Indian markets open flat

Wed, 7 Oct 09:30 am

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The major Asian stock markets have opened the day in green. Stock markets in Hong Kong, Indonesia and Singapore are trading up by 1.1%, 0.7% and 0.5% respectively. The major stock indices in Europe ended their previous session on a positive note. However the benchmark index in the US ended the previous session lower by 0.7%. The rupee is trading at 65.34 per US dollar.

Indian stock markets have opened the day on a flattish note. BSE Sensex is trading higher by 12 points (up 0.04%) and NSE-Nifty is trading lower by 7 points (down 0.08%). However, BSE Mid Cap and BSE Small Cap are trading higher by 0.2% and 0.4% respectively. The sectoral indices have opened the day on a mixed note with stocks from oil & gas and pharmaceutical sectors witnessing buying interest. However stocks from the metal & mining and consumer durables sector are witnessing selling pressure.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries plans to raise funds for the purpose of expansion and acquisition. The company has sought the approval of the shareholder's to raise funds up to Rs 120 bn. The funds will be raised through convertible debentures or by Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP). The company stated that the funds raised will allow it to strengthen its financial resources and net worth.

As per an article in Business Standard, company has made two acquisitions in the recent months. The first being GSK's opiates business in Australia and the second being Insite Vision (specialty ophthalmic product maker) in the US. The company's borrowings stood at around Rs 75.9 bn as at March 2015.

The company has also sought shareholders' approval to grant loans, provide guarantees or make acquisition of up to Rs 500 bn. The fund raising plans reflects the management's intention to go for more acquisitions going forward. Indeed, Radhika Pandit, the Managing Editor for ValuePro, had earlier discussed why M&A activity has been heating up in the Indian Pharma space (Subscription required), in one of the premium editions of the 5 Minute WrapUp. According to her, the focus on niche products has certainly increased, but the quantum of drugs losing patents has begun to diminish. And so this has been one reason why consolidation has gained prominence as companies strive further to achieve economies of scale and bolster margins. The stock of Sun Pharma is trading up by 0.04%.

As per an article in Economic Times, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will set up 280 wells across 400 square kilometer area. The wells will be set up for the purpose of drilling coal-bed methane in Jharkhand. Coal-bed methane is a form of natural gas extracted from coal beds. The state government has assured allotment of land to the company. Each well would require 1.7 acres of land. The coal-bed methane would be generated in 15-20 years. At a time when capital expenditure plans for most of the global oil companies have been deferred due to low oil and gas prices, ONGC plans to boost spending as it expects exploration costs to drop. While the stock price has suffered due to the slump in oil and gas prices, we believe the investment in the current scenario is likely to pay off once oil and gas prices recover. The stock of ONGC is trading up by 2.7%.