Market ends flat, even as midcaps outperform banks dip; RIL up

3:30 pm Closing Bell: The market recovered from the day’s lows and closed almost flat. The Nifty regained its 8900-mark. However, the index posted its first weekly loss since January 22. Midcap stocks outperformed.

The Sensex was down 7.34 points at 28832.45, while the Nifty was down 2.20 points at 8897.55. However, the market breadth was still marginally in the negative zone. About 1,389 shares had advanced, 1,442 shares had declined, and 174 shares remained unchanged.

3:18 pm Market Update: Benchmark indices recouped losses in last hour trade, with the Nifty getting back above 8900 level, supported by Infosys and Reliance Industries.

The Sensex was down 3.64 points at 28836.15 and the Nifty gained 0.75 points at 8900.50.

3:08 pm Tata-DoCoMo truce: Tata Sons will split a dispute settlement payment of USD 1.18 billion owed to NTT DoCoMo over the Japanese firm’s exit from a telecoms joint venture, leaving it with about two-thirds of the amount to invest in India, a source said.
Both companies are likely to approach India’s central bank within 15 days with a plan that will offer to split the payment into two parts, the source, who has direct knowledge of the matter, said.

While Tata Sons will pay the fair value of DoCoMo’s 26 percent stake outside India, or roughly USD 390 million according to Reuters calculations, DoCoMo would need to invest the balance of USD 790 million in India, either for expansion or other joint ventures, the source added.

It was not immediately clear how DoCoMo would use the money if the plan were formalised.

2:56 pm Sugar deficit: India’s sugar deficit has risen to 18.54 percent in the space of a fortnight from about 15 percent in the middle of February, according to the industry body Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA).

“Between October 1, 2016 and February 28, 2017, sugar mills have produced 162.45 lakh tonnes of sugar, as against 199.43 lakh tonnes produced last year in the corresponding period,” ISMA said. “As on February 28, 2017, 257 sugar mills are continuing their crushing operations, whereas in 2015-16, 390 mills were in operation on the same date.”‘

Abinash Verma, Director General of ISMA, said that the yield in Maharashtra and Karnataka had dropped by more 40 percent following a drought in the west and in the south. He said that there will be a review of the numbers on Monday.

Verma said he does not expect production to be below 200 lakh tonnes and that a global surplus is expected next year.

2:35 pm Unions oppose raising EPFO equity investment limit: The Labour Ministry is again facing resistance from the trade unions as it seeks to raise Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) minimum equity limit to 15 percent, say sources to CNBC-TV18.

In the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) meet, which is likely to happen in the last week of March, the ministry will propose this idea. It also feels introduction of new exchange-traded funds (ETFs) requires wider participation from EPFO.

The trade unions are not on the same page as the ministry and do not want the equity investment limit to be increased. The union has also urged for a safety net to secure their equity investments.

Also Read: Buy, sell, hold: 7 stocks to focus as market cautious

2:25 pm Buzzing stock: Biocon soared over 5 percent intraday on Friday as investors cheered Delhi High Court’s verdict on the cancer drug.

The court allowed Biocon to make and sell a cancer drug—Canmab. It also gave a similar nod to Mylan for its cancer drug—Hertraz.

The court also observed there was no restraint on sale of biosimilar drugs, which have approvals from competent authority, according to a report on CNBC-TV18.

Also Read: Buy, sell, hold: 7 stocks to focus as market cautious

Continuing its sluggish trend, the market remained lower in the noon session, but held on to the losses and pushing the indices higher than the day’s lows. The Nifty hovered around 8900-mark.

The Sensex was down 41.15 points at 28798.64, while the Nifty was down 14.80 points at 8884.95. The market breadth was on the negative side, with about 1,230 shares having advanced, 1,495 shares having declined, and 163 shares were unchanged.

GAIL , Reliance Industries , Bharti Infratel and Hindalco were the top gainers on both the indices, while HDFC, Asian Paints, BPCL and Bosch were a drag on the indices.

Reliance gained following positive brokerage outlook to Jio’s prospects going forward. Meanwhile, Hindalco rose on the back fund raising plans through a qualified institutional placement (QIP).