Nifty ends at 8809, Sensex gains 109 points; banks, auto shares lead

3:30 pm Closing: Equity benchmarks gained strength after yesterday's quiet trade, supported by banks, auto and telecom stocks.

The Sensex was up 108.63 points at 28532.11 and the Nifty up 35 points at 8809.65. About 1517 shares advanced against 1209 declining shares on the BSE.

3:25 pm Interview: Mahanagar Gas reported good first quarter numbers with profit rising 19.1 percent to Rs 92.7 crore year-on-year (YoY). The revenue, however, dipped 5.5 percent to Rs 534.1 crore as against Rs 565.1 crore in same period year-ago.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Rajeev Mathur, MD of the company said the volume growth has been 7.5 percent quarter-on-quarter. He guided for a 7-8 percent rise in quarter ahead.

Mahanagar plans to increase number of customers as well as presence in new areas. More customer acquisitions are expected in both CNG & PNG.

Mathur expects lower gas prices going forward.

3:15 pm Crude gains: Crude prices rose after losses of more than 3 percent a day earlier, with investors treading cautiously ahead of key US employment data that will help gauge the health of the world's largest economy and oil consumer.

Brent crude had climbed 0.86 percent to USD 45.84 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 0.76 percent at USD 43.49 a barrel, buoyed by a weaker dollar.

Though rising in this session, Brent and WTI are on track for their biggest weekly losses since mid-January, hit by oil inventory builds and weak US manufacturing data.

3:00 pm US job data expectation: US employment growth likely moderated in August after two straight months of hefty gains, but was probably still strong enough to push the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates later this year.

Nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 180,000 jobs last month, according to a Reuters survey of economists, around this year's monthly average job growth. The unemployment rate is forecast falling one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.8 percent.

The Labor Department will release its closely watched employment report on Friday and readings in line with expectations would reinforce views that the economy has regained speed after almost stalling in the first half of the year.

2:50 pm FM says: Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said India is protected from all the political and economic challenges that the world is facing and it provides immense opportunity for the country to grow further.

"The political and economic challenges that world is facing, India is protected and will continue to be protected," Jaitley said.

He said there is an opportunity for the country to uplift the sections of society which are economically backward and illiterate.

On the political challenges, he said many countries are facing political unrest and seeing this it is difficult to say where the world is heading towards.

2:40 pm Market check: The market scaled new one-year high. The Sensex is up 148.10 points or 0.5 percent at 28571.58, and the Nifty is up 42.55 points or 0.5 percent at 8817.20. About 1497 shares have advanced, 1123 shares declined, and 169 shares are unchanged.

Adani Ports, Bharti Airtel, Maruti Suzuki, Lupin and Sun Pharma are gainers while Coal India, Reliance, HUL,m L&T and Infosys are losers in the Sensex.

2:30 pm New RBI governor's policy? Under new Governor Urjit Patel, RBI is expected to institutionalise policy changes initiated to crub inflation and clean up the balance sheets of banks, Fitch said today.

Low inflation will positively impact India's credit rating by improving investment climate, the global agency said.

It added however that the inflation target range under the monetary policy framework agreement is "broad", in the sense that 2 per cent seems quite low and 6 per cent quite high for an emerging economy like India.

"But it seems to make sense to have a rather broad range around the 4 per cent mid-point, as food and oil price movements can have a large impact on headline inflation," Fitch Director, Asia-Pacific Sovereigns Group, Thomas Rookmaaker said in a statement.

Consolidation with a positive bias continued in afternoon trade as the Nifty has been in a 40 points range for the second consecutive day.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 58.60 points at 28482.08 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 15.50 points to 8790.15. The broader markets maintained outperformance, rising 0.4 percent each.

About 1414 shares advanced against 1138 declining shares on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Banking & financials, auto and pharma stocks gained while Reliance Industries, L&T, Infosys, HUL and Coal India were under pressure.

European stocks were trading higher ahead of crucial US jobs data that could influence when the US Federal Reserve next hikes interest rates. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was trading 0.2 percent higher shortly after markets opened with food and beverages, healthcare and utility stocks leading the index higher.

1:55 pm Market news: Leading bourse National Stock Exchange (NSE) will auction investment limits for overseas investors for purchase of government debt securities worth over Rs 7,000 crore on September 6.

The auction will be conducted on NSE's 'e-bid' platform from 1530 hours to 1730 hours, after the close of market hours.

The debt auction quota gives overseas investors the right to invest in the debt, up to the limit purchased.

As per latest data available with depositories, the total investment in government debt has reached Rs 1,36,954 crore till yesterday, which was 95.11 per cent of total permitted limit of Rs 1.44 lakh crore.

1:45 pm Fund raising: State-run Power Finance Corp is looking to sanction loans worth Rs 55,000 crore in the ongoing fiscal and aiming to earn 14.5 percent return on net worth, as per a performance agreement with the Power Ministry.

The Power Finance Corporation Ltd (PFC) signed its performance related pact with the Ministry of Power for FY2016-17 on September 1, 2016.

The agreement was signed by Power Secretary P K Pujari and PFC Chairman and Managing Director M K Goel.

The monitoring of performance vis-i- vis MoU targets would be carried out quarterly during the Performance Review Meetings being held in the Ministry of Power.

1:30 pm Market outlook: With Indian equity market continuing on a steady state on the last day of the trading week, KR Bharat, MD, Advent Advisors said India continues to remain a bottom-up story for the foreseeable future, and that investors must focus on individual stocks.

The surge in liquidity will see money coming into India but it could also lead to some profit taking and returns could get a bit stressed. more so because incremental liquidity is likely to yield low returns.

He is confident that India currently stands tall amongst its peers, especially post the passage of GST Amendment Bill and FCNR scare disappearing.

The Sensex is up 22.63 points at 28446.11, and the Nifty up 0.75 points at 8775.40. About 1389 shares have advanced, 1086 shares declined, and 145 shares are unchanged.

Adani Ports, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Asian Paints are top gainers while Reliance, Coal India, L&T, HUL and Infosys are losers in the Sensex. Dr Lal PathLabs is up 8 percent.

The trend in emerging markets in general and India in particular has been on the up and more long-term flows are expected to come in over the next few years, says Nandita Parker of Karma Capital.

In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Parker said the Indian economy was in the midst of a broad-based revival and that the government's reform drive had picked up pace, and this bodes well for prospects of shares.

She also discussed her views on various sectors, such as telecom and cement.

12:55 pm Market Update: Equity benchmarks remained volatile as investors eagarly waited for the US jobs data due later today that will help the Federal Reserve decide on rate hike in its policy meeting later this month.

The Sensex was up 22.63 points at 28446.11 and the Nifty up 0.75 points at 8775.40. About 1389 shares advanced against 1086 declining shares on the BSE.

12:35 pm Europe opens: European stocks opened higher as global markets look ahead to crucial US jobs data that could influence when the US Federal Reserve next hikes interest rates.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index opened 0.11 percent higher with all sectors in positive territory.

Global markets are gearing up for the all-important US jobs data due on Friday. The nonfarm payrolls report will be eagerly watched by the Fed and could determine whether the Federal Open Market Committee decides to raise rates when it holds its next monetary policy meeting later this month.

12:20 pm Interview: Drug firm Natco Pharma today said the US Patent and Trademark Office has ruled in favour of its marketing partner Mylan by invalidating Israel-based Teva Pharmaceuticals' patent related to multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone 40 mg/mL.

"The US Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has ruled in favour of its marketing partner, Mylan, in its inter partes review (IPR) proceeding and found all claims of US Patent No.

8,969,302, which is owned by Yeda Research and Development Co Ltd and licensed to Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd, unpatentable," Natco Pharma said in a BSE filing.

"This is the third patent related to Copaxone 40 mg/mL to be found unpatentable in the last week," it further said.

12:00 pm Market Check
The 50-share NSE Nifty remained in a tight range around 8780 in noon trade while the broader markets outperformed, rising 0.4 percent each on positive breadth.

The 30-share BSE Sensex gained 47.14 points at 28470.62 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 8.40 points to 8783.05. About 1390 shares advanced against 970 declining shares on the BSE.

Reliance Industries (down 1.8 percent) and Idea Cellular (down 3 percent) fell for the second consecutive session whereas Bharti Airtel rebounded with half a percent gain after falling over 6 percent yesterday.

Coal India declined 1.8 percent on account of production and offtake fell short of target set by the company itself. Coal production for August stood 32.43 MT against target of 40.89 MT and offtake at 36.72 MT against target of 44.51 MT.

11:30 am IPO: L&T Technology Services, the subsidiary of engineering & construction major Larsen & Toubro , has fixed a price band for its 1.04 crore shares public issue at Rs 850-860 per share. The offer by engineering research and development (ER&D) services company will be opened for subscription on September 12 and will close on September 15. L&T informed exchanges yesterday that the red herring prospectus filed by the subsidiary company with the Registrar of Companies, Maharashtra, Mumbai, has been approved on September 1. This is an offer for sale issue by its parent company Larsen & Toubro, which will dilute 10 percent shareholding. Currently L&T holds 100 percent stake in the company.

The market is still in green but struggling below 8800. The Nifty is up 5.30 points at 8779.95 and the Sensex is up 46.80 points at 28470.28. About 1352 shares have advanced, 846 shares declined, and 122 shares are unchanged.

Adani Ports, Maruti, Tata Motors, HDFC and Asain Paints are top gainers whule Reliance, Coal India, Bajaj Auto, Tata Steel and Infosys were losers in the Sensex.

Crude prices rose after losses of more than 3 percent a day earlier, with investors treading cautiously ahead of key US employment data that will help gauge the health of the world's largest economy and oil consumer.

Brent crude had climbed 27 cents to USD 45.72 a barrel by 0426 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 24 cents at USD 43.40 a barrel, buoyed by a weaker dollar.

10:45 am Buzzing: Shares of Brooks Labs rose 17 percent intraday has received manufacturing licence for its Gujarat facility.

The Commissioner of Food & Drugs Control Administration, Gandhinagar has granted manufacturing licence to the company's new manufacturing facility at Vadodra, Gujarat to manufacture of pharmaceutical products.

The said licence is valid for the period of 5 years from August 16, 2016 to August 15, 2021.

10:33 am IPO: L&T Technology Services, the subsidiary of engineering & construction major Larsen & Toubro, has fixed a price band for its public issue at Rs 850-860 per share.

The offer will be opened for subscription on September 12 and will close on September 15.

L&T Technology informed exchanges yesterday that the red herring prospectus filed by the company with the Registrar of Companies, Maharashtra, Mumbai, has been approved on September 1.

10:20 am FII View: With the non-farm payrolls in the US to be announced today, the market is keenly watching for the number. The number is likely to decide US Fed's decision on rate hikes going forward, especially post Janet Yellen commentary in Jackson Hole meeting.

Chidu Narayanan, Economist-Asia, Standard Chartered says the house is estimating the number to come in around 160,000 and that is sure to increase the possibility for a rate hike. However, Yellen won't be in a hurry to hike, he says.

The last three strong non-farm payroll data has surely brought back the rake hike possibility on the table, says Narayanana.

However, Fed has been skeptical of global growth and the data too is not sufficient to justify a rate hike, so the hikes will no doubt be gradual, says Narayanan.

10:00 am Market Check: Equity benchmarks remained in a consolidation mode for the second consecutive day after rally in initial sessions of the week.

The 30-shares BSE Sensex was up 57.47 points at 28480.95 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 8.60 points to 8783.25 while the broader markets outperformed.

The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices 0.4-0.5 percent as about 1206 shares advanced against 710 declining shares on the BSE.

Tata Motors was the biggest contributor to Sensex's gains, up nearly 2 percent to hit fresh 52-week high after strong JLR US sales that increased 46 percent YoY, driven by Jaguar's F-PACE, XE.

Maruti Suzuki rebounded with 1.7 percent upside. HDFC and ICICI Bank rallied further, up 0.8 percent each whereas Reliance Industries, Infosys, Bajaj Auto, L&T, M&M and Coal India were under pressure.

9:45 am Jaitley's speech: If the nation's largest financial entity LIC is listed on the bourses, it would command the highest valuation in the country in terms of market capitalisation, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said.

"If LIC is listed, it would be the most valued company in the country with the highest valuation as well as one of the largest across the world," he said. With around Rs 40,000 crore profit last fiscal, LIC is the most profitable entity in the country, next only to the RBI which transferred Rs 66,000 crore of its surplus profit to the government in the past fiscal. The net income of Reliance Industries, the most profitable private sector corporate, is not even 60 per cent of the Corporation.

With an asset base of over Rs 22.10 lakh crore and practically no debt, even a 10 per cent divestment in LIC can net the government billions of dollars and can massively catapult the market capitalisation on BSE, which now stands at over Rs 110 lakh crore.

9:30 am FII view: Ridham Desai of Morgan Stanley feels market's character is changing. Junk has beaten quality, value has outperformed growth, defensives have lagged cyclicals and small cap has topped large cap cumulatively since June 2015, he explains. This feels like an entrenched bull market and is also behaving like one, according to him.

"We do not doubt the fundamentals of the market but we do worry about the pace of the move," he says.

As the dust settles and signals of an earnings recovery become clearer, growth styles will probably emerge as the best performing, he feels.

The market has opened higher with the Sensex up 86.13 points or 0.3 percent at 28509.61. The Nifty is up 21.70 points or 0.2 percent at 8796.35. About 237 shares have advanced, 93 shares declined, and 19 shares are unchanged.

Tata Motors, Hero MotoCorp, Coal India, ITC and Dr Reddy's Labs are top gainers while BHEL, Bharti, Axis Bank, Sun Pharma and Infosys are losers in the Sensex.

The Indian rupee opened higher by 10 paise at 66.85 per dollar on Friday versus previous close 66.95.

Bhaskar Panda of HDFC Bank said, "In the recent days, we have seen healthy chunky inflows. Excess supplies in the market has been absorbed by the central bank, thus preventing rupee from too much appreciation." The dollar was on the back foot after taking a tumble following a surprise contraction in US manufacturing in August, casting some doubts on the strength of US economic growth ahead of the closely-watched employment data due later in the day.

Among global peers, potential for a strong US non-farm payrolls number later in day - and with it an elevated chance of a Federal Reserve rate hike soon - kept Asian financial markets nervously marking time on Friday.

Australian stocks lost 0.6 percent and South Korea's Kospi was little changed, while Japan's Nikkei dipped 0.2 percent on a slightly stronger yen.

Asian equity markets took few cues from overnight moves on Wall Street, where stocks were flat with gains in the tech sector offsetting sluggish US factory activity data and lower oil prices.

US stocks were flat on Thursday, with gains in the tech sector offsetting sluggish factory activity data and lower oil prices, as investors exercised caution ahead of a key payrolls report.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 18.42 points, or 0.1 percent, to 18,419.3, the S&P 500 lost 0.09 points to 2170.86, and the Nasdaq Composite added
13.99 points, or 0.27 percent, to 5227.21.

In the world of commodities, crude oil advanced, trimming a weekly decline, after the biggest four-day drop since February as US inventories climbed last week, keeping supplies at the highest seasonal level in at least three decades.

Russian energy minister said there's no need for an output freeze with prices at around USD 50 a barrel as OPEC members plan to meet this month to discuss action to stabilise the market.

Gold held steady after falling to its lowest in over two months the session before, with weak US manufacturing data raising doubts on the economy's strength ahead of closely-watched nonfarm payroll numbers.