day trade on July 25, the BSE benchmark managed to recover some of the lost ground to settle 109.08 points or 0.14% lower at 80,039.80. The NSE Nifty dipped 7.40 points or 0.03% to 24,406.10. In five days, the BSE benchmark Sensex tumbled 1,303.66 points or 1.60%, while the Nifty declined 394.75 points or 1.59%.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹2,605.49 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, and Hong Kong were trading higher while Shanghai quoted lower. The U.S. markets ended mostly lower on July 25. Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.19% to $82.53 a barrel.

“The US economy’s 2.8% growth in Q2 confirms it won’t slip into recession, and we expect the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates by September due to easing inflation,” Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

Image for representational purposes only.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Benchmark BSE Sensex declined for the fourth day in a row on July 24 due to selling in financial and banking shares and the government’s move to hike securities transaction tax and short term capital gains tax.

The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 280.16 points or 0.35% to settle at 80,148.88 with 19 of its components closing lower and 11 with gains. During the day, it tumbled 678.53 points or 0.84% to 79,750.51.

The NSE Nifty dropped 65.55 points or 0.27% to 24,413.50.

From the Sensex pack, Bajaj Finserv declined by 2% after its first-quarter earnings failed to cheer investors.

Bajaj Finance, Hindustan Unilever, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Adani Ports, Axis Bank and State Bank of India were the other big laggards.

However, Tech Mahindra, ITC, NTPC, Tata Motors and Sun Pharma were among the gainers.

Conglomerate ITC surged to 52-week highs before closing higher by 0.42% in its second straight day of gains after the budget proposed no new tax on tobacco products.

“The budget event has gone by leaving a mixed bias while reshuffling of capital gain tax is only a short-term negative surprise. The broad market seems to be losing momentum due to lack of further traction,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services said.

Key benchmark indices ended marginally lower in volatile trade on July 23 as the government proposed to hike the securities transaction tax on futures & options in the Budget for 2024-25.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong settled lower. European markets were trading lower. The US markets ended marginally lower on Tuesday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹2,975.31 crore on July 23, according to exchange data.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 0.75% to $81.62 a barrel.