Indian share markets witnessed positive trading activity throughout the day today and ended higher
For the third consecutive day, benchmark indices scaled new highs as a result of firm global cues and recently implemented reforms in the telecom and auto sector.
A rise in PSU bank stocks ahead of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's speech also added to gains.
At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 418 points (up 0.7%).
Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed higher by 110 points (up 0.6%).
IndusInd Bank and ITC were among the top gainers today.
Grasim Industries and Bharti Airtel, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.
The SGX Nifty was trading at 17,608, up by 72 points, at the time of writing.
The BSE Mid Cap index ended up by 0.4%, while the BSE Small Cap index ended on a flat note.
Sectoral indices ended on a mixed note with stocks in the banking sector, energy sector and FMCG sector witnessing most of the buying interest.
Metal and IT stocks, on the other hand, witnessed selling pressure.
Shares of Coforge and Avenue Supermarts hit their respective 52-week highs today.
Asian stock markets ended on a negative note today.
The Hang Seng and the Shanghai Composite ended the day down by 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively. The Nikkei ended down by 0.6% in today's session.
US stock futures are trading on a flat note today with the Dow Futures trading down by 38 points.
The rupee is trading at 73.52 against the US$.
Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading down by 0.8% at Rs 46,529 per 10 grams.
Speaking of the stock market, India's #1 trader, Vijay Bhambwani talks about a critical aspect of trading, in his latest video for Fast Profits Daily.
Tune in to the video below to find out more:
Moving on to stock-specific news, Tata group stocks were among the top buzzing stocks today.
Tata Group and a grouping led by SpiceJet chairman Ajay Singh placed financial offers for Air India on Wednesday, the last day to submit bids.
Tata Sons made the offer through its 100% arm Talace Private Limited while Singh placed the financial bids in his personal capacity along with some investment funds.
In a tweet, the department of investment and public asset management, without revealing names of the parties said,
Ernst & Young (EY) is the transaction adviser to the government on Air India's disinvestment. The centre will soon set a floor price for the airline.
The government hopes to wrap up the sale of Air India this year, marking a major milestone in the country's privatisation programme. It has taken nearly 20 years for the cash guzzling airline to be sold.
But the winner will also have to meet security audit standards. Air India has a debt of over Rs 430 bn, of which Rs 232.9 bn will be retained on its books while the rest will be transferred to Air India Asset Holdings, an entity incorporated to house non-aviation assets.
On Tuesday, Tata Sons shareholders had approved a fund-raise programme of Rs 400 bn via non-convertible debentures to finance acquisitions and invest in businesses.
Tata Sons - which operates Vistara and AirAsia India - is considered the frontrunner for Air India, according to reports. The company originally promoted Air India in 1932 but sold its interests to the government in 1953. Its financial bid signals its commitment to the air transport business.
How this pans out remains to be seen.
Moving on to news from the engineering sector...
State-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) today announced the commissioning of India's largest floating solar photovoltaic plant in Andhra Pradesh.
Located at NTPC Simhadri in Andhra Pradesh, the 25-megawatt floating SPV project covers an area of 100 acres, BHEL said without disclosing the project cost.
BHEL said its scope of work in the project included design, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the solar project, which has been executed by the company's recently formed solar business division.
The project will help saving valuable land resources and conserving water by reducing evaporation.
It further said this complex module array has been designed for the first time in India to withstand gusts of wind up to 180 km/hr.
Given the coastal location of the project site that leads to severe corrosion, all the platform structures and other equipment have been made corrosion resistant, it added.
The engineering firm is the leading EPC player in the solar industry in India, with an overall portfolio of more than 1.2 gigawatts.
BHEL share price ended the day up by 0.3% on the BSE.
Speaking of the capital goods sector, here's an interesting data point...
Had you instead invested in the BSE Capital Goods index in 2002, you would have made a return of over 3,000% - a whopping 83% CAGR (compound annual growth rate) - over the next six years.
Here's what Aditya Vora, Financial Writer at Equitymaster, wrote about the capital goods sector in one of the editions of Profit Hunter:
One of the Hidden Treasure recommendation is a fundamentally strong business in the capital goods space that is 'essential' to the infrastructure revival.
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