Stock Market News: GIFT Nifty Indicates a Positive Start; Tata Coffee, HUL in Focus

The Indian equity market continued its bull run, rising for the fifth consecutive session on December 28. At close, Sensex jumped 372 points at 72410 level. Nifty gained 124 points and ended the session at 21778 mark.

Around 1578 shares advanced, 1728 shares declined, and 73 shares remained unchanged.

Barring the Information Technology space, all other sectoral indices ended in the green. FMCG, realty, oil & gas, power and metal indices added 1-2 percent each.

Technical Analysis:

On the technical front, Nifty formed a bullish candlestick pattern on the daily scale, indicating an uptrend continuation pattern. Immediate supports for the Nifty are at 21,620, followed by 21,500 while on the upside, the 161.8% retracement of the recent dip is at 21,970, which is seen as the immediate hurdle. The critical support
lies near the 20-Day Moving Average around 21085.

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

GIFT Nifty

The GIFT Nifty indicates a marginally positive start for the broader index with a gain of 7 points.

US Markets

The S&P 500 closed nominally higher on Thursday, retracing early gains just before the closing bell on the penultimate trading day of 2023. The blue-chip Dow ended modestly green, notching its second record-high closing level in a row, while the Nasdaq finished a hair lower. All three indexes remained on track for monthly, quarterly, and annual gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 53.58 points, or 0.14%, to 37,710.1. The S&P 500 gained 1.77 points, or 0.04%, to 4,783.35. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 4.04 points, or 0.03%, to 15,095.14.

Asian Markets

On the last trading day of 2023, investors in Asia-Pacific markets assessed the prospects of electric-vehicle companies following the unveiling of China’s Xiaomi’s first EV. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was flat at open, while China’s CSI 300 index rose 0.16%.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.19%, but the index has gained 28.5% so far this year, making it Asia’s top-performing market.

FIIs and DIIs

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth Rs 4,358.99 crore. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased Rs 136.64 crore worth of stocks on December 28, provisional data from the NSE showed.

Also read: Wipro, Thermax Top 2 Buys Which Can Give Up To 15% Return

Stocks in the news

• Tata Coffee: The composite scheme of arrangement amongst Tata Consumer Products (TCPL), Tata Coffee (TCL), and TCPL Beverages & Foods (TBFL) will be effective January 1, 2024.
• Hindustan Unilever: In its bid to drive volumes and optimise distribution costs, Hindustan Unilever has made changes to its structure of distributor margins by increasing the variable margins and reducing the fixed one.
• RailTel Corporation of India: The company has received the work order amounting to Rs 120.45 crore from South Central Railway for comprehensive signalling and telecommunication works for provision of automatic block signalling system in Yermaras-Nalwar section of Guntakal division in South Central Railway.
• Asian Paints: The firm’s Sriperumbudur plant has received an environmental clearance from State Environment Impact Assessment Authority, Tamil Nadu. The Sriperumbudur plant is operating with the required licenses and approvals. The license document granting the environmental clearance is awaited.
• Punjab National Bank: The bank’s board approved the proposal for raising of equity capital for an amount aggregating up to Rs 7,500 crore in one or more tranches during FY25 through Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP)/Follow on Public Offer (FPO).
• ICICI Lombard General Insurance: The company received a Rs 1,900 crore GST demand, including penalty amount, for the period July 2017 to March 2022.
  
  

Bulk Deals

Indiabulls Housing Finance: SBI Mutual Fund A/C SBI Arbitrage Opportunity Fund sold 30,90,600 shares at Rs 218.16. Also, ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund A/C Equity –
Arbitrage Fund sold 25,34,700 shares at Rs 218.74

Zydus Wellness Limited: SBI Mutual Fund bought 3,90,000 shares at Rs 1632

Oil prices settle down 3% as Red Sea shipping disruptions ease

Oil prices fell 3% on Thursday as more shipping companies said they were ready to transit the Red Sea route, easing concerns about supply disruptions as Middle Eastern tensions stay elevated.

Brent crude futures for March delivery settled down $2.39, or 3%, at $77.15.

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.