The Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite are both trading down 0.8%. The Nikkei fell 1.8%.
In US stock markets, Wall Street rebounded on Thursday as investors lost confidence that an early rally had legs.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 313 points, or 0.9%, while the S&P 500 fell 50 points, or 1.1%. The biggest loser was the Nasdaq Composite, which fell 186 points, or 1.3%, after rising 2.1%.
Nasdaq’s losses in recent months left it as a market correction in Wall Street, or 10% below its peak.
Back home, Indian stock markets opened in the red after the SGX Nifty trend.
Benchmark indices fell sharply today as they fell for the fourth consecutive session amid weak global cues and continued selling by FIIs.
In the last two trading sessions, FIIs have increased selling pressure and the net selling price of shares 73.9 billion in the cash segment.
As we write this, the markets have recovered some of their losses but are still trading around 0.5% lower.
BSE Sensex is trading with a fall of 312 points. Meanwhile, NSE Nifty is trading with a decline of 92 points.
HUL is among them Today’s Top Beneficiaries, On the other hand, Tech Mahindra and Bajaj Finserv are among the top losers today.
The BSE Midcap index is trading with a fall of 0.7 percent. BSE Small Cap Index is trading on a flat note.
Sectoral indices were trading on a mixed note with the banking sector, consumer durables sector and healthcare sector selling the most.
On the other hand, FMCG shares and auto shares are trading in the green.
Shares of Tata Alexi and Shoppers Stop today hit a 52-week high.
Market participants are watching the stocks of Reliance Industries, JSW Steel, HDFC Life, Vodafone Idea and SBI Life Insurance as these companies announce their December quarter results today.
Rupee is trading at 74.53 against US Dollar.
Gold prices up 0.2% 48,488 per 10 grams.
Investors turned to safe-haven assets as gold braced for its second consecutive weekly gain while waiting for signs of interest rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve meeting next week.
In news in the FMCG sector, Hindustan Unilever (HUL) share price is in focus today, a day after the company reported good December quarter results.
FMCG major HUL posted 16.8% growth in its single net profit yesterday to 22.4 billion 19.2 billion in the same quarter last year.
The increase in profit was on account of increase in prices of products made by HUL to compensate for commodity inflation.
Sequentially, net profit grew just 2.6% on a 2.7% increase in revenue.
The company said that its total revenue including other income grew 10.2 percent year-on-year 131.8 billion in the quarter under review from 119.6 billion in the same quarter a year ago.
There was a possibility of a positive start for the stock as both profit and revenue figures beat estimates.
Here’s what the company said in a statement:
Growth in the quarter was competitive and profitable. The business fundamentals remained strong with excellent market share across all our divisions in both urban and rural markets and across all price segments. The 2% underlying volume increase was well ahead of the market.
Meanwhile, the company’s Chairman and MD Sanjiv Mehta said the company delivered a strong and resilient performance in the quarter despite moderation in market growth and significant levels of commodity inflation.
In the short term, the operating environment will remain challenging, Mehta said, adding that in this scenario, we will manage our business with agility, continue to grow our consumer franchise while maintaining our margins in a healthy range.
Coming to HUL, here is an interesting data on the stock, Between 2002 and 2010, HUL share price went nowhere… Have a look at the chart below:
The journey of no return in the so-called safe stock
Stock was originally in an 8-year coma. The returns can barely even make up for inflation.
However, in the period from 2010 to 2020, HUL gave a huge return of 30% CAGR!
moving to news from pharma sector, Natco Pharma has signed a non-exclusive license agreement with Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), Switzerland, to manufacture and sell Molnupiravir Capsules 200 mg for the treatment of Covid-19.
MPP had obtained a license for this from Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp (MSD), USA.
With this license agreement, Natco Pharma can now manufacture and sell Molnupiravir Capsules 200 mg for the Indian market, which will be sold under the brand name Molnupirat.
Here’s what the company said in a regulatory filing,
The agreement allows Natco to expand access to COVID-19 drugs under generic names to 105 countries. Under the licence, Natco can set its own price for the generic products it manufactures, while paying royalty on sales to MSD.
More recently, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) permitted the anti-Covid-19 pill molnupiravir for emergency use in India.
The share price of Natco Pharma is trading with a decline of 0.7%.
This article is syndicated from Equitymaster.com
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