Airtel Zero based on differential tariffs for end-consumers: DoT

The DoT said that Airtel Zero platform is based on differential tariffs for end-consumers which violates the net neutrality principles, says DoT

The department of telecommunications (DoT) said that the launch of the Airtel Zero platform — by Bharti Airtel and Internet.org by Facebook in partnership with Reliance Communications — is prima facie in violation of net neutrality principles, according to a media report.

The DoT said that Airtel Zero platform is based on differential tariffs for end-consumers which violates the net neutrality principles, the report added.

The principle of the net neutrality concept implies that equal treatment is given to all Internet traffic and prioritisation based on payment is seen as discrimination against others.

Over the last few months, operators like Reliance Communications and Uninor have tied up with players like Facebook, WhatsApp and Wikipedia to offer free usage to consumers

Last month, Bharti Airtel launched an open marketing platform called Airtel Zero that will allow customers to access a variety of mobile applications for free while the data charges will be paid by the application providers.

With the Airtel Zero, customers can access apps of participating app developers at zero data charges. Airtel Zero is an open marketing platform that allows customers to access a variety of mobile applications for free, with the data charges being paid by start-ups and large companies. 

Market remains under pressure

The volatility index has jumped over 14 percent. The BSE Sensex has cracked over 500 points. The CNX Midcap and the CNX Smallcap indices have slumped 2.5 percent each at 12,678 and 5,466, respectively. 

The market continues to trade on a gloomy note on the back of intense selling across all the sectors.

At 11:49 AM, the Sensex is down 602 points at 26,838. The Nifty is down 196 points at 8,129.

The Volatility index - India VIX - has zoomed 14.1 percent at 19.8125.

The CNX Midcap and the CNX Smallcap indices have slumped 2.5 percent each at 12,678 and 5,466, respectively.

All the Sectoral indices are also trading on a weak note.

The CNX PSU Bank, the CNX Realty and the CNX Metal indices have plunged 3 percent each. The CNX Pharma, the CNX Energy and the CNX Infra have tumbled over 2 percent each.

Among Nifty-50 stocks, only Bharti Airtel and Cairn India have bucked the trend and are trading on a positive note.

Bharti Airtel has jumped 3.1 percent at Rs. 399 on buzz on higher MSCI index weightage. While, Cairn India is trading marginally in green at Rs. 214.

On the other hand, Ambuja Cements, BPCL, BHEL and NTPC have slipped over 4 percent. Bank of Baroda, IDFC, Vedanta and NMDC have tumbled over 3.5 percent.

Punjab National Bank, Axis Bank, Tata Power, Cipla and Larsen & Toubro are some of the prominent Nifty losers. 

Sensex crashes below 27K, ~ 500 points

The NSE Nifty also tumbled below 8,200-mark to hit a low of 8,140. The Nifty-50 index is now down 152 points at 8,173. The BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap indices have dropped over 1.5 percent each at 10,433 and 11,001, respectively. 

The key benchmark indices, the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty suddenly nose-dived in the early morning deals, on the back of aggressive selling across all sectors.

The BSE headline index, slipped below 27,000-mark and touched a low of 26,868 - down 633 points from the day's high of 27,501.

The BSE Sensex is now down 542 points at 26,898.

The NSE Nifty also tumbled below 8,200-mark to hit a low of 8,140. The Nifty-50 index is now down 177 points at 8,148.

The broader market is also witnessing heavy selling pressure, the BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap indices have dropped over 1.5 percent each at 10,433 and 11,001, respectively.

There are no gainers in sectoral indices - the BSE Realty index is the major loser, down almost 3 percent at 1,580. Followed by, the Power, Oil & Gas, Healthcare, Bankex and Capital Goods indices - down over 2 percent each.

The IT, FMCG, Auto and Consumer Durables indices are the other prominent losers.

The breadth is bearish in morning deals - out of 1,884 stocks traded on the BSE so far 1,462 stocks are declining, while only 368 stocks are advancing.

All Sensex stocks are trading in red, except, Bharti Airtel - up almost 3 percent at Rs. 398.

BHEL and Cipla are the top losers - down over 3.5 percent each to Rs. 235 and Rs. 639, respectively.

ONGC and Axis Bank have cracked over 3 percent each at Rs. 330 and Rs. 548, respectively.

NTPC, Dr.Reddy's and Sesa Sterlite have plunged 3 percent each at Rs. 146, Rs. 3,303 and Rs. 219, respectively.

Coal India, ICICI Bank, Hindalco, Gail India, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Power, Sun Pharma, Infosys and ITC are the other significant losers. 

Indices tumble, crude oil prices spike

The BSE Mid-cap Index is trading down 0.21% at 10,591, whereas BSE Small-cap Index is trading down 0.10% at 11,167. 

At 10:19 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex is trading at 26,983 down 457 points, while NSE Nifty is trading at 8,170 down 155 points.

The BSE Mid-cap Index is trading down 0.21% at 10,591, whereas BSE Small-cap Index is trading down 0.10% at 11,167. Crude oil prices stood at $61.61 per bbl which is up 2%
 

Some buying activity is seen in metal, teck, IT  and fmcg sectors, while auto, banking, capital goods and healthcare sectors are showing weakness on BSE.

Bharti Airtel, Sesa Sterlite, Tata Steel, Hindalco and Infosys are among the gainers, whereas NTPC, BHEL, Tata Motors and Bajaj Auto are losing sheen on BSE.

The market suddenly seemed to have lost its Monday mojo as the Indian equity market entered in to a consolidation zone on Tuesday. The Nifty managed to just hold above its 200 DMA and also the 8300 mark. Attention will be on how FIIs react to the Bombay High Court's move to stay the income tax department's decision to impose minimum alternate tax (MAT) on Aberdeen Global Emerging Markets. The stay was more on technical grounds and developments here will be closely watched.

Developments in Parliament will be eyed. Global cues are depressed for now. Oil prices climbed 2.5%, to settle at $60.40 a barrel. A sell off was seen in US markets. A trade-deficit report that indicated US trade gap hit its highest level in seven years suggests that the US GDP reading will go from 0.2% to negative territory when figures are revised later this month.

Seven additional securities would be available for trading w.e.f May 29, 2015. These companies include, DHFL, Kaveri Seeds, Ajanta Pharma, Britannia, South Bank, Oil India and Bharat Electronics Limited. Expect action on these counters today. 

The Dow fell 0.79% S&P 500 lost 1.18% and Nasdaq Composite fell 1.55% led by losses in Apple counter. Asian markets are flat with Hong Kong's Hang Seng index and China's Shanghai index trading higher.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought responses from the Centre and Reserve Bank of India on a PIL challenging the appointment process of heads of five public sector banks and reducing the cut-off age from 58 to 55 years.

The Prakash Javadekar-led environment ministry is yet to call a meeting of the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) and a concerned industry is now knocking on the doors of the Prime Minister's Office to get things moving. ET reported that Biocon chairman and managing director Kiran Mazumdar Shaw wrote to the PMO last month, pointing out how the delay in calling meetings of the GEAC had put the "entire agriculture biotechnology sector in great difficulty".

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the GST Bill has gone through standing panel and multiple EgoMs.He said that further delay to GST will not serve any purpose. We will lose entire financial year if GST Bill is delayed further. GST if delayed further will not meet the April 1, 2016 deadline, Jaitley added.

SKF has signed a strategic agreement with Regen Powertech, a leading Indian wind turbine manufacturer. Under the terms of the agreement, SKF will supply pitch and yaw bearing sets and mainshaft bearings for the company’s 1.5MW wind turbines.

Fitch Ratings has affirmed  GAIL (India) Limited's (GAIL) Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at 'BBB-'. The Outlook is Stable.

Kotak Mahindra Bank rallied nearly 6.5% to Rs. 1,424 on the back of strong Q4 performance and a surprise bonus announcement. The company's Q4 consolidated net profit rose by 37.6 percent to Rs. 912.60 crore on year-on-year basis. Total income also jumped by 51.8 percent to Rs. 2,655.22 crore from Rs. 1,749.86 crore. Further, the bank announced a 1:1 bonus share issue.
 
The CNX Realty and Auto indices have shed over 0.5 percent each at 211 and 8,277, respectively. The Bank Nifty, Energy, Pharma, Metal and PSU Bank indices are the other notable losers.

In the Nifty-50 stocks - BPCL is the top loser - down 2 percent at Rs. 761. Ambuja Cements, NTPC, BHEL, Tata Motors, HDFC and Gail India have also dropped over a percent each.

On the other hand, the Bharti Airtel soared nearly 4 percent at Rs. 401. Idea Cellular and Cairn India jumped 1.4 percent each at Rs. 181 and Rs. 217, respectively.

Hindalco, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies and Infosys are the other notable gainers.