:::LALKAR GROUP::::

Benchmark indices further extended losses and hit fresh intraday low in afternoon trade. The Nifty breached 14,500 mark to hover above 14,400 during intraday trade. Auto and IT shares bucked weak market trend. Traders booked profits after recent strong gains.

At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 535.04 points or 1.08% at 49,089.72. The Nifty 50 index dropped 156.60 points or 1.09% at 14,430.75.

Selling was broad based. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.97%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 0.91%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 826 shares rose and 2,016 shares fell. A total of 136 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 12 stocks advanced while 38 stocks declined.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,614.66 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net sellers to the tune of Rs 1,039.48 crore in the Indian equity market on 21 January 2021, provisional data showed.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 9,74,95,558 with 20,89,460 deaths. India reported 1,88,688 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,53,032 deaths while 1,02,83,708 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Economy:

The RBI's January bulletin made a bullish prediction about the state of the economy in 2021. India's GDP, which shrank by double-digits last year, is within striking distance of attaining positive growth, it says, forecasting a quick 'V'-shaped recovery. RBI said Structural changes in the Indian economy and shifts in pattern of India's foreign trade warrant updates to the broad (existing 36-currency-based) indices of nominal/real effective exchange rate (NEER/REER) of the Indian rupee. This base year is shifted from 2004-05 to 2015-16; and the existing basket is expanded from 36 to 40 currencies, with the inclusion of eight new currencies and exclusion of four currencies.

Gainers & Losers:

Bajaj Auto (up 10.76%), Hero MotoCorp (up 6%), Eicher Motors (up 3.02%), Tata Motors (up 2.29%) and Hindustan Unilever (up 1.69%) were major gainers in Nifty 50 index.

Hindalco Industries (down 4.58%), Axis Bank (down 4.23%), Tata Steel (down 4.06%), JSW Steel (down 3.38%) and ICICI Bank (down 2.76%) were major losers in Nifty 50 index.

Nifty Results Today:

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (down 2%) and HDFC Life Insurance Company (down 1.70%) will announce Q3 results today.

Earning Impact:

Cyient soared 12.71% after the IT firm's net profit rose 13.8% to Rs 95.40 crore on a 4.1% increase in revenue to Rs 1,044.30 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q2 FY21. In dollar terms, consolidated revenue stood at $141.40 million for the quarter; up 4.7% quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q) and down 8.9% year-on-year (Y-o-Y). In constant currency, revenue was up 4.1% Q-o-Q.

EBIT improved by 5.5% to Rs 116.50 crore in Q3 December 2020 from Rs 110.50 crore in Q2 September 2020. EBIT margin was at 11.2% as on 31 December 2020 as against 11% as on 30 September 2020. Profit before tax in Q3 FY21 stood at Rs 124.80 crore, up by 14.4% from Rs 109.10 crore in Q2 FY21. Tax expenses during the quarter increased by 16.7% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 29.40 crore. The company's order intake in Q3 FY21 stood at $194.50 million, registering a sequential improvement of 52.8%.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Alembic Pharmaceuticals lost 0.39%. The drug maker announced that it received approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) midodrine hydrochloride tablets USP, 2.5 mg, 5 mg, and 10 mg. The drug is indicated for the treatment of symptomatic orthostatic hypotension (OH). The approved ANDA is therapeutically equivalent to the reference listed drug product (RLD), ProAmatine tablets of Takeda Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. (Takeda).

NTPC skid 2.55%. Unit-3 of 150 megawatts of Kameng hydro-electric project (4x150MW) of North Eastern Electric Power Corporation has been declared on commercial operation from 22 January 2021. North Eastern Electric Power Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary company of NTPC. With this, the commissioned and commercial capacity of NTPC group has become 63,785 MW and 63,125 MW respectively.

Adani Total Gas rose 0.34%. The company signed share purchase agreement on 21 January 2021 for acquiring 5% stake of Indian Gas Exchange (IGX) from Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) for a cash consideration of Rs 3.69 crore. The deal is expected to be completed within seven days from the date of execution of the share purchase agreement. Adani Total Gas intends to participate in developing gas trading exchange, regulated by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board through the acquisition made.

Global Markets:

European stocks opened lower on Friday. The European Central Bank kept interest rates unchanged on Thursday but said it stands ready to act as coronavirus infection rates rise across the euro zone, leading to renewed lockdown measures.

Asian stocks tumbled on Friday as investors took some money off the table after a recent rally that was driven by hopes a massive U.S. economic stimulus plan by incoming President Joe Biden will help temper the COVID-19 impact.

Japan's core consumer prices slumped in December at the fastest annual pace in a decade. The nationwide core consumer price index (CPI), which includes oil but excludes fresh food costs, fell 1% in December from a year earlier, government data showed.

In US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed at record highs on Thursday, propelled by optimism about more pandemic relief under the Biden administration to support the economy.

Investors are watching if President Joe Biden can get his proposed $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill through Congress. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday the chamber is ready to pass the bill in the first week of February.

Biden released details of his COVID-19 plan on his first full day in office, including 10 executive orders and his intent to use the Defense Production Act to ramp up protective equipment production. Biden will seek to accelerate the rollout of vaccines by providing more local and state funding, creating more vaccination sites and launching a national education campaign.