Sensex ends 145 points down, Nifty below 7800; Sun Pharma up 1%

3:30 pm Market closing: The market has ended lower. The Sensex was down 145.25 points or 0.6 percent at 25590.65, and the Nifty slipped 48.35 points or 0.6 percent at 7786.10. About 1310 shares have advanced, 1369 shares declined, and 236 shares are unchanged.

Sun Pharma, Axis Bank, GAIL, Bharti Airtel and Cipla were major gainers while Infosys, Hindalco, ITC, M&M and TCS were laggards.

2:45 pm FII view: The Indian economy is likely to witness a "slow but sustainable" recovery and is expected to clock a GDP growth of 7.5 percent this fiscal, a Morgan Stanley report says.

According to the global financial services major, the revival will be driven by a pick-up in capex (more public than private), urban consumption and normalisation in exports.

"We expect GDP growth (new series, on market prices) to accelerate gradually to 7.5 percent in financial year 2016 and 8.1 percent in fiscal year 2017," Morgan Stanley said in a research note.

On prices, the report said inflation is expected to remain below 5 percent over the two years.

2:30 pm International Markets: Aggressive rate tightening by US Fed Reserve would create an asset depreciation scenario and widen the emerging market crisis, feels Fredrik Nerbrand, Global Head Of Asset Allocation, HSBC Bank.

Nerbrand expects only two rate hikes in 2016, compared to the four hikes expected as per the latest dot plot.

''US Fed is likely to hike interest rates only twice in 2016. It would be a policy error if the Fed hikes rates aggressively on inflationary concerns. The market is likely to become mispriced if they go ahead with hikes as per the dot plot'', Nerbrand says.

After a sluggish trading session, the market has slipped lower in last trading hour. The Sensex is down 124.83 points or 0.5 percent at 25611.07, and the Nifty is down 44.20 points or 0.6 percent at 7790.25. About 1341 shares have advanced, 1229 shares declined, and 226 shares are unchanged.

Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank and NTPC are top gainers while Infosys, Hindalco, ITC, TCS and M&M are major losers in the Sensex.

Meanwhile, state-owned Canara Bank today said it plans to raise Rs 2400 crore from bonds to fund business growth. It has received 'IND AAA' rating with stable outlook to the proposed Tier II bond issuance programme, Canara Bank said in a statement. The board has permitted the bank to raise additional capital of Rs 2,400 crore through issue of Basel-III compliant Tier II Bonds by way of private placement, it said.

1:30 pm Pharma uodate: Drug firm Aurobindo Pharma has received approval from the US health regulator for generic Olopatadine Hydrochloride ophthalmic solution used for treatment of seasonal allergic conjunctivitis and is ready to launch the product in the American market.

"The company has received final approval from the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) to manufacture and market Olopatadine Hydrochloride Ophthalmic Solution USP in the strength of 0.1 percent," Aurobindo Pharma said in a regulatory filing today.

The market is on a holiday and treading on silent waters. The Sensex is up 35.52 points at 25771.42 and the Nifty is up 4.45 points at 7838.90. About 1564 shares have advanced, 928 shares declined, and 220 shares are unchanged.

ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, Vedanta and GAIL are top gainers while Infosys, TCS, ITC, M&M and HUL.

While this year has been a year of exciting IPOs, Dipan Mehta, member, BSE and NSE, advises investors not to trade near listing due to increased borrowing. Among the recently listed stocks, he says Coffee Day is on his radar and he expects the company to perform better going ahead.

He also sees crude prices staying subdued for the next two years, thus benefitting aviation stocks.

12:55 pm Railways: The Railways had to grapple with shortfall in revenue targets and "unbearable burden" of Pay Commission recommendations in 2015 and hopes to address the twin issues next year.

Though earnings were up by 6.67 percent up to December 10 as compared to last year, there was a decline in meeting the target. Railways' earnings till December 10 were Rs 1,11,834.32 crore as against the target of Rs 1,22,639.16 crore, a decline of 8.8 percent.

"In 2015, one of the challenges we have been facing is not getting enough cargo. So revenues are down. Because steel, cement, iron ore demand is very bad. Import and export are down. These are sources for cargo. So targets are falling short," Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu.

12:45 pm Oil analysts: Chris Main, Commodities Strategy Analyst, Citi, says crude price may not have hit the bottom yet and weakness is likely to continue.

''No balance is seen yet in supply-demand dynamics. Also, temperate winter in North America and Europe due to El Nino is hitting demand further worsening the balance'', Chris says.

Chris believes it is unlikely that Iran can reach their targeted 1 mn bbl/day over the next one year. Market estimates peg the likely production from Iran at 300,000-500,000 bbl/day.  

12:30 pm Bangalore market is one of the strongest realty market, says Suresh Kris of Brigade Enterprises despite the unsold inventory rising in the city from 27,000 units in June-2011 to 84,000 units in June 2015. In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Kris says H2FY16 will be better for the company than H1, adding that the company hopes to grow 30-35 percent year-on-year (YoY).

The market is down as the Sensex is down 20.14 points at 25715.76. The Nifty is down 9.80 points at 7824.65. About 1481 shares have advanced, 878 shares declined, and 203 shares are unchanged.

ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, NTPC and Sun Pharma are top gainers in the Sensex. Among losers are Infosys, TCS, M&M, ITC and HUL.

TRAI tells Delhi HC that no coercive steps would be taken against telecom companies till January 6 in connection with call drop norms.

Oil prices enjoyed rare gains in Asian trade today, with Brent crude bouncing from an 11-year low as investors await a closely watched US crude inventory report.

11:45 am Know your stock: Manufacturer of compound cattle feed, Kerala Solvent Extraction ( KSE ), has survived in the market since 1963 and now has a market cap of around Rs 200 crore.

The company has shown some strong fundamentals and has registered consistent sales growth of 10-12 percent and profit growth of 34.90 percent over the last 5 years.

Other key positives include regular tax payment, dividend yield of 8.26 percent and dividend payout of 40.22 percent, also there has been no dilution by management since its IPO listing.

11:30 am FII view: The domestic economy is beginning to do well, but there are lots of worrying signs in global markets which could affect India, feels Neelkanth Mishra, Head of Equity Strategy India, Credit Suisse. He expects foreign institutional investors to be net sellers in 2016 as well. In an interview with CNBC-TV18, Mishra says global linkages are the biggest concerns for listed companies. Around 53 percent of the aggregate revenues of the top BSE 100 companies come from outside India, he says. Iron ore staying below USD 40/tonne will hurt metal companies in India, he says.

The market is still rangebound as the Sensex is down 25.05 points at 25710.85. The Nifty is down 10.25 points at 7824.20. About 1462 shares have advanced, 781 shares declined, and 182 shares are unchanged.

ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel and Vedanta are top gainers in the Sensex. Among losers are Infosys, TCS, M&M, ITC and Maruti.

Essar Oil's delisting offer has got stuck in unusual "technical issues" with the buyback offer from the promoters getting more than sufficient bids, but a large block of tendered shares failing to be 'confirmed' within the stipulated time.

The issue is being looked into by the regulator, in consultations with the exchange and others, sources said, while adding that a decision could be taken soon on whether to allow the 'unconfirmed' shares as valid tender.

10:45 am Pharma update: Drug firm Granules India has received three observations from the USFDA for its Jeedimetla, Hyderabad facility during a recent inspection. US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) completed the inspection of company's two facilities, one located at Vizag in Andhra Pradesh and another at Jeedimetla in Telangana, Granules India said in a regulatory filing. "There are no observations for Vizag facility and three observations for Jeedimetla facility. The company will respond to the observations in 15 business days", it added.

10:30 am Interview: Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) major Godrej has increased stake in Hyderabad-based Creamline Dairy for approximately Rs 150 crore.

Creamline Dairy operates in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka as well as parts of Maharashtra and has a capacity of nearly seven lakh litre of milk processing a day with revenues of Rs 858 crore for the year-ended March, 2015. The products are sold under the 'Jersey' brand.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Adi Godrej, chairman, Godrej Group, says the deal provides for great synergy as the company is a big player in the animal feeds business.

Furthermore, Godrej says the scope for milk-based value added products in India is immense and the company hopes to become a big player in the same.

The market is still sluggish with no major triggers in sight and FII volume drying up with Chirstmas holidays. The Sensex is down 44.49 points at 25691.41 and the Nifty is down 16.30 points at 7818.15. About 1227 shares have advanced, 594 shares declined, and 108 shares are unchanged.

Sun Pharma, Axis Bank, NTPC, Tata Steel and SBI are top gainers while ITC, M&M, Infosys, TCS and Maruti Suzuki.

Oil prices enjoyed rare gains in Asian trade today, with Brent crude bouncing from an 11-year low as investors await a closely watched US crude inventory report.Oil is heading for a second annual loss on signs a global glut will be prolonged after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries effectively abandoned output limits at a meeting on December 4. Brent slumped yesterday on speculation suppliers from the Middle East to the United States will continue pumping, exacerbating the surplus as they fight for market share.

9:55 am Plane woes: Airbus still aims to deliver by year-end the first of its updated medium-range airliners, the A320neo, a source said on Tuesday following reports of a possible  delay.

"Our objective is to deliver the first A320neo before the end of the year, and that is still within the realm of the possible," said a source who spoke on condition of anonymity.

But if the plane, which has lifted Airbus's orders in recent years as it offers airlines fuel savings of up to 15 percent, is not delivered by the end of this month it will be handed over in the first days of January, added the source.

"It won't be anything dramatic," said the source.

9:45 am Oil: Oil prices enjoyed rare gains in Asian trade today, with Brent crude bouncing from an 11-year low as investors await a closely watched US crude inventory report.

"This could be positioning ahead of the weekly American reports, which should show rising crude inventories," said Bernard Aw, market strategist at IG in Singapore. Oil is heading for a second annual loss on signs a global glut will be prolonged after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries effectively abandoned output limits at a meeting on December 4. Brent slumped yesterday on speculation suppliers from the Middle East to the United States will continue pumping, exacerbating the surplus as they fight for market share.

9:30 am Fund raising: Inter-ministerial body FIPB today cleared nine proposals including that of Cadila Healthcare and Volvo Asset Finance India.

Cadila Healthcare was reconsidered by the FIPB following the changes made by the government in foreign direct investment (FDI) policy last month. As per the earlier norms, Cadila proposal was cleared and recommended to seek Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) nod as the investment proposals was over Rs 3,000 crore. However, as per the revised norms, the FIPB could give clearance to FDI proposals up to worth Rs 5,000 crore. Therefore, the Cadila Healthcare proposal again came up for consideration before the FIPB, sources added.

The market has opened flat on Tuesday. The Sensex is up 1.03 points at 25736.93 and the Nifty is down 4.80 points at 7829.65. About 441 shares have advanced, 142 shares declined, and 45 shares are unchanged.

Sun Pharma, Cipla, Dr Reddy's Labs, Tata Motors and Tata Steel are gainers while Infosys, ICICI Bank, ITC, Coal India and Maruti are losers in the Sensex.

The Indian rupee opened marginally higher at 66.30 per dollar versus 66.35 Monday.

Ashutosh Raina of HDFC Bank said, "The dollar index has come off its recent highs as low liquidity in the holiday season saw dollar fall against majority of other currencies. However, the bullish dollar undertone continues."

Dollar weakened against a basket of currencies as the euro strengthened in the wake of an inconclusive Spanish election result that may increase unease over the country financial stability.

Asian shares took solace from gains on Wall Street and edged higher on Tuesday, though gains were capped by caution over low share trade volume and plunging Brent crude oil prices ahead of this week's holidays.

US stocks closed higher, recovering slightly from a sharp sell-off last week, as investors eyed oil prices in the shortened holiday week. The Dow Jones ended about 120 points higher as buying accelerated into the close.

Brent crude oil prices were trading at its lowest in more than 11 years, on more signs that swelling global supply looked set to outpace tepid demand again next year.

Precious metal gold gained to above USD 1070 levels as weaker than expected US data and uncertainty about how fast the fed will tighten interest rates next year weighed on the dollar.