Stock Market News Today: Inox India, ICICI Bank in focus

Sandip Das

After hitting life-time highs intraday on December 20, 2023, bears took control on Dalal Street. At close, Sensex tumbled 930 points while Nifty crashed 346 points and closed at 21,106 level.

The market witnessed strong profit booking with all sectors closing in the red.

The top sectoral losers included PSU Bank, Metals and Media which dived over 4 percent followed by Auto, Realty and IT which declined over 2 percent each.

Technical Analysis:

On the technical front, Nifty formed a large bearish candlestick pattern on the daily charts, in fact engulfing all the previous three candles. While the 21,000 level has a minor support, the critical support lies near the 20-Day Moving Average around 20,800.

Medium term outlook continues to remain positive as the index maintains a position comfortably above crucial moving averages.

Gift Nifty

Trends in the GIFT Nifty indicate a negative start for the broader index in India, with a loss of 78 points or 0.37 percent. 

Global Markets Updates

US stocks closed lower on Wednesday after an abrupt mid-afternoon nosedive ended Wall Street’s impressive rally, which had been driven by falling interest rates and the Federal Reserve’s dovish turn. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 475.92 points, or 1.27 percent, to 37,082, the S&P 500 lost 70.02 points, or 1.47 percent, to 4,698.35 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 225.28 points, or 1.5 percent, to 14,777.94, according to a Reuters report.

Asian Markets

Asian markets fell on December 21 after Wall Street dropped overnight. In the early hours of trade Nikkei was down 1.57 percent while Hang Seng and Kospi shed 0.5 percent each.

Stocks in the news

• Inox India: The cryogenic tanks manufacturing company plans to list its equity shares on the BSE and NSE.

• Cochin Shipyard: The public sector undertaking company has signed a contract worth Rs 488.25 crore with the Ministry of Defence 

• ICICI Bank: The Reserve Bank of India has approved the reappointment of Sandeep Batra as Executive Director of the bank with effect from December 23, 2023 to December 22, 2025.
• Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders: The firm has signed a contract worth Rs 1,600 crore with the Acquisition Wing of the Ministry of Defence for the construction and delivery of six next-generation offshore patrol vessels (NGOPVs) for the Indian Coast Guard (ICG).
• Cochin Shipyard: The company has signed a contract worth Rs 488.25 crore with the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The work package includes the repair and maintenance of the equipment and systems onboard the naval vessel.
• UltraTech Cement: UltraTech has entered into a Share Subscription and Shareholders Agreement to acquire 26 percent of the equity shares of Clean Max Terra for Rs 20.25 crore. Clean Max Terra is engaged in the generation and transmission of renewable energy. The acquisition is to meet the company’s green energy needs, optimising energy costs, and comply with regulatory requirements for captive power consumption under electricity laws.
• India Pesticides: The company has received technical equivalence (TEQ) certification for a herbicide technical product from the European Union.

FII and DII data

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 1,322.08 crore. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought Rs 4,754.34 crore worth of stocks on December 20.

Bulk Deals

Shriram Pistons & Rings: Abakkus Emerging Opportunities Fund – 1 bought 5,45,450 shares at Rs 1103.6 per share.

India Shelter Finance: Nippon India Mutual Fund bought 10,10,000 shares at Rs 572.81 per share. Also, Goldman Sachs Funds – Goldman Sachs India Equity Portfolio bought 5,91,027 shares at Rs 593.08 per share.

Symphony Limited: Hdfc Mutual Fund Multi Cap Fund bought 6,00,000 shares at Rs 880 per share

Nippon Life India Asset Management: SBI Mutual Fund bought 32,68,590 shares at Rs 445.35 per share.

Niyogin Fintech: Think India Opportunities Master Fund LP bought 29,24,344 shares at Rs 64.8 per share.

Oil prices fall on demand concerns after US stock build

Oil prices fell on Thursday, as concerns over low demand following a surprise US crude inventory build outweighed jitters over global trade disruptions and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Also Read: Sovereign Gold Bonds 2023-24 Series III: All You Need to Know

Brent crude futures fell 65 cents, or 0.8%, to $79.05 a barrel by 0120 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $73.67 a barrel, down 55 cents, or 0.7%.

Stock under F&O ban on NSE

The NSE has added Ashok Leyland, and India Cements to its F&O ban list for December 21. It retained Balrampur Chini Mills, Delta Corp, Indus Towers, Manappuram Finance, National Aluminium Company, Piramal Enterprises, RBL Bank, and SAIL in the list.

_{Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment or trading advice. The author is not a financial advisor and does not have any professional qualifications in this area. The author does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided. Any action you take based on the information in this blog post is done at your own risk. Please consult with a financial advisor before making any investment decisions.}