Tata Steel was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying 5.78 per cent; followed by Yes Bank, NTPC, L&T, Axis Bank, SBI, M&M, HDFC twins, Vedanta, HUL, PowerGrid, ICICI Bank, Kotak Bank, HCL, TCS and ITC, gaining up to 3.79 per cent.
Yes Bank topped the gainers' list on the Sensex. It was followed by HDFC, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, L&T, SBI, Axis Bank and Kotak Bank -- rallying up to 5.24 per cent.
Over 550,000 small drug retailers in the country are transforming into producers and marketers of pharmaceutical products, readying to compete with companies such as Ranbaxy, Cipla, Sun Pharma and Lupin whose produce they sell.
The rupee's appreciation of 6.4 per cent against the dollar and 12 per cent against the euro is likely to hurt the first-quarter performance of the pharmaceutical sector, indicate a results' preview by broking houses.
The numbers are the highest ever in the history of domestic drug discovery initiatives triggered by companies such as Dr Reddy's and Ranbaxy over a decade ago.
Sun maintained it would retain the best of both organisations to build a global pharma company.
Fortune seekers in the Indian pharmaceutical space will find this irresistible. In less than 24 months, 26 blockbuster medicines, worth over $69 billion (about Rs 3,10,000 crore) -- or thrice the size of the domestic industry -- are going off-patent in the world's largest drug market, the United States.
While the Sun management is confident of turning around Taro, industry observers say that historically, Indian drug firms have had mixed results in their attempts to integrate their foreign acquisitions with the parent entity.
Companies asked to give data for three batches instead of one; move may lead to significant rise in development cost of generics
HDFC and HDFC Bank were the biggest losers in the Sensex pack, plunging 5.09 per cent and 3.32 per cent, respectively, after the private bank reported a rise in non-performing assets.
But the newer entrants prove nimbler than the slowing pioneers.
The brokerage said it expected corporate earnings to turn around.
A US district court has dismissed a petition by Israel's Taro Pharmaceutical Industries to block leading Indian drug maker Sun Pharma from launching an open offer to acquire majority stake in the former.
Among major Sensex gainers, ITC rose the most by 2.32 per cent, followed by TCS, M&M, SBI and Bharti Airtel.
US-based Abbott Laboratories has sued Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Ranbaxy Laboratories in courts there for challenging the patents of its cholesterol-lowering drugs, Niaspan and TriCor, respectively, in separate infringement suits.
Notable losers were ONGC, Axis Bank, ITC, SBI, ICICI Bank, NTPC, Hero Motocorp, Sun Pharma and Bharti Airtel who fell by up to 2.80 per cent.
Sun Pharma was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, advancing 1.79 per cent.
At least two key drugs in the gliptin category have already gone off patent and cheaper variants are crowding the market. Also, several patent expiries are round the corner for the newest category of drugs - SGLT-2 inhibitors or gliflozins.
Reliance Industries rose by 1.16 per cent while ITC and ICICI Bank zoomed up to 2 per cent, lifting the indices to all time high levels.
Among the Sensex constituents, Larsen and Toubro emerged as the top performer with a gain of 2.76 per cent after the company announced winning large contracts from domestic clients.
Ajit Mishra, vice president, research, Religare Broking, answers your stockmarket queries.
The Nifty closed at 4875, up 19 points. The market breadth was negative. Out of 2907 stocks traded on the BSE, there were 889 advancing stocks as against 1924 declines.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries on Friday said that it has received the US Food and Drug Administration's nod to market a generic version of alprazolam, an anti-anxiety drug, in the US market.
This increase is despite the decreased growth of drug sales in the US - the world's largest market - which has seen a tightening of regulations and aggressive competition.
Top losers include Hero MotoCorp, HDFC, SBI, Infosys, HCL Tech, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, ONGC, Bajaj Auto and IndusInd Bank, falling up to 2.63 per cent.
Investors turned cautious weighing weak GDP numbers and continued drop in automobile sales, bringing banking and auto sector stocks under pressure.
In the Sensex pack, Hero MotoCorp, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Auto, Maruti and M&M were the top gainers, spurting up to 2.66 per cent.
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