Shares of Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) rose nearly 1 per cent on Tuesday, hitting an intraday high of Rs 2,986.05 per share, after most brokerages reacted positively to the company's March quarter (Q4FY24) results. The bullish outlook stems from Reliance Jio's potential tariff hikes, given the competitive landscape, along with slow but steady improvement in the oil-to-chemical (O2C) vertical.
For new customers, the insurer has reduced the waiting period from 30 days to 15 for Covid-related claims with no increase in premium.
Even as net flows into smallcap funds in March turned negative, for the first time in 30 months, they remained a big draw for new investors. The smallcap fund category saw a net of 360,000 investment accounts, or folios, getting added last month, the second-most among all active equity categories. Smallcap funds' continued traction could be driven by their strong performance across timeframes, say experts.
To increase the adoption of credit on United Payments Interface (UPI), National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is looking at an interchange fee for transactions lower than that for a credit-card transaction. Sources in the know said these charges could be 1-1.2 per cent. Fintech participants concur with the view that the interchange fee is expected to be lower than that for a credit-card transaction.
Bharti Airtel has quietly narrowed its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) market share gap with Reliance Jio, the country's largest player in the game, in the last three years. Despite Jio's aggressive entry into 4G and now into 5G, Airtel's gap with Jio, which was 6.4 percentage points in Q1 of FY21 and went up to 7.2 percentage points in Q1 of FY22, has fallen to only 4.4 percentage points in Q1 of FY24. Currently, Reliance Jio's AGR market share is 41.6 per cent while Airtel's is at 37.2 per cent.
ICICI's board has denied any wrongdoing, highlighting that the loan was underwritten in accordance with the bank's credit standards and was extended as part of a consortium involving over 20 banks.
Among Sensex shares, Tech Mahindra fell by over 6 per cent after the company reported a 60 per cent decline in net profit to Rs 510.4 crore in the December quarter. Bharti Airtel, ITC, HCL Technologies, Asian Paints, Wipro, HDFC Bank, Nestle, Tata Steel, Tata Consultancy Services and Maruti were among the other major laggards. NTPC, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Reliance Industries, JSW Steel, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the gainers.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is reviewing the current stock categorisation framework followed by actively managed equity mutual funds (MFs) to ensure they are true-to-label. Individuals familiar with the matter said the universe of largecap and midcap stocks could be expanded by 25-50 stocks. The move follows concerns raised by industry players that the current threshold has been skewed following a sharp run-up in the domestic markets after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-promoted Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) on Tuesday became the first listed company to hit the Rs 20 lakh crore market valuation mark. The market heavyweight's stock jumped 1.88 per cent to its record high of Rs 2,957.80 apiece on the BSE. It finally settled at Rs 2,928.95 per piece, up 0.90 per cent on the bourse.
Shares of Avenue Supermarts (DMart) have rallied 15 per cent in the past month, even as the benchmark National Stock Exchange Nifty has remained flat. The stock has garnered favourable commentary from both fundamental and technical analysts after three years of poor performance. "DMart has reached its first 52-week high since October 2021, taking off from solid base formations.
Do not, however, enter expecting quick returns.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday questioned the CBI over not objecting to repeated extension of the two-week interim bail granted in January this year to former ICICI Bank CEO-cum-MD Chanda Kochhar and her businessman husband Deepak Kochhar in a loan fraud case. A bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi asked Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the CBI, as to why the probe agency did not resist repeated extension of interim bail granted to them by the Bombay high court on January 9. "This order is of January 9 and interim bail was granted for only two weeks. Why have you not resisted? Why are you permitting it to continue for such a long period?
Operating margins have been the primary driver of corporate earnings in India in recent quarters, despite revenue growth suffering from weak consumer demand. Companies across sectors have reported a sharp improvement in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) margins over the past two years, benefiting from lower commodity and energy prices. Higher margins more than compensated for slower revenue growth, resulting in double-digit growth in net profit for five consecutive quarters.
'Investors should focus on largecap funds, flexicap funds, business cycle funds, or hybrid-category funds.'
HDFC Bank's latest shareholding data showed that the room for foreign investment has fallen just 5 basis points short of the threshold set by Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) to fully include the stock in its indices. Currently, the index provider has applied an adjustment factor of 0.5 since the foreign room is less than 25 per cent. Removal of the adjustment factor will result in inflows of a massive $4.8 billion (Rs 40,000 crore) into HDFC Bank, according to Brian Freitas, a New Zealand-based analyst with Periscope Analytics.
Hospital chain Aster DM Healthcare's plans to sell its Gulf business may run into rough weather with voting advisory firm Institutional Investor Advisory Services (IiAS) raising concerns over the transaction. Recommending an 'against' vote on the resolution, IiAS has said there is no clarity on how Aster DM will utilise the proceeds that it will obtain by selling the unit, which contributes to bulk of its revenues. In November, Aster DM had announced its plans to sell its wholly-owned subsidiary Affinity Holdings, which conducts business in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, to Alpha GCC for $1 billion.
The Adani Group, which won the Dharavi Redevelopment Project from the state government last year, on Monday said it has onboarded three city planners, including Hafeez Contractor, to present a draft redevelopment plan for the largest slum cluster in Asia. In a statement, the group, which has promised to invest Rs 21,000 crore in the first phase, has roped in world famous architect Hafeez Contractor, design firm Sasaki, and consultancy firm Buro Happold as city and infrastructure planners for the project.
The ICICI board, which consists 12 members, is divided on whether Kochhar should be on leave during the internal enquiry
The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain former ICICI bank managing director and CEO Chanda Kochhar's plea seeking retirement benefits from the bank. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti said, "Not a case for interference. We are not inclined to interfere with the high court order. "The special leave petition is dismissed." At the outset, senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for Kochhar said the high court had dismissed the petition without any discussion or finding.
From the Sensex basket, Tata Motors, State Bank of India, Tata Steel, Power Grid, NTPC, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance and Asian Paints were the major laggards.
Only investors with a higher risk appetite should enter these funds.
Among Sensex gainers, Power Grid jumped the most by 4.16 per cent after its board approved an investment of Rs 656 crore in transmission projects. Private lenders HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Bank, IndusInd Bank and ICICI Bank were also among lead gainers. NTPC, Nestle and Hindustan Unilever also ended the session with gains.
The report concluded that she failed to discharge her fiduciary functions to rescue herself to avoid any conflict of interest.
Investors may have to wait a little longer for Unified Payments Interface (UPI)-based block mechanism in the secondary market even as the market regulator has set the effective launch date as January 1, 2024. Several brokerage firms said they may take a few months more to implement it. Investors will be able to register for this facility only if the stock broker has opted for the UPI block facility.
Private players continued to show strong momentum in the life insurance individual new business segment during August, 2023. On an aggregate, the industry registered 14 per cent growth year-on-year (Y-o-Y) compared to 15 per cent in July '23. Private players were up 21 per cent Y-o-Y, up from 16 per cent Y-o-Y in July '23, while public insurers' growth was muted at 3 per cent.
Small and midcap schemes may impose restrictions on redemptions, cap employee withdrawals, and increase the exit load, while ensuring a proportionate liquidation of the portfolio during market crises to safeguard the interests of all investors. These measures have been outlined in the investor protection policies recently put out by mutual fund (MF) trustees. The policies for small and midcap schemes were prepared by MF trustees following directives from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) earlier this month.
Among the Sensex firms, major winners included Tata Steel, rising 3.77 per cent, followed by HCL Tech, which gained 3.62 per cent. IndusInd Bank and PowerGrid closed with a gain of 3,60 and 3.34 per cent, respectively. Other gainers were Tech Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finserve and Bharti Airtel, among others. On the other hand, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance and TCS were the only laggards, sliding up to 2.94 per cent.
HDFC Bank's January-March quarter result, which came in-line with expectations, failed to enthuse investors. The reason? The management's decision to abstain from providing any specific growth guidance, and analysts' expectations of an arduous road to recovery. Analysts believe the path to normalisation of several growth metrics is unlikely to be a straightforward one, and the road to balance sheet realignment may be long.
Most legal experts indicate the former ICICI Bank CEO will take the matter to court. Her contention will be she can't be fired and called guilty without proof.
Among the Sensex firms, IndusInd Bank was the biggest loser and fell 6.13 per cent, followed by SBI (3.99 pc), Hindustan Unilever (3.82 pc), Axis Bank (3.41 pc) and HDFC Bank (3.23 pc). In contrast, Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank and PowerGrid defied the trend and closed with gains of up to 3.67 per cent. TCS and Bajaj Finserve were the other gainers.
The police said that the threat email was sent from the accused, Mohammed Arshil's ID.
The branch is likely to be inaugurated on Saturday by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a three-day visit to China
In a bid to tap the growing potential of mutual fund business in the country, ICICI Bank has decided to raise its stake in Prudential ICICI Asset Management Company to 51 per cent, by buying out six per cent stake from Prudential Plc.
With Pockets, ICICI Bank aims to target first-time customers.
Investors shunned shares of Bajaj Finance on Friday, a day after the non-banking financial company (NBFC) reported a sharp contraction in its net interest margin (NIM) for the March quarter of the financial year 2023-24 (Q4FY24). The losses accounted for a fifth of the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex's 609-point loss. Most brokerages have tamed their earnings expectations for the next couple of quarters, after the management said it expected the pressure on NIMs to continue in the near term.
ICICI Bank says it blocked all UPI transactions made through PhonePe due to security concerns.
In addition, he will have to move swiftly to control any damage that may have been caused to the bank's image and investor confidence due to the loan controversy
The bank will cater to Russian clients through its subsidiaries in other countries
As the fight for deposits intensifies, the cost of money will rise and the margin will be under further pressure, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Selling in index heavyweights, including Infosys, TCS, ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries, dragged the benchmark indices into the negative for the second straight session, analysts said. Among the Sensex shares, Asian Paints fell the most by 3.9 per cent as analysts expressed concerns over rising competition in the domestic paints market following the entry of Aditya Birla group company Grasim Industries into the paints segment. IT shares Infosys, TCS, HCL Tech, Wipro and Tech Mahindra continued to slide amid inflation concerns in the US market.
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