Sensex jumps 460 points, Nifty nears 15,100

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Following positive cues from Asian peers as bond yields continued to rise after US markets closed lower amid tech stock selloffs Indian benchmark indices opened in green.

Sensex jumped 460 points to open at 50,901. Nifty50 opened at 15,085 rallying 128 points.

27 of 30 Sensex stocks opened in green. Ultratech Cement, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance & Bajaj Finserv were top gainers on the Sensex. ONGC, Powergrid and Bajaj Auto were the laggards.

All sectoral indices were trading in green with Nifty Bank leading the pack gaining 1.56%. Followed by Nifty Metal rising 1.11%, while Nifty Realty, Nifty Auto, Nifty Pharma, Nifty FMCG, Nifty IT all opened up over 0.60%.

Overall market breadth was strong as buyers outnumbered sellers. On the NSE, 1,322 shares advanced compared to only 380 shares declining whereas 521 shares remained unchanged. Volatility index, India VIX cooled down further by 5.39% is now quoting at 23.34 levels.

Stocks in spotlight

Wipro announced that Appirio, a Wipro company, is helping National Grid transform its business with an omnichannel customer experience by unifying its engagement with 68 million customers across two continents.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) has reportedly launched a block deal today, 8 March 2021 to sell up to 4% of its treasury shares worth Rs 3,700 crore. BPCL has set a floor price of Rs 435 per share for the proposed transaction.

Biocon said the board of Biocon Biologics (BBL) has approved allotment of 1,97,99,305 equity shares at an issue price of Rs. 280.31 per share to Beta Oryx, a wholly owned subsidiary of ADQ (Investor). The subscription money aggregating to about Rs 555 crore have been received by BBL from the investor.

JSW Energy said Business Transfer Agreement has been signed with JSW Cement for the sale of an 18 MW thermal power plant at Salboni to JSW Cement Limited on a going concern basis.

Inox Wind has signed a binding agreement with Integrum Energy Infrastructure Private Limited to supply, erect and commission 92 MW of wind power projects comprising of 2 MW (113 metre rotor diameter turbine combined with 92 metre hub height) turbines with a combination of total turnkey and limited scope supply.

Lemon Tree Hotels has signed a License Agreement for an 80 room upcoming hotel at Biratnagar in Nepal under the brand ‘Lemon Tree Premier’. The hotel is expected to be operational by January 2023, and this will be the third hotel of the company in Nepal, including Kathmandu and Nagarkot.

Global markets

The US markets ended mostly lower on Monday with a continuous sell-off in high-flying tech shares put pressure on the market. Tech stocks remained the biggest losers, continuing the trend for the last few weeks.

High-growth stocks, which were among the best performers last year, are particularly vulnerable as higher rates reduce the value of future cash flows. Apple has fallen 15% in the past month, while Tesla has dropped 34% in that period. Pandemic bets Zoom Video and Peloton have tumbled 24% and 30% over the past month. However, Dow Jones Industrial Average ended higher as investors piled into economic comeback plays after Senate approval of a new Covid stimulus package. The Senate passed a $1.9 trillion economic relief and stimulus bill, paving the way for extensions to unemployment benefits, another round of stimulus checks and aid to state and local governments. The Democrat-controlled House is expected to pass the bill later this week. President Joe Biden is expected to sign it into law before unemployment aid programs expire on March 14.

Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said people who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can meet safely indoors without masks, further boosting reopening hopes. The positive news boosted stocks banking on a strong economic recovery. On the economic data front, the Commerce Department said wholesale inventories spiked by 1.3% in January after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.6% in December. Street had expected wholesale inventories to surge up by 1.3% compared to the 0.3% increase originally reported for the previous month.

Nasdaq dropped 310.99 points or 2.41% to 12,609.16 and S&P 500 was down by 20.59 points or 0.54% to 3,821.35, while Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 306.14 points or 0.97% to 31,802.44.

The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield rose to 1.6029%, from 1.594% late on Monday.