Second half bounce back

Tue, 25 Aug Closing

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Indian equity markets had a rather volatile trading session today. After beginning the day on a positive note, stocks moved into the red around noon. However, buying activity intensified heavily in the later hours pushing the indices well above the dotted line. While the BSE-Sensex closed higher by 291 points today, the NSE-Nifty closed higher by 71 points. The S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap did well too, closing with gains of 2% and 1% respectively. Gains were largely seen in realty, metal and oil and gas stocks, while those from the IT space were at the receiving end.

Asian markets finished mixed as of the most recent closing prices. The Hang Seng gained 0.76%, while the Shanghai Composite led the Nikkei 225 lower. They fell 7.63% and 3.96% respectively. European shares rose on Tuesday to recover some poise after a sharp sell-off in the previous day that saw around 450 bn Euros wiped off the value of leading stocks. The rupee was trading at 66.70 against the US$ at the time of writing.

Buying activity was witnessed across majority of the banking stocks. Yes Bank and Axis Bank were leading the pack of gainers. However, Kotak Mahindra Bank and IDBI Bank ended in the red. According to a leading financial daily, Government of India has decided to infuse capital funds to the tune of Rs 17.32 bn in Punjab National Bank (PNB) by way of preferential allotment of equity in favor of the government of India. In this regard, the board of directors of the bank have approved the proposal and also authorised the bank to hold extra-ordinary general meeting of the shareholders on September 28, 2015. The scrip of PNB ended the trading day on an optimistic note (up 1.5%) on the BSE.

Auto stocks were in demand today. Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland were among the most favored stocks. According to a leading business daily, Tata Motors is reportedly planning to triple its sales outlets to nearly 1,500 in next three years in order to boost its passenger vehicles sales. The company is also investing in a doorstep service in areas where outlets may not be viable. The company is undergoing a makeover after having steadily lost market share to rivals over the years. Tata Motors is now the country's 5th largest car maker, from the 3rd largest a decade ago. Further, the company has a relatively smaller presence in the semi-urban areas of the country when compared to rivals such as Mahindra & Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki. The scrip of Tata Motors ended the day up by 6.4% on the BSE.