Helping You Build Wealth With Honest Research
Since 1996. Try Now

MEMBER'S LOGINX

     
Invalid Username / Password
   
     
   
     
 
Invalid Captcha
   
 
 
 
(Please do not use this option on a public machine)
 
     
 
 
 
  Sign Up | Forgot Password?  


RBI's Rate Hike Decision; Resuming Trade Fears; Key Earnings Report and Top Stocks in Action Today
Thu, 2 Aug Pre-Open

Indian share markets ended lower on Wednesday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised its repo rate by 25 bps to 6.5%. The policy comes amid rising inflation and a falling rupee. The widening current account deficit in an election year is also a key monitorable for the policymakers.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 37,522, down 85 points while the broader Nifty 50 index settled at 11,346, down 10 points.

Sectoral indices ended the day on a mixed note with healthcare stocks and energy stocks leading the pack of gainers. While, metal stocks and automobile stocks ended the day in red.

Top Stocks in Focus

Apollo Tyres share price will be in focus as the company reported over 3-fold jump in its net profit of Rs 2.2 billion for the quarter under review as compared to Rs 0.7 billion for the same quarter in the previous year.

Emami is looking for partners as it plans to start operations in Iran by the end of this year. This comes at a time when US sanctions looms large on the country.

Bank of India share price will hog limelight after the public-sector lender reported first quarter profit growth at 8.4% year-on-year despite rising provisions and weakening asset quality, beating analyst expectations.

Mahindra & Mahindra sold 47,199 units in its automotive segment, registering a 13% year-on-year driven by commercial vehicle segment. The company sold 41,819 units in year-ago period. The stock will be in focus.

Also, Ashok Leyland share price will be in focus on the back of strong sales numbers declared by the company for the month ended July 2018. The company's July 2018 total sales jumped 27% at 15,199 units against 11,981 units in July 2017.

To know more, check out our share market updates here.

You can also listen to our stock market podcast. Tune in to know the top cues and views of stock markets with Equitymaster's Research analysts' insights every week. You can listen to the podcast on our channel Indian Stock Market WrapUp on SoundCloud & iTunes.

Global Stock Market Drivers

Globally, stocks struggled for traction on Wednesday as the world's two biggest economic powers once again ratcheted up rhetoric over trade, sinking commodities in the process. The dollar strengthened and Japanese bonds led sovereign debt lower.

The Trump administration's unpredictability on trade has been in the spotlight in the last 24 hours after reports that talks between Washington and Beijing were set to resume were quickly overtaken by a threat to raise tariffs.

Meanwhile, central banks remain in focus after the Bank of Japan tweaked its policy settings Tuesday. The Federal Reserve rates were in focus yesterday and the Bank of England is expected to hike rates Thursday.

Here are some key events coming up this week:

  • The US Treasury is set to release its funding program for the next three months.
  • Earnings season continues with Berkshire Hathaway, Barclays, Tesla, Toyota and BMW among companies reporting results.
  • Central banks in the US, UK, Brazil and India are still to meet this week. The Bank of England is expected to hike even amid Brexit gloom. The Fed is seen standing pat, as is Brazil's central bank.
  • The US jobs report is on Friday, and is predicted to show a healthy labor market, with 190,000 new jobs, the reports noted.

Oil Prices Fall

Oil slipped below US$74 a barrel on Wednesday, pressured by an industry report that US stockpiles of crude rose unexpectedly and by higher OPEC production, adding to indications of more ample supply.

On Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute said crude inventories rose by 5.6 million barrels last week.

Brent crude LCOc1, the global benchmark, dropped 85 cents to US$73.36 a barrel, having fallen as low as US$73.15. US crude CLc1 was down 73 cents at US$68.03.

Results Corner

Ador Fontech, Marico, Geojit Financial Services, ONGC, Indiabulls Housing, are among few companies that will report its Q1FY19 results today.

IPO Buzz

Metropolis, one of the largest pathology laboratory chains in the country, is likely to go for an initial public offer (IPO) soon and list on Indian bourses.

Reportedly, the IPO will open an avenue for private equity PE fund Carlyle Group, which holds about 30 percent stake in the company, to part exit its investment.

Meanwhile, HDFC Asset Management Company (AMC) has fixed the issue price of the IPO at Rs 1,100 per share. The Rs 28 billion IPO of HDFC AMC saw a huge demand, with the offer subscribed 83 times.

HDFC AMC IPO was open between 25 July and 27 July and HDFC AMC had offered 25.5 million shares in a price band of Rs 1,095-1,110 apiece. HDFC AMC IPO is likely to get listed next week.

But, do the fundamentals and future growth prospects of HDFC AMC justify the demand for its IPO? Read our Co-head of Research, Tanushree Banerjee's IPO note here...

With buoyant capital markets and the mutual fund industry on a roll, AMCs are eager to hit the market with their IPOs.

With HDFC AMC's IPO hitting the markets, many are expected to follow HDFC AMC. This opens up an entirely new segment for investors.

The AMCs' plan to go public follows a growing trend where banks and financial services are looking to unlock value in group businesses after the rapid rise in stock markets. Also, apart from AMCs, another segment that's grabbing attention is brokerage houses.

So, how can you profit from this financialization trend in India? And how should you think about these IPOs? Are valuations worth it? Is the opportunity of a lifetime or the dud of the decade?

These are the questions that will require much more contemplation. But don't worry - our research team is on it.

We at Equitymaster believe a merit-based selection, primarily including valuation, business, and management quality, is the logical way to go about investing in IPOs. If it means going against the herd, so be it. And going by recent past, this strategy has been proven to be successful more often.

To know how to safely profit from the ongoing IPO rush, download this FREE report now and discover How to Get Rich with IPOs.

For information on how to pick stocks that have the potential to deliver big returns, download our special report now!

Read the latest Market Commentary


Equitymaster requests your view! Post a comment on "RBI's Rate Hike Decision; Resuming Trade Fears; Key Earnings Report and Top Stocks in Action Today". Click here!