Stock markets in Japan have crashed in the early hours of trade, with benchmark indices falling as much as 5.7%. Other Asian stock markets are closed on account of Lunar New Year holidays. Major indices in Europe and US ended their previous session deep in red, with benchmark indices in Germany and US ending the day lower by 3.4% and 1.1% respectively. The rupee is trading at 67.81 per US$.
Indian stock markets too have opened the day on a dismal note. The BSE Sensex is trading lower by 340 points (down 1.4%) and NSE Nifty is trading lower by 105 points (down 1.4%). Both, BSE Mid Cap and BSE Small Cap are trading lower by 1% each. Major sectoral indices have opened the day on a negative note with stocks from metal, banking and oil & gas sectors witnessing maximum selling pressure.
Lupin reported its results for the quarter ended December 2015. The net sales of the company grew by 6% YoY to Rs 33.6 billion. While the overall sales displayed tepid growth, company's US and domestic business witnessed healthy traction. However, contraction was seen in Europe and rest of the world markets. Owing to the better product mix Lupin reported a healthy improvement in its operating margins sequentially. The operating margins too increased by 4.4% to 24.7% on a sequential basis. However, the margins were lower by 3.1% when compared to 3QFY15. Other operating income surged at a robust pace. Reportedly, some parts of this increase is sustainable while the rest is one-time in nature.
Further, company recently announced the launch of its anti-diabetes generic drug 'Glumetza'. The company also holds 180 days exclusive rights to sell this drug in the US market. Reportedly, 'Glumetza' had sales of US$ 450 million in the US market.
The Indian companies have been facing several challenges recently, and delay in approvals from the US regulators has been a big concern. The recent launch under 180-days exclusivity is a positive for the company.
PTC India too reported its results for the quarter ended December 2015. The company witnessed healthy growth of 25.6% YoY in the volume of electricity traded. The said growth was largely attributable to execution of long term contracts with several electricity producers. Reportedly, the surge in volumes was witnessed after a decline in four consecutive quarters.
With the increasing share of long term contracts the operating margins expanded by 0.2% YoY for the quarter. Further, operating profits too grew by 15% YoY. It is imperative to note, the margins from the long term contracts are higher as compared to the exchange traded contracts. The management expects the growth momentum to continue in the next year owing to commissioning of new projects.
The trend in power demand will be the key metric to gauge going forward. The government has launched the 'UjwalDiscom Assurance Yojana' scheme; this would provide certain amount of financial relief to the State Electricity Boards (SEBs). However, such schemes will not have an immediate effect on the financials of SEBs; the improvement process would be gradual.
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