After hovering around the dotted line for most part of the day, the Indian equity markets witnessed some pressure in the final hour of trade. While the BSE-Sensex closed lower by 62 points, the NSE-Nifty closed lower by 18 points. The S&P BSE Midcap and S&P BSE Smallcap too closed the day in the red and were down by 0.3% and 0.2% respectively. oil and gas and consumer durables stocks observed buying interest, while stocks from power and metal space witnessed selling pressure.
Asian stock markets finished broadly higher today with shares in China leading the region. The Shanghai Composite is up 2.26% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up 0.73% and Japan's Nikkei 225 is up 0.29%. European shares fell in early trade weighed down by Germany's top share index. The rupee was trading at 63.80 against the US$ in the post noon session.
Shares of Vedanta surged after it was reported that the company is all set to start iron ore mining operations at the Codli mines in Goa from August 10. The mining conglomerate will restart iron ore business in Goa after a closure for nearly 3 years. The actual operations will begin post monsoon around the second half of September. The company has permission to mine 5.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of the total permitted 20 million tonnes (MT) capacity for iron ore production in Goa by the Supreme Court. The company will commence operations at a time when iron ore prices are at their lowest. Since the closure of mining operations in September 2012, prices have crashed to USD 32-33 per tonne for Goa grade of iron ore (average grade 58% FE) from a peak of about USD 140 per tonne in 2012.
Automobile stocks ended the trading day with moderate gains. Cummins India and Tata Motors were the leading gainers. According to a leading economic daily, TVS Motor has entered into strategic partnership with Pollachi based Mahalingam College of Engineering and Technology (MCET) to develop industry supported BE Programme and offer it to students. TVS-MCET Collaborative Educational Program was aimed at bridging the gap between the quality of engineers expected by the industry and the graduating engineers. The program nurtured technical education by bringing industry practices into education system and improving the skills of instructors and students. TVS Motor ended the trading day up by 1% on the BSE.
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