Business News Highlights: Stock Markets Close, Sensex Climbs Over 600 Points, Nifty Settles At 21,725
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Mankind Pharma on Wednesday reported a 55 per cent jump in its consolidated net profit to Rs 460 crore for the third quarter ended December 2023. in the current fiscal year. The company logged a net profit of Rs 296 crore in the corresponding quarter in the preceding fiscal. The revenue from operations climbed to Rs 2,607 crore in the period under review from Rs 2,091 crore in the year-ago period, the firm revealed in a regulatory filing.
Eight major infrastructure sectors logged a dampening in growth to a 14-month low of 3.8 per cent in December 2023, owing to poor performance of sectors such as crude oil, electricity, steel, and cement, official data released on Wednesday stated. The core sectors, like coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement, and electricity, registered growth in November at 7.9 per cent, while the growth in December 2022 stood at 8.3 per cent.
The Income Tax Department announced on Wednesday that services for taxpayers on the e-filing portal will remain suspended between February 3 and early February 5 owing to scheduled maintenance. “Taxpayer services on the e-filing portal will be restricted from 2 pm on Saturday to 6 am on Monday due to scheduled maintenance activity, involving technical upgradation of the system,," the I-T department said in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter).
The department also requested taxpayers to plan their activities accordingly.
The Union government's fiscal deficit touched Rs 9.82 lakh crore or 55 per cent of the annual budget target at the end of December of 2023, according to data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on Wednesday. In the corresponding period last year, the deficit was recorded at 59.8 per cent of the budget estimates for the fiscal 2022-23. The government estimated the fiscal deficit for the 2023-24 fiscal year to be at Rs 17.86 lakh crore or 5.9 per cent of the GDP.
Cinema exhibitor PVR INOX on Wednesday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 12.8 crore in the third quarter of the fiscal year 2023-24, against Rs 165 crore logged in the same period a year ago, according to the company’s regulatory filing.
Its revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,545.9 crore in the reviewing quarter, against Rs 940 crore recorded in the corresponding period in the preceding fiscal year.
Piramal Pharma on Wednesday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 10 crore for the third quarter ended December in the 2023-24 financial year. The Mumbai-based drug firm reported a net loss of Rs 90 crore in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year.
The revenue from operations climbed to Rs 1,959 crore for the third quarter against Rs 1,716 crore in the year-ago period, the firm said in a regulatory filing.
The Indian rupee appreciated 6 paise to settle at 83.04 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday, helped by a strong trend in domestic equities. Traders noted that market participants remained cautious before the Interim Budget, scheduled to be presented on February 1, 2024. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the domestic unit opened at 83.11 against the American dollar, hit an intraday high of 83.01 and low of 83.12, before settling at 83.04 (provisional).
The stock markets took cue from President Droupadi Murmu's address as the Budget Session 2024 began and attempted to recover the losses of the last trading session on Wednesday. The BSE Sensex ended over 600 points higher and closed at 71,752.11, while the NSE Nifty50 jumped more than 200 points to settle at 21,725.70.
FMCG giant Dabur India on Wednesday reported a jump of 6.24 per cent in consolidated net profit at Rs 506.44 crore for the third quarter ended December 2023 in the 2023-24 fiscal year. The firm logged a net profit of Rs 476.65 crore in the October-December quarter of FY23, it said in a regulatory filing.
The company’s revenue from operations was up 7 per cent at Rs 3,255.06 crore during the quarter under review., against Rs 3,043.17 crore in the corresponding period in FY23. This growth was attributed to the steady performance of both the home and personal care as well as the food and beverages business.
Automaker Maruti Suzuki India on Wednesday reported a 33.27 per cent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 3,206.8 crore for the third quarter ended December 2023 in the 2023-24 financial year. The company recorded a net profit of Rs 2,406.1 crore in the year-ago period, it informed in a regulatory filing.
The car maker’s total revenue from operations was up by 14.56 per cent to Rs 33,512.8 crore in Q3FY24 compared to Rs 29,251.1 crore during the same period in FY23.
Max Healthcare Institute Ltd on Wednesday reported a 26 per cent jump in its Profit After Tax (PAT) at Rs 338 crore in the December quarter of the financial year 2023-24. The company recorded a PAT of Rs 269 crore in the third quarter of FY23, Max Healthcare Institute said in a statement. The firm’s gross revenue stood at Rs 1,779 crore, up by 14 per cent compared to Rs 1,559 crore in the same period a year ago.
India cut down the import duty on spare parts used in mobile phone manufacturing to 10 per cent, from the current rate of 15 per cent, in an attempt to encourage local production and exports. The Finance Ministry issued a notification on Tuesday stating that it has slashed the import duty on components including screw, SIM socket, or other mechanical items of metal for cellular mobile phone.
Pankaj Mohindroo, Chairman, Indian Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA), said, "This is a critical policy intervention by the government towards making mobile manufacturing competitive in India. Electronics has improved from the 9th position few years ago to India's 5th largest export in 2024. Mobiles constitute over 52 per cent of electronics exports thanks to the Production-Linked Incentive Scheme. This is the first industry to leapfrog out of import substitution to export-led growth within the last 8 years."
Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Ltd, the operator of hotels under "The Park" brand, said on Wednesday that the firm has fixed a price band of Rs 147-155 per share for its Rs 920-crore initial public offering (IPO). The initial share sale will open for public subscription on February 5 and will be concluded on February 7. The bidding for anchor investors will open on February 2 for a day, the company said. The IPO comprises a fresh issue of equity shares valued at Rs 600 crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of equity shares amounting to Rs 320 crore by promoters and investor shareholders.
As of 12:17 PM, the Sensex jumped over 600 points and stood at 71,780.74, while the Nifty50 climbed almost 200 points to trade at 21,709.15.
"In 2014-15, nearly 2000 EVs were sold (in the country). However, by December 2023, nearly 15 lakhs have been sold. In the last 10 years, my government has made good governance and transparency the basis of every system. This is the reason why we have seen several economic developments," said President Droupadi Murmu.
"We have started two projects in Ladakh and Daman Diu in hydrogen energy. We will reduce our energy dependence on foreign nations. Oil production has recently started in the Bay of Bengal," the President said.
"Today we are focusing on green energy. Solar power capacity has increased by 26 per cent, and wind power capacity has doubled. We stand 4th in the world in renewable energy capacity, 4th in wind power capacity, and 5th in solar power capacity," the President said.
"Today my govt is working with a big vision, it includes the vision for the next 5 years. For us economic development is not enough, we will give importance to social, and cultural development as well. National and global agencies today are assured of India’s development. The world today trusts that India can only strengthen the global supply chain. My government started PLI schemes for 14 sectors and disbursed Rs 14 lakh crore for the scheme." the President said.
On promoting women power in the country, the President said, "Today women are fighter pilots also. More than 31 crore loans under the Mudra scheme were given to women. Govt helped 10 crore women get financially independent."
The President said youth power, women power, farmers and poor people are the four pillars for making India a developed economy. "About 25 crore people were lifted out of poverty during my government's tenure. Since COVID-19, 80 crore people are getting free ration. 4 crore poor family got 'pakka' houses," she added.
Physical infrastructure has also seen record investment, President Murmu said. "In last 10 years, India has seen completion of many such works in national interest for which people were waiting for decades," the President said.
The President said, "Tejas has become our strength," and applauded the forces. Regarding the business environment, she said, "Continuous improvement has been made for ease of doing business. Tax is more transparent now. People are working more in MSME today. Credit guarantee scheme worth Rs 5 lakh crore have been given to the MSME sector."
President Droupadi Murmu addressed the Parliament and began the Budget Session for the Interim Budget 2024. "We are seeing poverty eradicate for the first time at a large level. About 25 crore people were lifted out of poverty during my government's tenure," the President said in her address.
The stock markets continued to recover ahead of the Budget session. As of 10:22 AM, the BSE Sensex climbed 275 points to 71,415.14, and the NSE Nifty50 gained almost 100 points to touch 21,605.15.
Background
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The stock markets on Wednesday took cues from the upcoming Budget and attempted a recovery rally. After opening, the markets continued to trade in a positive trajectory, ahead of the President’s address in the Budget session. As of 10:09 AM, the Sensex was trading higher by over 200 points at 71,404.58, while the Nifty50 gained more than 50 points and stood at 21,590.85.
In the last trading session on Tuesday, the two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, fell again amid profit booking in some stocks. The S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 802 points to close at 71,139. On the other hand, NSE Nifty50 declined 216 points to end at 21,522.
Among major macroeconomic announcements lined up for the week is the Interim Budget set to be released on February 1 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. While the budget being an interim one is not expected to bring in big changes, analysts anticipate some policy revisions keeping in mind the populist view. President Droupadi Murmu will begin the Budget session and address the Parliament in a joint sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
Among the major company earnings to be released today include Adani Wilmar, Bank of Baroda, Dabur India, Ambuja Cements, Godrej Consumer Products, Mankind Pharma, IDFC, Maruti Suzuki India, Punjab & Sind Bank, and PVR Inox, among others.
The Government of India on Monday announced a revision to the pension rules. The govt amended the long-standing established pension rule, thereby, allowing female employees to nominate their son or daughter for a family pension instead of opting for their spouse. This decision was taken in an attempt to empower women in India.
Union Minister of State for Personnel, Dr Jitendra Singh, said, “The Department of Pensions and Pensioners' Welfare (DoP&PW) has introduced an amendment to the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021, allowing female government employees or pensioners to grant family pension to their eligible child/children after their own demise, instead of their spouse.”
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