Sensex, Nifty end at 2016 closing high; banks drag, FMCG soar

Moneycontrol Bureau3:30 pm Closing: Both the benchmark indices were at 2016 closing high ahaed of April Futures & Option expiry tomorrow. The Sensex ended up 56.82 points or 0.2 percent at 26064.12, and the Nifty was up 17.25 points or 0.2 percent at 7979.90. About 1274 shares have advanced, 1281 shares declined, and 193 shares are unchanged. FMCG, IT and oil & gas stocks lend support to the market. Adani Ports, Bharti, ONGC, GAIL and M&M were top gainers while ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, SBI, Hindalco and BHEL were losers in the Sensex.

3:00 pm Divestment: Government's 11.36 percent stake sale in electricity generator NHPC got off to a strong start today with the portion for institutional investors getting oversubscribed within three hours of opening of trade.

Of the over 100.61 crore shares on offer for these investors, bids for over 156.33 crore shares, or 1.55 times had come in till 1255 hours. Bidding will continue till 1530.

The remaining, over 25.15 crore shares, will be sold to retail investors tomorrow. They will be allocated shares at 5 per cent discount to the cut-off price. These individual investors are to place bids for shares of total value not exceeding Rs 2 lakh.

2:50 pm IT outlook: Economic stability in developed countries will fuel growth in the IT services sector benefiting Indian companies, which will see revenue growth stabilise at around 13 percent, Moody's Investors Service said today.

It forecast that the Indian IT sector will maintain global market share gains, supported by a wider coverage and operating efficiency, albeit at a moderate pace.

"Revenue growth for the Indian IT services sector will stabilise at 11-13 percent, with the bottoming-out of the slowdown witnessed by the industry over the past 12-18 months," said Moody's in a report on IT services.

2:30 pm Parliament: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said the Joint Parliament Standing Committee has cleared the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Code and is likely to be discussed in the current Budget Session of Parliament.

Addressing the second meeting of the Consultative Committee on NPAs, Jaitley said the government is taking various steps, including introduction of Bankruptcy Law in the Lok Sabha, to deal with the problem of mounting bad loans.

The Bankruptcy Law has been cleared by the Joint Parliament Standing Committee and the SARFAESI (Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest) Act and Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) Act have been amended to make the recovery process more efficient and expedient, he said in his opening remark.

Don't miss: Growth in banking sector to be driven by retail segment, says UTI MFThe market is still rangebound with the Nifty eyes set on 8000-mark. The 50-share index is up 6.35 points at 7969. The Sensex is up 26.15 points at 26033.45. About 1209 shares have advanced, 1241 shares declined, and 158 shares are unchanged.

Adani Ports, Bharti Airtel, ONGC, GAIL and Coal India are top gainers while ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, SBI, Hindalco and HDFC are losers in the Sensex.

Gold prices rose by Rs 100 to Rs 29,503 per 10 grams in futures trade today as speculators widened positions taking positive cues from global markets.

Globally, gold gained 0.08 percent to USD 1,244.30 an ounce in Singapore today.