Sensex Ends 220 Points Higher; IT and FMCG Stocks Witness Buying

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Extending gains to the third day, Indian share markets traded on a positive note most of the day and ended higher.

Better-than-expected corporate earnings from some frontline companies and expectations of tax realignment on equities lifted investor sentiments.

Gains were largely seen in the IT sector, FMCG sector and oil & gas sector.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 220 points (up 0.6%) and the NSE Nifty closed higher by 57 points (up 0.5%).

The BSE Mid Cap index ended the day up by 0.7%, while the BSE Small Cap index ended up by 0.4%.

Asian stock markets finished on a negative note as of the most recent closing prices. The Hang Seng was down 0.4% and the Nikkei was down 0.6%. The Shanghai Composite stood lower by 0.5%.

The rupee was trading at 70.90 to the US$ at the time of writing.

Amid the volatility witnessed in Indian stock markets lately, Tanushree Banerjee, in the video below, talks about the Rebirth of India phenomenon and how 3 specific trends are racing ahead even in these gloomy times.

Tune in to find out more...

In news from the engineering sector, shares of Graphite India slipped 5% today after the company reported a sharp 83% year-on-year (YoY) decline in the consolidated net profit at Rs 1.9 billion in the September quarter (Q2FY20).

The graphite electrode manufacturer had a profit of Rs 11.1 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Net sales during the quarter fell 62% YoY to Rs 8.8 billion against Rs 23.5 billion in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) margin plunged to 22% from 72%.

The company in a statement said, "lower volumes, realization and increase in average needle coke cost has impacted the sales and margins as compared to same period last year."

The management said global slowdown in steel demand coupled with increased steel exports from China is expected to impact demand of electrodes.

It added that steel prices also continue to remain under pressure and combination of these factors have resulted in significant correction of electrode prices. Needle coke prices remained high during the quarter under review and has started moving down in the current quarter.

Graphite India share price ended the day down by 3.8%.

In other news, shares of Petronet LNG surged over 6% after the company reported healthy numbers for Q2FY20 on the back of improved margins.

The company's net profit during July-September period stood Rs 10.9 billion, up 90% against Rs 5.7 billion posted in the year-ago period.

However, revenue from operations slipped to Rs 93.6 billion from Rs 107.5 billion in the second quarter of the previous fiscal year.

The company said that it had elected to exercise the option of lower tax rate of 25.17%, which was announced last month by the government.

The company's board of directors also approved special interim dividend of Rs 5.50 per share.

Petronet LNG share price ended up by 2.4%.

Speaking of quarterly results and corporate profits, economic growth (GDP) and corporate profit growth hardly go hand in hand.

Over the past few years, the share of corporate profits to GDP has steadily declined.

This is evident in the chart below:

Rebound in Corporate Profits May Not Immediately Reflect in GDP

As per Tanushree Banerjee, the revival of capex cycle may cause corporate profits to soar much faster than the GDP growth. Investors who stay focused on macro numbers may miss this bus.

Moving on to news from the commodity space, oil prices fell today as a possible delay in resolving the US-China trade war overshadowed a drop in US crude inventories.

US crude inventories fell 708,000 barrels in the week ended October 25 to 436 million, compared with analysts' expectations for an increase of 494,000 barrels, according to data from the American Petroleum Institute.

Reports state that the United States and China were continuing to work on an interim trade agreement, but it may not be completed in time for US and Chinese leaders to sign it next month.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers including Russia have cut oil output by 1.2 million barrels per day to support prices since January.

To know more about crude oil and the recent developments in this space, you can read Vijay Bhambwani's article here: Message of the Markets - What is Crude Oil Indicating?

And to know what's moving the Indian stock markets today, check out the most recent share market updates here.

For information on how to pick stocks that have the potential to deliver big returns, download our special report now!

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