Financials

A key index of the Indian equities markets Tuesday closed flat as a result of profit bookings, a day after it rallied 329.89 points, on the back of the recent state election results.

The 30-scrip S&P Sensex of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 21,293.58 points, closed at 21,255.26 points – down 71.16 points or 0.33 percent from its previous day’s close at 21,326.42 points.

The benchmark touched a high of 21,327.75 intra-day and a low of 21,175.08 points.

The wider 50-scrip S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) too closed flat.

Absence of a standard protocol for treatment has led to lack of uniformity in cost of treatments and there is a need to make affordable insurance products, a member of the insurance sector regulator Irda said here today.

“We have to have standard protocols in these areas (treatments) to work out appropriate insurance products that are affordable to consumers and at the same time do not adversely affect the bottom lines of service providers,” M Ramaprasad, Member (Non-Life), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) said.

The BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty soared to hit new all-time high of 21,483.74 and 6,415.25 points, respectively, on sustained fund inflows after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s spectacular performance in assembly elections amid a firming overseas trend.

The 30-share index, which had gained 287.82 points in the previous two sessions, zoomed to hit an all-time high of 21,483.74 by surging 487.21 points, or 2.32 per cent.

All the sectoral indices, led by banking and capital goods, were trading in positive territory with gains up to 3.68 per cent.

Extending its rising streak for the fourth straight day, the rupee appreciated by 51 paise to trade at nearly four-month high of 60.90 against the dollar in early trade today on sales of the US currency by banks and exporters and sustained foreign capital inflows.

Besides, a higher opening in the domestic equity market, where the Sensex soared to an all-time high of 21,483.74 points after BJP’s victory in state Assembly elections and strengthening of other currencies against the dollar overseas, also supported the local currency, forex dealers said.

Researchers have shown how the ubiquity of smart phones connected to the office network can be used to monitor occupancy and reduce heating or air conditioning for unused spaces.

Bruce Nordman of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, plus Ken Christensen of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of South Florida, and other colleagues from those institutions and the University of Puerto Rico at Arecibo, explain how implicit occupancy sensing can be undertaken using existing IT infrastructure.

The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy of the government has been amended.

According to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, the FDI policy will now allow unlisted firms to directly list on stock exchanges abroad.

The department said this amendment in the consolidated FDI policy will help to raise funds for acquisitions or clearing overseas debts.

It said that it might also help India to contain its high Current Account Deficit (CAD).

The department said the amended FDI policy will be in force for a period of two years on a pilot basis.

India’s foreign exchange (forex) reserves jumped by $5.03 billion to $291.30 billion for the week ended Nov 29, helped by a sharp increase in foreign currency assets, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed.

This is the fourth consecutive week of gain in the country’s foreign exchange reserves.

Forex reserves had soared by $2.69 billion to $286.26 billion during the week previous to this.

Wiping out early losses, the benchmark BSE Sensex today added 39 points to remain at a one-month high amid overseas capital inflows ahead of the assembly poll results.

However, the gauge failed to close above the 21,000 level for the second day in a row after touching an intra-day high of 21,049.84.

The index dropped to the day’s low of 20,922.45 points in early trade. It ended at 20,996.53, a gain of 38.72 points, or 0.18 per cent, the highest close since November 3. Yesterday, the Sensex had surged 249 points.

After galloping over 450 points on exit polls predicting gains for the BJP in key state elections, the benchmark Sensex today closed below 21,000-mark as profit booking curbed the rise to about 250 points.

Banking, capital goods and PSU shares were the leaders as nine 9 of the 13 sectoral indices on the BSE rose. However, healthcare, FMCG and IT shares fell.

The Sensex, which lost 189.30 points in the previous two sessions, shot up to day’s high of 21,165.60 before ending at 20,957.81 — a gain of 249.10 points, or 1.20 per cent.

The benchmark BSE Sensex today regained psychological 21,000 level by surging over 439 points in the opening trade on heavy fund inflows amidst exit polls forecasting good show by the BJP in state assembly elections.

The 30-share index, which had lost 189.30 points in the previous two sessions, rebounded by 439.55 points, or 2.12 per cent, to trade above 21,000 level at 21,148.26.

All the sectoral indices, led by banking, capital goods and realty, were trading in positive zone with gains up to 4.02 per cent.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram today said the government may not be able to announce amnesty programmes such as the Service Tax Voluntary Compliance Encouragement Scheme (VCES) for the next 20 years due to various factors, including curbs imposed by the Supreme Court.

Addressing an interactive session here with traders and senior Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax officials, the Finance Minister also said, “So far the government has received 9,000 declarations under the VCES, out of which only 107 have been rejected.”

The rupee recovered from early losses and gained 31 paise to close at a one-month high of 62.05 against the dollar today on fresh selling by exporters and banks, amid foreign capital inflows into local stocks.

The rupee opened lower at 62.40 per dollar against the previous close of 62.36 at the interbank foreign exchange market and dropped further to 62.55 on dollar demand from banks and importers.

It recovered to 62.04 per dollar before ending at 62.05, a gain of 31 paise or 0.50 per cent. The rupee is at the highest level since it ended at 61.62 on November 5.

The benchmark BSE Sensex today fell over 39 points in early trade on sustained selling by funds amid a weak trend in other Asian markets.

The 30-share index, which had lost 43.09 points in the previous session, fell further by 39.47 points, or 0.19 per cent, to 20,815.45, led by losses in stocks of banking, oil and gas, auto and FMCG sectors.

Similarly, the wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty declined by 13.75 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 6,188.10.

A benchmark index of Indian equities markets Tuesday ended trade 43 points or 0.21 percent lower as sentiments were hit by the US federal reserve possibly tapering of its bond buying programme.

Even the upbeat statement of Finance Minister P. Chidambram that there were signs of economic recovery on the basis of better-than-expected gross domestic product (GDP) data for the second quarter and India’s current account deficit declining to $5.2 billion from $21 billion in corresponding quarter of last year did not enthuse the market.

The BSE benchmark Sensex today fell by over 49 points in early trade as funds and retail investors booked profits after recent gains even as India’s current account gap narrowed sharply to USD 5.2 billion, or 1.2 per cent of GDP, in the July-September quarter of 2013-14.

The 30-share barometer, which had gained 477.75 points in the previous three sessions, moved down by 49.42 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 20,848.59, led by the weakness in banking, FMCG, realty and power sector stocks.

The S&P BSE benchmark Sensex extended gains for the third consecutive day, rising 100 points in late morning trade on sustained buying in healthcare, banking, capital goods, realty and power stocks as the economy grew by a higher-than-expected 4.8 per cent in the September quarter.

Good capital inflows from foreign funds also boosted the market sentiment. Also, foreign institutional investors bought shares worth a net Rs 745.16 crore, according to provisional data from the stock exchanges.

The rupee rose by 19 paise to 62.25 per dollar in late morning trade today on fresh selling of dollars by banks and exporters due to good capital inflows from foreign funds into equity market.

The rupee resumed higher at 62.35 per dollar as against the last closing level of 62.44 per dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) and firmed up further to 62.24 per dollar before quoting at 62.25 per dollar at 1040 hrs.

Persistent foreign capital inflows in view of firm trend in equity market mainly boosted the rupee value against the dollar, a forex dealer said.

As Bitcoin becomes more popular day by day, regulators are getting worried about potential money laundering risks associated with this digital currency and its possible misuse by fraudsters to lure gullible investors into ‘e-ponzi’ schemes.

Adding to the challenges posed by Bitcoin before the regulators, this e-currency is already being accepted by some online retailers in countries like the US, China and a few others, for various purposes including pizza delivery.

Bharatiya Mahila Bank, the first all-women bank inaugurated last month, expects its business to touch Rs 60,000 crore in the next seven years.

“We are aiming to achieve business mix (total deposit and advances) of Rs 60,000 crore by 2020,” Bharatiya Mahila Bank (BMB) Chairperson and Managing Director Usha Ananthasubramanian told PTI.

The bank has launched a few women specific products and is in process of launching few more, she said.

The RBI may allow up to 74 per cent foreign direct investment in credit information companies.

“The Reserve Bank may consider allowing higher FDI (foreign direct investment) limits to entities which have an established track record of running a credit information bureau in a well-regulated environment,” RBI said in a notification.

The limit can be allowed to be increased up to 49 per cent if their ownership is not well-diversified, which means if one or more shareholders each hold more than 10 per cent voting rights in the company.

Rising retail inflation has pushed homemakers to cut down their kitchen budgets and reduce consumption of essential commodities, including vegetables, fruits and pulses, by almost 40 per cent in the last three years, says an Assocham study.

High prices have forced households to compromise on nutrient-rich food, it said.

“Nearly 72 per cent of lower-middle class families, covered in the survey, said they have been forced to squeeze their budgets for fruits, vegetables and milk by about 40 per cent because of consistent high retail prices,” it said.