Sensex, Nifty languish in red

The BSE Mid-cap Index is trading down 0.11% at 10,423, whereas BSE Small-cap Index is trading down 0.91% at 10,579. The India VIX (Volatility) index is up 3.28% at 25.09.

At 2:11 PM, the S&P BSE Sensex is trading at 25,440 down 279 points, while NSE Nifty is trading at 7,728 down 91 points.

The BSE Mid-cap Index is trading down 0.11% at 10,423, whereas BSE Small-cap Index is trading down 0.91% at 10,579.

All sectors are showing weakness on NSE. The India VIX (Volatility) index is up 3.28% at 25.09.

Tata Motors, BPCL, ZEE Ent, BHEL, Tata Power, Bajaj- Auto and Hero MotoCorp are among the gainers, whereas Hindalco, NMDC, HCL Tech, Power Grid and HDFC are losing sheen on NSE.

The breadth is negative in morning deals - out of 1,725 stocks traded on the BSE so far 398 stocks have advanced, while 1,072 stocks have declined.

Shares of Castex Technologies Ltd hits lower circuit at Rs. 40.35 on BSE today.  SEBI is unlikely to intervene in the ongoing standoff between Amtek Group company Castex Technologies Ltd. and the holders of its foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs), according to media reports.

Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd were trading lower 1.2% at Rs. 3,991 on BSE today. The pharma company have entered into a licensing agreement with PanTheryx, Inc. that grants the exclusive right to market and distribute PanTheryx's nutritional intervention, DiaResQ, for infectious diarrhoea in India and Nepal.

Shares of of logistics service providers were seen trading down on reports that the goverment scraps plan for special session on Goods and Sales Tax (GST) Bill.

Patel Integrated Logistics, VRL Logistics, GATI, Sical Logistics and Snowman Logistic were trading lower around 3% each.

L&T board approves fund raising plan; slips 1%

The company has approved to raise Rs. 6,000 crore via debentures.

Larsen &Turbo trading lower 1% at Rs. 1,585 on reports the board of the company has approved to raise Rs. 6,000 crore via debentures.

Report says that the company is anticipating infrastructure projects Rs. 3,000 crore in Sri Lanka.

The scrip opened at Rs. 1571.4 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 1591.4 and Rs. 1555.45 respectively. So far 965782 shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 148207.92 crore.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 2 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 1893.8 on 04-Mar-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 1401 on 08-Oct-2014. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 1597.5 and Rs. 1490 respectively.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 0 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 55.68 % and 41.93 % respectively.

The stock is currently trading above its 50 DMA.

Adani, HCL, MRF & ITC commit over Rs. 300bn in TN

HCL group founder Shiv Nadar said he expects to invest US$1bn in Tamil Nadu over the next five years on building two new centres at Madurai and Tiruneveli.

The country’s top industrial houses such as Adani, HCL, MRF and ITC have pledged investments worth over INR 30,000 crore in Tamil Nadu on the first day of the first Tamil Nadu Global Investor Meet (GIM) on Wednesday.

The Adani Group alone is planning to invest INR 10,000-15,000 crore in the state to set up power plants and ports.

Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Adani group chairman Gautam Adani said that the group is setting up a 650-MW solar plant in Tamil Nadu, which will be the largest in the world and will be operational by March 2016.

HCL group founder Shiv Nadar said he expects to invest US$1bn in Tamil Nadu over the next five years on building two new centres at Madurai and Tiruneveli.

MRF’s chairman K M Mammen said that the company is planning to invest ~INR 4,500 crore at Perambalur.

ITC has laid out an INR 25,000-crore investment plan for Tamil Nadu. The book value of ITC's current investment in Tamil Nadu is INR 2,400 crore.

SEBI unlikely to block Castex Tech's FCCB conversion: Report

The bondholders have urged SEBI to block the impending conversion of two FCCB tranches worth US$200mn into equity that falls on Thursday and on 25th September.

Capital market regulator SEBI is unlikely to intervene in the ongoing standoff between Amtek Group company Castex Technologies Ltd. and the holders of its foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs), according to media reports.

However, SEBI is reportedly looking into alleged manipulation of the stock price of Castex Tech.

The bondholders have urged SEBI to block the impending conversion of two FCCB tranches worth US$200mn into equity that falls on Thursday and on 25th September.

They allege that the stock of Castex Tech was rigged up, triggering the mandatory conversion of all outstanding FCCBs.

Shares of Castex rose from INR 41.40 in March to all-time high of INR 361.85 on 13th July on BSE. From its peak, the stock continued to fall by daily maximum limit of 5%. On Wednesday, the stock closed at INR 42.45.

S&P downgrades Brazil to junk

Report says that this move will further hamper President Dilma Rousseff's efforts to regain investors' trust.

Standard & Poor's downgraded Brazil's credit rating to junk grade, according to reports.

This move will further hamper President Dilma Rousseff's efforts to regain investors' trust.

S&P has reduced Brazil's rating to BB-plus, the highest junk rating, from BBB-minus. 

Indian generic drug market to cross US$27.9bn by 2020

The study valued the domestic pharma market at US$15.4bn in 2014 and expects it to expand at a CAGR of 13.3% to US$32.7bn by 2020.

The domestic generic pharmaceutical market will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of ~16.3% to surpass US$27.9bn by 2020 from the current level of US$13.1bn, says a joint study by industry chamber ASSOCHAM and market research firm RNCOS.

The study valued the domestic pharma market at US$15.4bn in 2014 and expects it to expand at a CAGR of 13.3% to US$32.7bn by 2020.

“Generics would account for 85% share in the domestic pharma market by 2020, fuelled by cheap labour, patent cliff of blockbuster drugs and prevalence of lifestyle diseases,” says the study.

The study has based its assessment on approvals accorded by the USFDA and on assumption that 21 drugs will lose their patents by 2019.

The study also noted that consumption of unbranded generics in India was limited because of the influence of physicians (who prefer to prescribe branded medicines), and lack of drug pricing control laws.

17 Stocks in focus today

Check out the companies which will be in focus during trade today based on recent and latest news developments

Piramal Enterprises Ltd: The company is in talks to take control of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services. PEL will carve out its financial services business and merge it with IL&FS in an allstock deal to create a $2.5-billion, as per media reports.

Bharti Airtel: The company is in talks with Malaysia's Axiata-owned mobile operator, Robi for merger of its Bangladesh operations.

Mahindra & Mahindra: The company is all set to launch an all-new vehicle TUV3OO, after a gap of nearly 12 months when it launched the new generation Scorpio in September last year.

Reliance Communications Ltd: Reliance Communications and Reliance Jio Infocomm are set to announce a pan-India spectrum sharing-cumtrading agreement as early as next week, which will give Mukesh Ambani-owned Jio more bandwidth options to offer 4G services across most parts of the country.

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd: The company is in talks with Colombia's Ecopetrol to buy term crude oil and is exploring purchases of Iraq's Basra Heavy grade to diversify supplies and improve margins, as per media reports.

Nestle India Ltd: The company can start making Maggi noodles again in India as early as October, it said on Wednesday, paving the way for the snack to go back on sale by the end of the year, as per reports.

Indiabulls Housing Finance Ltd: The company plans to raise up to $1 billion through private placement of shares to institutional investors to meet its capital adequacy requirements and funding needs.

Dr Reddy's Laboratories: Dr Reddy's Lab and PanTheryx, Inc., have entered into a licensing agreement that grants the exclusive right to market and distribute PanTheryx's nutritional intervention, DiaResQ, for infectious diarrhoea in India and Nepal, as per media reports.

GAIL India Ltd: CCI has rejected allegations of the company indulged in anti-competitive practices with regard to supply of gas to two Gujarat-based entities.

Siemens Ltd: The company said it will invest 1 billion euro (over Rs. 7,400 crore) in India and add 4,000 jobs under 'Make in India' initiative.

Tata Steel Ltd: Tata Steel has started production from the Coke Ovens at its greenfield project at Kalinganagar in Odisha. The production, which commenced on September 4, 2015, marks a major milestone for the steel major's first greenfield steel plant outside Jamshedpur, as per reports.

L&T Ltd: The company is expecting Rs. 3,000 crore worth infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka as it seeks to expand its global presence, its chief AM Naik said on Wednesday.

NTPC: The company will raise up to Rs. 700 crore through tax free secured non-convertible bonds. It is is likely to start the process of taking over Damodar Valley Corp's (DVC) 2,520-MW Raghunathpur thermal power plant by December.

TVS Motors Company Ltd: The company will invest about Rs. 800 crore over the next three years across its businesses, including for ramping up its plant capacities, as per reports.

Cipla: India Ratings & Research said Cipla's ratings are unlikely to be affected by the recent cash-rich acquisitions of two US-based companies for USD550mn.

Alstom: Power equipment maker Alstom said that the European Commission and the US Department of Justice (USDoJ) have approved the transaction with General Electric (GE) to acquire Alstom's energy business, as per media reports.

Hero MotoCorp: The company began operations at a new facility in Columbia, the company’s first plant outside India, which has been built at an investment of USD70mn. 

RBI to soon declare winners of small finance bank licence

The RBI’s regulations stipulate that at least 50% of the loan portfolio of small finance banks must include loans and advances of up to Rs. 25 lakh.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will soon announce the names of successful applicants for the small finance banks, RBI Deputy Governor SS Mundra was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

“We are going to announce the names (successful applicants) in the next few days,” Mundra told a financial daily on the sidelines of a PHDCCI summit in New Delhi.

The RBI has received as many as 72 applications for starting small finance banks, which will function on the lines of commercial banks, but would cater mainly to the unserved and underserved sections of society. There will also be limits on the loan size and the quantum of deposits that such banks can accept.

The RBI’s regulations stipulate that at least 50% of the loan portfolio of small finance banks must include loans and advances of up to Rs. 25 lakh.

US Stocks Slide, Despite Asian Gains; Apple Weighs

New York: US stocks fell on Wednesday, weighed down by a slide in Apple's share price and weakness in the energy sector, though European and major Asian bourses earlier ended higher.

Oil prices ended sharply lower, pressured by ongoing concerns about oversupply and bets that demand may slow with global economic growth.

"Investors are still looking for policy developments out of China, and also wary of what might come out of the Fed next week," said Bucky Hellwig, senior vice president at BB&T Wealth Management in Birmingham, Alabama.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.45 per cent, to 16,253.57, while the S&P 500 lost 1.39 per cent to 1,942.04 and the Nasdaq Composite ended down 1.15 per cent at 4,756.53.

Shares of Apple ended down 1.9 per cent at $110.15 in heavy trading, after its latest product launch failed to meet expectations.

U.S. energy stocks led declines among S&P 500 index stocks, falling 1.9 per cent as U.S. oil prices fell 3.9 per cent. Chevron CVX.N was down 2.5 per cent at $74.92.

The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 1.4 per cent and the JP Morgan world equity index gained 0.3 per cent.

Earlier Wednesday major stock markets had rallied on expectation of increased government support from China and the possibility that Japan will cut corporate taxes.

Japan's Nikkei earlier soared 7.7 per cent, its biggest single-day gain since October 2008, galvanized by hopes of corporate tax cuts.

China's Finance Ministry said on Wednesday it would strengthen fiscal policy, boost infrastructure spending and speed up tax reform, helping lift Chinese shares for a second day.

Investors' increased appetite for risk overseas saw the U.S. dollar firm against the safe-haven yen and the euro, but the greenback's gains were lost as Wall Street stocks reversed course.

The euro <EUR=> was little changed against the U.S. currency at $1.1206 while the yen was also near flat at 120.47 per dollar. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was nearly flat.

Benchmark Brent crude oil was down 4.3 per cent at $47.41 a barrel. U.S. crude fell 4 per cent to $44.11 per barrel.

U.S. 10-year Treasury yields were at 2.1953 per cent, with a slight loss of less than 1/32 in price.

Copper hit a seven-week high above $5,400 a tonne on the back of the Chinese stimulus news and was recently up 0.4 per cent at $5,365 a tonne.

Gold fell 1.4 per cent, the most in seven weeks, to $1,106 an ounce -the lowest in nearly a month. 

Asia Stocks Stumble as Gloomy China, Japan Data Add to Growth Worries

Tokyo: Asian stocks fell on Thursday after lacklustre Chinese and Japanese economic data added to heightened worries about slackening global growth, sapping investors' appetite for riskier assets.

The latest policy response to rising global risks came from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ), which cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 2.75 per cent and signalled more easing if China's economy slows down further.

Those risks were highlighted in data showing China's consumer inflation in August edging up, but producer prices falling for the 42nd straight month in the latest sign that deflation remains a significant risk for the world's second-largest economy.

Furthermore, Japan's key gauge of capital spending unexpectedly fell for a second straight month in July, signalling that the economy is struggling to get back on track after contracting in the second quarter.

With many economies facing headwinds, ANZ bank economists revised down their global growth forecasts for 2016 and 2017, expecting growth to remain more or less unchanged around 3.5 per cent "over the next couple of years."

"Previously we had growth edging up to 4 per cent by 2017. In the near term the risks are skewed to further downward revision," the economists at ANZ wrote.

Amid the sombre mood, the previous day's policy-hopes driven surge in the Shanghai Composite Index flagged and the shares fell 1.6 per cent. The losses were limited for now, however, as soft indicators fanned expectations for extra government stimulus.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 1.8 per cent lower after rallying 3.2 per cent on Wednesday. Australian shares fell 2.2 per cent and South Korea's Kospi shed 0.1 per cent.

Tokyo's Nikkei fell 2.9 per cent in the wake of the downbeat Japanese machinery orders numbers, after jumping 7.7 per cent the day before amid hopes for fresh government stimulus.

"The BOJ may ease policy further in October, but additional easing would not be enough to achieve its inflation target," said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute in Tokyo.

The S&P 500 ended Wednesday down 1.5 per cent and futures slipped another down 0.2 per cent in the Asian day.

Elsewhere, Standard & Poor's stripped Brazil of its investment-grade credit rating on Wednesday, further hampering President Dilma Rousseff's efforts to regain market trust and pull Latin America's largest economy from recession.

In New Zealand, while the rate cut was widely anticipated, the RBNZ also said a further fall by the New Zealand dollar was "appropriate", sending the kiwi buckling.

The New Zealand dollar dived about 2 per cent and last fetched $0.6278, moving back towards a 6-year low of $0.6200 struck late in August.

The Australian dollar suffered collateral damage and retreated 0.2 per cent to $0.6999.

The U.S. dollar slipped in line with receding investor risk appetite and was down 0.1 per cent at 120.38 against the safe-haven yen.

The euro was steady at $1.1210.

Commodities highlighted lingering concerns about global growth, with U.S. crude oil sliding nearly 4 per cent overnight.

U.S. crude stood little changed at $44.14 a barrel.

Oil prices are off more than 50 per cent since June 2014 with a global supply glut also weighing heavily on the commodity

In recent weeks, oil rallied in volatile trading after falling to 6-1/2-year lows when a stock market slide in China sent global equities and commodities prices tumbling.

Sensex Slumps Over 400 Points, Nifty Below 7,700

After a two-day monstrous rally, BSE Sensex and Nifty were sharply lower on Thursday, tracking weak Asian stocks. The Sensex fell over 400 points while Nifty slumped below 7,700 levels. Rupee also fell today, hurting the sentiment in stock markets.

Here are top 10 developments:

1) Analysts say that in the short term Indian markets are likely to take cues from its global peers.

2) Indian markets are likely to remain volatile till the crucial US Fed meet, which is scheduled for September 16-17, say analysts. An interest rate hike in the US could accelerate the selling from foreign investors who would like to park their money in US bonds. Besides, a rate hike in the US would strengthen the dollar, putting further pressure on rupee.

3) Analysts also remain worried about the relentless selling from foreign investors in Indian stock markets. Foreign investors sold a record Rs 16,877 crore worth of domestic stocks in August. On top of that, they sold Indian stocks worth nearly Rs 6,000 crore in the past seven sessions.

4) Domestic institutional investors have been buyers of stocks despite the selloff from foreign investors, helping to provide some support to Indian markets. On Wednesday, they bought shares worth nearly Rs 1,200 crore. But analysts remain wary that domestic institutional investors may find themselves constrained to prop up the markets if the selling pressure from foreign investors does not ease.

5) Traders are also watching the value of the rupee which affects the dollar returns of foreign investors. The rupee traded lower at 66.74/dollar against Wednesday's close at 66.41.

6) After a two-day rally, Asian stocks fell today after US stocks retreated overnight and as Japan machinery orders unexpectedly shrank, deflating investors' appetite for riskier assets. Japan's key gauge of capital spending unexpectedly fell for a second straight month in July, signalling that the economy is struggling to get back on track after contracting in the second quarter.

7) Japan's Nikkei fell nearly 3 per cent while China stocks were down 1 per cent.

8) Also weighing on Asian markets, China's producer prices fell for the 42nd straight month in the latest sign that deflation remains a significant risk for the world's second-largest economy.

9) Overnight, in the US, S&P 500 ended down 1.5 per cent on Wednesday.

10) On Wednesday, Standard & Poor's downgraded Brazil to a junk-grade credit rating, just seven years after it first won an investment-grade rating. Brazil, one of the main commodity exporters to China and a member of the BRICS emerging economies (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), was until recently seen as one of the main drivers of the global economy.