Nifty ends above 5950; HUL on fire, Bank Nifty falls 2%

3:50 pm: SC has adjourned hearing in SEBI-Sahara matter to July 24. The Supreme Court has directed all courts and SAT to transfer SEBI-Sahara matters.

3:45 pm Market closing: It was volatile trading session as the Nifty slipped around 0.5 percent before recovering to close in the green. The Nifty closes the day up 18.05 points at 5973.30 while the Sensex adds 97.50 points to end ar 19948.73. About 1030 shares advanced, 1279 shares declined, and 157 shares were unchanged.

3:40 pm Movers and losers: HUL (up 10 percent), NTPC (3.2 percent), Wipro (up 3 percent), ITC (up 3 percent) and Tata Power (up 2 percent) in the Sensex. Meanwhile, Tata Steel (down 3.3 percent), HDFC Bank (down 2.4 percent), ICICI Bank (2.3 percent), M&M (2.2 percent) and Jindal Steel (down 2 percent) are major losers in the Sensex.

3:30 pm Management speaks: Rajat Monga, chief financial officer and senior group president of financial markets, Yes Bank says banks will now pass higher cost of funds to new borrowers. Monga's view follows the RBI's put into effect various measures to remove excess liquidity from the economy.

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Monga says Yes Bank's fall yesterday was a kneejerk reaction to the RBI's liquidity control measures. He says the Banks exposure to wholesale funding as the reason behind the fall is just one part of the story. "It is a little bit of an uneducated guess that might be taken by the people who are saying that."

Monga adds that the high cost transmission can happen without any base rate change.

3:25 pm: Update: India's second largest commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland is cutting capital expenditure and other investments in the current financial year to Rs 400 crore from Rs 1500 crore in FY13, as it grapples with a sharp slowdown in sales that has dented profits.

The Chennai-based company on Tuesday reported a much wider-than-expected net loss of Rs 142 crore, compared with a profit of Rs 67 crore in the year ago quarter. Its revenue in the April-June quarter declined 22 percent year-on-year to Rs 2,364 crore. Operating margins hit a low of 1 percent.

Don't miss: HDFC Bk Q1 net up 30% on loan growth, shrs fall on NPA rise

The market has recovered in last trading hour of the day as the Nifty jumps above 5950 once again. The Nifty is at 5980, up 25.50 points while the Sensex is up 114.13 points at 19965.36. About 955 shares have advanced, 1257 shares declined, and 147 shares are unchanged.

Banks (down 2.5 percent), metals, auto and pharma stocks continue to remain under heavy selling pressure but FMCG index (up 3.6 percent)  has driven the market higher once again.

HUL is on fire with a surge of 11 percent on the BSE. The FMCG major has hiked prices of selective personal care products. HUL is active ahead of MSCI and FTSE rebalancing. MSCI rebalancing is effective from today while FTSE rebalancing is effective from July 19. NTPC, Wipro, ITC and Tata Power are other gainers in the Sensex.

MTNL shares surged 7.5 percent as PTI says group of ministers will meet on July 30 for BSNL and MTNL's revival plan. Department of Telecommunication had requested for financial support of Rs 22,964 crore for these companies.

Lakshmi Energy & Foods' first quarter net profit jumped nearly 4 times to Rs 32.7 crore from Rs 8 crore in a year ago period. Even net sales nearly doubled to Rs 495.4 crore during April-June quarter from Rs 272.4 crore Y-o-Y. The stock, however, is down 0.6 percent amid high volumes.

Zensar Technologies shares gained 2 percent after its first quarter consolidated net profit grew by 56.4 percent quarter-on-quarter to Rs 61 crore, led by other income of Rs 30.4 crore.

03:05pm Shares of FMCG major Hindustan Unilever rallied more than 11 percent after hike in prices of several personal care products and MSCI rebalancing.

Current float of the company in MSCI India Index will come down to 30 percent from 40 percent effective today while the float will go up to 33 percent from 24 percent in FTSE Index with effect from July 19.

The market recouped losses in late trade with the BSE Sensex rising 101.49 points to 19952.72 and the Nifty gaining 18.90 points to 5974.15.

02:59pm MTNL shares surged 7.5 percent as PTI says group of ministers will meet on July 30 for BSNL and MTNL's revival plan. Department of Telecommunication had requested for financial support of Rs 22,964 crore for these companies.

Lakshmi Energy & Foods' first quarter net profit jumped nearly 4 times to Rs 32.7 crore from Rs 8 crore in a year ago period. Even net sales nearly doubled to Rs 495.4 crore during April-June quarter from Rs 272.4 crore Y-o-Y. The stock, however, is down 0.6 percent amid high volumes.

Zensar Technologies shares gained 2 percent after its first quarter consolidated net profit grew by 56.4 percent quarter-on-quarter to Rs 61 crore, led by other income of Rs 30.4 crore.

Also Read - Hindustan Unilever hits record high on products price hike

02:50pm NTPC and Tata Power jumped 3 percent and 1 percent, respectively ahead of an empowered group of ministers' meeting today. They will consider abolishing the priority ranking in natural gas allocation. This may allow diversion of KG D6 gas from fertiliser companies to power plants.

Also Read - Ashok Leyland to cut FY14 investments to Rs 400cr in FY13

02:40pm The BSE Bankex crashed 3 percent followed by Metal with 2.5 percent fall. Country's largest lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank slipped 1.5 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel lost 2.3 percent on profit booking while auto majors Tata Motors and M&M plunged 2.5-3 percent.

Among metals, Tata Steel , Sterlite Industries and Hindalco Industries dropped 2-3 percent.

Also Read - RBI's rupee steps won't sacrifice growth: Bimal Jalan

02:30pm Indian equity benchmarks erased gains in afternoon trade, weighed down by further selling in financials, metals and select auto stocks. HDFC Bank , the country's second largest private sector lender, disappointed the street with its asset quality performance, sending shares 3 percent lower.

The BSE Sensex is down 42.65 points at 19808.58, and the Nifty is down 20.80 points at 5934.45.

The market breadth is also weak; declining shares outnumbered advancing ones by 1284 to 909 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

HDFC Bank posted 30 percent growth in profit after tax and 27 percent in net interest income at Rs 1844 crore and Rs 4419 crore Y-o-Y, respectively, which were in-line with expectations. Gross non-performing asset (NPA), however, increased 16 percent Q-o-Q to Rs 2719 crore and net NPA jumped 47 percent Q-o-Q to Rs 689 crore.

Its provisions expanded to Rs 527 crore from Rs 300.54 crore Q-o-Q.

Indian rupee depreciated by 18 paise to 59.49 per dollar.

1:50 pm Earnings:  HDFC Bank's net profit jumps to Rs 1844 crore compared to Rs 1417 crore year-on-year. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, its net profit was estimated to grow 30 percent Y-o-Y to Rs 1890 crore. The lender's net interest income (NII) is at Rs 4419 crore while gross non-performing assets was unchanged at 1 percent Q-o-Q. The stock is down 3.4 percent on the BSE.

1:45 pm: The RBI said that it would provide asset managers with critical access to special funding as the sector faces a surge in redemption requests, reports Reuters.

Short-term interest rates have surged and shares have slumped after the Reserve Bank of India unveiled measures late on Monday in an attempt to shore up the ailing rupee.

1:40 pm Houseview: Morgan Stanley is underweight on Titan with a price target of Rs 205 per share. The brokerage is expecting Titan's FY15e earnings to be compressed by 13-14 percent. The stocks is up 2.5 percent on the BSE.

1:35 pm FMCG buzz: All FMCG stocks are on fire led by HUL 's price hike of selective personal care products. ITC (up 2.5 percent), Britannia (up 5.3 percent), Dabur India (up 4.4 percent), Nestle India (up 1.6 percent), Colgate (up 3 percent), P&G (up 2.5 percent), Marico (up 3 percent), Tata Global Beverage (up 2.9 percent) and Gillette India (up 1.6 percent) are on buyers' list.

1:30 pm Buzzing: FMCG major HUL jumps around 7 percent as it hikes prices of selective products including Dove lotion and Lakme deep pore cleanser. It has hiked Dove lotion 400 ml pack price by 15 percent to Rs 299 and 250 ml by 11 percent to Rs 200. Lakme deep pore cleanser (200 ml) price was increased by 36 percent to Rs 150 in June.

Don't miss: Here's what to expect from HDFC Bank's Q1 earnings

It is a lacklustre session in the market. The Nifty is holding above 5950 but banks continue to suffer. The Nifty is up 28.85 points 5984 while the Sensex is up 116.35 points at 19967.58. About 1007 shares have advanced, 1007 shares declined, and 134 shares are unchanged.

The midcap index edges into negative zone, but there are smart gains for names like Opto Circuits , IGL and Reliance Power .

Ranbaxy falls 2 percent on news reports that the company's Toansa and Mohali plants may be under the US FDA scanner for manufacturing practices. Already three of their plants in India Poanta Sahib, Batamandi and Dewas are currently under import alert and the company cannot export to the US from them.

12:50pm In earnings impact, Development Credit Bank rallied 4 percent after  reporting a strong set of numbers. Net interest income grew 30 percent year-on-year to Rs 83 crore and profit jumped over 2 times to Rs 43 crore during June quarter. However, asset quality showed slight deterioration with gross non-performing asset up 5 percent.

Exide Industries shares rose 2.7 percent. The company is apparently looking to bring in an equity partner in its insurance firm, ING Vysya Life Insurance, following the sale of the ING group's interests in all Asian insurance ventures earlier this year.

Also Read - RBI steps to impact banks Q2; Yes Bank to be hard hit: IIFL

12:40pm Reliance Communciations is excited in trade today, gaining 1.4 percent after the government cleared 100 percent foreign direct investment in the telecom sector. 49 percent will be through the automatic route and the rest will be done through approval from foreign investment promotion board. Idea Cellular and Bharti Airtel shares erased all morning gains on profit booking and both stocks rallied 13-16 percent from last Thursday.

Ranbaxy Labs slipped 1.4 percent on a media report that Toansa and Mohali plants may be under the USFDA scanner for manufacturing practises. Remember three of their plants in India Poanta Sahib, Batamandi and Dewas are currently under import alert.

Also Read - FDI reforms: Chidambaram digs a well as fire consumes rupee

12:30pm An empowered group of ministers will meet today to consider abolishing the priority ranking in natural gas allocation. This may allow diversion of KG D6 gas from fertiliser companies to power plants.

In big earnings today, HDFC Bank is likely to report another steady set of numbers. According to CNBC-TV18 poll, net interest income is seen rising 24 percent year-on-year to Rs 4332 crore while while profit could grow 30 percent to Rs 1840 crore. The street will watch out for any re-classification on account of RBI norms.

Also Read - Private banks will give stellar returns in 6 months: Dimensions

12:20pm Equity benchmarks continue to trade higher in noon trade Wednesday, helped by index heavyweights Reliance Industries , ITC that both gained one percent and two percent, respectively. Indian rupee is stable today, hovering around 59.30 level after seeing sharp appreciation in previous session on RBI measures.

The BSE Sensex is up 53.85 points at 19905.08, and the Nifty is up 11.35 points at 5966.60.

Reliance Industries' 200,000 barrels-per-day (bpd) fluid-catalytic cracker (FCC) at the 580,000 bpd export-oriented refinery is operating at slightly more than half its capacity and is expected to run at full capacity in the next few days, reports Reuters quoting sources.

11:55 am Houseviews: Credit Suisse maintains outperform on JP Power with a target price of Rs 38 per share. It says that the recent sharp correction is a good buying opportunity.

11:50 am Update: Coal India will sign new supply agreements with NTPC Ltd, its top customer and the country's largest power producer, officials at the two companies said, ending months of disputes over fuel quality and payments, reports Reuters.

The move lifts the spectre of mass blackouts as well as a possible shelving of mine expansion and follows the signing of supply pacts to two power plants in eastern India, which were at the heart of the dispute.

11:45 pm Expert's outlook: The recent steps announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to curb rupee's fall are temporary in nature and the central bank may withdraw these measures once the Indian currency stabilizes, says Jyotivardhan Jaipuria, Head of Research, BofA Merrill Lynch. Given the way rupee has appreciated, he doesn't see bright prospects of interest rate cuts for few months.

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, he said asset quality remains a major concern for public sector banks and RBI's actions may push back banks' NPA recovery by a few months.

He further adds that the market is now trading at a top end of a range, but disappointing first quarter earnings will lead to a correction. He sees India Inc's earnings growing 7-8 percent in FY14. According to Jaipuria, slowdown in China is the biggest risk for EM investors now.

11:40 am Order book: The transportation infrastructure business of L&T bagged a new order worth Rs 2085 crore from the Ministry of Transport and Communications, sultanate of Oman. The stokck is quoting at Rs 978.00, up Rs 6.60, or 0.68 percent on the BSE.

11:35 am Update: Coal India is planning to venture into power generation, reports CNBC-TV18 quoting sources. Coal India may consider 1200-1500 MW capacity initially. The stock is currently at Rs 290.25, down Rs 3.80, or 1.29 percent on the BSE.

11:30 am Expert view: Even after the Bank Nifty plunged 4.8 percent on Tuesday, Ajay Srivastava, CEO, Dimensions Consulting suggests taking contrarian long calls . He believes Tuesday was a buying opportunity and advises to buy private banks as their cost of funds is much lower than the nationalised banks. He found the steps taken by the RBI to protect rupee will help private sector banks.

Banks will become the only intermediary in the market, he says. "These (private) banks are going to be immensely profitable and the next 3-6 months you will see a tremendous boost to the fixed deposits (FD) and Current Account Savings Account (CASA)."

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, he says banks will be the only intermediary in the market going ahead and will therefore make tremendous money.

11:27 am Buzzing: Yes Bank is down 3.5% on top of the 10 percent drop yesterday. Management told CNBC-TV18 that although the market has overreacted to the measures by the RBI, funding costs and asset yields will rise due to RBI measures. However the cost increase will get mitigated by the CASA improvement and will maintain margins at 3 percent mark.

Don't miss: Will Ben Bernanke taper talk rock global markets again?

The market continues to maintain its momentum led by telecom, tech and FMCG stocks. The Nifty is racing towards 6000 levels with a gain of 28.30 points at 5983.55. The Sensex is up 114.88 points at 19966. About 995 shares have advanced, 623 shares declined, and 106 shares are unchanged.

Dr Reddys' Labs, TCS, NTPC, ITC and Tata Power are major gainers in the Sensex.

Telecom shares like Bharti, Idea and Reliance Communication are up 1-4 percent as the government has hiked the FDI limit in the telecom sector to 100 percent from 74 percent currently. However this may not have a major impact on telecom stocks since the current 74 percent FDI limit has not been exhausted yet.

Asian shares are mixed ahead of Fed Chairman Bernanke's testimony. Japan is down around 0.5 percent weighed by a stronger yen. Hang Seng and Korea are in the green while shanghai is a bit soft.

Brent is down from USD 110 to USD 108/bbl and WTI is down from USD 107/bbl to USD 105/bbl. Gold is up 0.7 percent at USD1291/oz.

10:50am Reliance Capital shares gained one percent. The financial firm says Reliance Capital Asset Management increased total asset under management by Rs 7,000 crore to Rs 1.8 lakh crore in Q1.

Development Credit Bank rose 2.7 percent after mixed numbers in first quarter. Net interest income grew by 30 percent year-on-year to Rs 83 crore and net profit increased by 126 percent Y-o-Y to Rs 43 crore, but gross non-performing asset (NPA) and net NPA jumped 5 percent Q-o-Q to Rs 226.37 crore and rose 10.5 percent to Rs 54.31 crore, respectively.

Also Read - Here's what to expect from HDFC Bank's Q1 earnings

10:40am Ashok Leyland shares bounced back with 3.5 percent gains after CLSA maintained its buy rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 24 apiece. The stock had plunged 9.5 percent in previous session on higher-than-expected loss of Rs 142 crore during April-June quarter as against profit of Rs 67 crore in a year ago period.

Shasun Pharma shares surged 8.5 percent as the pharmaceutical company says that there are no recommendations or observations post US FDA inspected 2 units.

Also Read - RBI steps to delay banks' NPA recovery process: BofA ML

10:30am Even after the Bank Nifty plunged 4.8 percent, Ajay Srivastava, CEO, Dimensions Consulting takes contrarian long calls. He believes Tuesday was a buying opportunity and advises to buy private banks as their cost of funds is much lower than the nationalised banks.

Also Read: RBI move temporary, won't cut interest rates: SBI

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, he says banks are going to be immensely profitable and in the next 3-6 months there will be tremendous boost to the Fixed Deposits (FD) and Current Account Savings Account (CASA) as more and more people get out of the bond funds and go back to the banking sector.

10:15am Indian equity benchmarks rebounded in morning trade Wednesday with marginal gains, helped by FMCG, technology, healthcare, capital goods and power stocks. However, banks and metals remained under pressure.

The BSE Sensex is up 83.88 points at 19935.11, and the Nifty is up 21.35 points at 5976.60 while the broader markets rose 0.5 percent.

More than two shares advanced for every share declining on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Cement stocks too are on buyers' radar; ACC and Ambuja Cements climbed nearly 2 percent.

Telecom shares rallied 1.5-4 percent after the government raised foreign direct investment in telecom sector from 74 percent to 100 percent. Idea Cellular and Bharti Airtel gained 16 percent and 12.77 percent, respectively, in five consecutive sessions from last Thursday.

Country's largest lenders State Bank of India , ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank fell 0.5-1.5 percent, continuing their downward journey after RBI measures to curb rupee depreciation.

Commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors topped the selling list, falling 1.9 percent.

10:00 am Macro outlook: Government's total outstanding liabilities at the end of the last fiscal was 46.7 percent of GDP as against 50.3 percent reported in the Budget documents, according to a status report on the public debt position of the government.

Internal debt constituted 92.9 percent of total debt as on March 2013 while external debt accounted for the remaining 7.1 percent, said the third status report on the public debt position of the Government released by the Finance Ministry.

9:50 am Bulk deal: SBI Mutual Fund on Tuesday acquired 43 lakh shares of air compressor manufacturer Elgi Equipments for about Rs 39 crore through open market transactions, reports PTI.

As per the bulk deal information available with the stock exchanges, SBI Mutual Fund A/C Emerging Fund purchased nearly 22.5 lakh shares of Elgi Equipments on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), while it bought 20.5 lakh shares of the company on the BSE.

The shares were purchased at an average price of Rs 90 apiece aggregating a total of Rs 38.7 crore.

9:45 am Buzzing: Development Credit Bank (DCB) surges around 3 percent on strong April-June quarter earnings. It has posted higher net profit of Rs 43 crore in the first quarter of fiscal 2013-2014 as compared to Rs 19 crore in the same quarter last fiscal.

Underlying net profit, excluding one-time treasury gains and one-time operating costs, was at Rs 35 crore approximately, for Q1 FY 2014, the bank statement said.

9:40 am Houseviews: CLSA maintains buy rating on Ashok Leyland with a target of Rs 24 per share. Ashok Leyland missed street estimates by a wide margin, reporting a first quarter net loss of Rs 142 crore, compared with a profit of Rs 67 crore in the year ago quarter. The stock plunged to a 4-year low of Rs 15.85 on NSE after the disappointing results announcement on Tuesday. The stock has recovered a bit today and is currently at Rs 16.25, up Rs 0.45, or 2.85 percent on the BSE.

9:39 am Market check: The Sensex is up 85.70 points at 19936.93, and the Nifty is up 22.00 points at 5977.25. About 630 shares have advanced, 303 shares declined, and 38 shares are unchanged.

9:35 am Buzzing: JSW Steel shares fell 1.5 percent in early trade Wednesday to touch a 18-month low of Rs 562.30 after CLSA downgraded the stock to sell from underperform and set target price at Rs 525 apiece.

The foreign brokerage house has cut earnings per share forecast by 25-34 percent for FY14-15.

9:30 am Bond market update: India's fixed income association said there would be no trading bands for government bonds and other securities on Wednesday, a second day in a row after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced measures to curb the rupee's slide and sent bond yields surging, reports Reuters.

A key measure coming into effect from Wednesday is the total funds available under the RBI's repo window will be capped at 1 percent of banks' deposits.

9:25 am Movers and gainers: M&M, Dr Reddys' Labs, Bharti Airtel , NTPC and Hero Motocorp are top gainers in the Sensex. Meanwhile, Tata Motors, HDFC Bank , SBI, Coal India and ICICI Bank are major losers.

Don't miss what Udayan Mukherjee says about the market.

The market has made a stable start boosted by government's FDI reforms. The Sensex opens up 68.24 points at 19919.47, and the Nifty is up 17.00 points at 5972.25. About 209 shares have advanced, 68 shares declined, and 21 shares are unchanged.

Telecom stocks like Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular are in focus today as the government has relaxed FDI reforms in 13 sectors including 100 percent in telecom and higher caps in insurance and defence sectors. Defence production FDI is likely to be hiked with riders and there has been no change in FDI cap for civil aviation sector.

In earnings action, HDFC Bank will announce April-June quarter earnings today. According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, a steady set of numbers is expected with net interest income seen 24 percent higher at Rs 4332 crore while profits may come in 30 percent higher.

The Indian rupee opened higher by 26 paise at 59.05 per dollar versus 59.31 Tuesday.

Pramit Brahmbhatt, Alpari said, "The rupee might see some more consolidation today owing to measures induced by RBI to squeeze liquidity and curb volatility. A weak dollar could also help the rupee. However, high dollar demand by importers and weak fundamentals will check rupee appreciation. The range for the day is seen between 58.80-59.68/USD."

On the global markets front, Asian markets were trading weak. China's Shanghai Composite was down 0.47 percent or 9.72 points at 2,056. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 0.26 percent or 54.89 points at 21,367.27.

Japan's Nikkei fell 0.94 percent or 137.68 points at 14,461.44.

The dollar eased and US stocks fell on Tuesday, snapping an eight-day advance by the benchmark S&P 500 index, as investors took a cautious stance ahead of the Federal Reserve chief's testimony to a US congressional panel on Wednesday.