Stock Market HIGHLIGHTS: Sensex ends 378 pts higher, Nifty50 reclaims 17,850 after RBI hikes rate as expected
Stock Market HIGHLIGHTS: Indian quity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty50 rose on Wednesday after RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced a hike of 25 basis points in the repo rate, as widely expected by economists. Gains across sectors pushed the headline indices higher, with IT, oil & gas, financial and metal shares being at the forefront of the upmove.
Here are key things to know about the February 8 session on Dalal Street that saw a seventh back-to-back rate hike by the RBI since May 2022:
1. The Sensex finished the day 377.8 points or 0.6 per cent at 60,663.8 and the Nifty50 settled at 17,871.7, up 150.2 points or 0.9 per cent from its previous close — both holding on to much of their intraday gains. The 30-scrip gauge rose as much as 506.1 points during the session.
2. A total of 38 stocks in the Nifty50 basket finished higher. Adani Enterprises and Adani Ports were the top gainers, closing 23.1 per cent and nine per cent higher respectively. HDFC Life, SBI Life, Bajaj Finance, UltraTech and JSW Steel were among the other blue-chip top gainers, rising around 1-2 per cent for the day.
3. On the other hand, Larsen & Toubro, Eicher, Bharti Airtel, Hero MotoCorp, Axis Bank and HUL — clowing between 0.7 per cent and 1.5 per cent lower — were the top laggards.
4. Reliance, Infosys, Bajaj Finance and TCS were the biggests boosts for the 30-scrip index.
5. Overall market breadth favoured the bulls, as 1,994 stocks rose and 1,492 fell at the close on BSE.
6. The rupee strengthened by 21 paise or 0.3 per cent to settle at 82.49 against the US dollar.
7. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said the Indian economy remains resilient amid volatile global developments, as the central bank raised its growth forecasts while lowering its inflation projections. (Read more on RBI policy)
8. Das said the rupee has remained one of the least volatile Asian currencies in 2022 as well as 2023 so far. "In a fundamental sense, the movements of the rupee reflect the resilience of the Indian economy," he added. (Check out the full text of RBI Governor's speech)
9. European markets hit the highest level in more than nine months in early hours, mirroring gains across their Asian peers as investors digested remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell about how long the US central bank may need to tame inflation. The year 2023 should be of "significant declines in inflation", he said. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up 0.8 per cent at the last count.
10. S&P 500 futures were down 0.3 per cent, suggesting a weak start ahead on Wall Street.
Catch all key highlights of the day in the stock market, market commentary and analysis, expert views, financial results, investing and trading ideas, and much more here on Zeebiz.com's blog:
Stock Market HIGHLIGHTS: Indian quity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty50 rose on Wednesday after RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced a hike of 25 basis points in the repo rate, as widely expected by economists. Gains across sectors pushed the headline indices higher, with IT, oil & gas, financial and metal shares being at the forefront of the upmove.
Here are key things to know about the February 8 session on Dalal Street that saw a seventh back-to-back rate hike by the RBI since May 2022:
1. The Sensex finished the day 377.8 points or 0.6 per cent at 60,663.8 and the Nifty50 settled at 17,871.7, up 150.2 points or 0.9 per cent from its previous close — both holding on to much of their intraday gains. The 30-scrip gauge rose as much as 506.1 points during the session.
2. A total of 38 stocks in the Nifty50 basket finished higher. Adani Enterprises and Adani Ports were the top gainers, closing 23.1 per cent and nine per cent higher respectively. HDFC Life, SBI Life, Bajaj Finance, UltraTech and JSW Steel were among the other blue-chip top gainers, rising around 1-2 per cent for the day.
3. On the other hand, Larsen & Toubro, Eicher, Bharti Airtel, Hero MotoCorp, Axis Bank and HUL — clowing between 0.7 per cent and 1.5 per cent lower — were the top laggards.
4. Reliance, Infosys, Bajaj Finance and TCS were the biggests boosts for the 30-scrip index.
5. Overall market breadth favoured the bulls, as 1,994 stocks rose and 1,492 fell at the close on BSE.
6. The rupee strengthened by 21 paise or 0.3 per cent to settle at 82.49 against the US dollar.
7. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said the Indian economy remains resilient amid volatile global developments, as the central bank raised its growth forecasts while lowering its inflation projections. (Read more on RBI policy)
8. Das said the rupee has remained one of the least volatile Asian currencies in 2022 as well as 2023 so far. "In a fundamental sense, the movements of the rupee reflect the resilience of the Indian economy," he added. (Check out the full text of RBI Governor's speech)
9. European markets hit the highest level in more than nine months in early hours, mirroring gains across their Asian peers as investors digested remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell about how long the US central bank may need to tame inflation. The year 2023 should be of "significant declines in inflation", he said. The pan-European Stoxx 600 was up 0.8 per cent at the last count.
10. S&P 500 futures were down 0.3 per cent, suggesting a weak start ahead on Wall Street.
Catch all key highlights of the day in the stock market, market commentary and analysis, expert views, financial results, investing and trading ideas, and much more here on Zeebiz.com's blog:
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Closing Bell | Sensex up 378 pts at 60,664, Nifty50 at 17,872
Here's how the headline indices moved through the day:
Sensex
Nifty50
Buy MPhasis, Bajaj Finance: Shivangi Sarda
Shivangi Sarda of Motilal Oswal Financial Services has two stock picks for Zee Business viewers:
- Buy MPhasis for a target of Rs 2,240 with a stop loss at Rs 2,095
- Buy Bajaj Finance for a target of Rs 6,570 with a stop loss at Rs 6,190
RBI unlikely to announce a rate cut this year: Bank of Baroda's Madan Sabnavis
Madan Sabnavis, Chief Economist at Bank of Baroda, says the major takeaway of the RBI's latest policy review is that there will be a prolonged pause for sure before any further action, which will be data-driven. "It looks like that there is an upside risk to the inflation number and hence a rate hike could be thought of later. A rate cut during the year looks more unlikely and can be on the cards only when there is a change in stance first," he adds.
Buy Biocon, targets Rs 250, Rs 255: Sumeet Bagadia
Sumeet Bagadia of Choice Broking recommends buying Biocon shares for targets of Rs 250 and Rs 255 with a stop loss at Rs 235. The stock has rebounded from lower levels in the past two sessions and looks set for more upside, Bagadia says in an interaction with Zee Business Managing Editor Anil Singhvi.
Once the stock sustains the Rs 255 level, it can continue its upmove to even higher levels, Bagadia adds.
Reliance, Infosys, Adani En, Bajaj Finance top Nifty50 movers; L&T, Bharti Airtel top drags
Here's what the heatmap for the 50-scrip headline index looks like less than 20 minutes before the closing bell:
Market Update | Nifty Metal, Nifty IT top gainers among NSE's sectoral indices
| Index | Change (%) |
| NIFTY REALTY | 0 |
| NIFTY FMCG | 0.1 |
| NIFTY BANK | 0.1 |
| NIFTY PRIVATE BANK | 0.1 |
| NIFTY AUTO | 0.3 |
| NIFTY PSU BANK | 0.3 |
| NIFTY FINANCIAL SERVICES | 0.5 |
| NIFTY CONSUMER DURABLES | 0.6 |
| NIFTY OIL & GAS | 0.6 |
| NIFTY MEDIA | 0.7 |
| NIFTY PHARMA | 1.3 |
| NIFTY HEALTHCARE INDEX | 1.4 |
| NIFTY IT | 1.6 |
| NIFTY METAL | 3.5 |
Buy L&T Finance Holdings: Ruchit Jain
Ruchit Jain of 5Paisa suggests going long on L&TFH for a target of Rs 98 with a stop loss at Rs 89.
Shree Cement shares slide into the red after Q3 results
The cement maker reports a net profit of Rs 277 crore for the quarter ended December as against a net profit of Rs 492 crore for the corresponding period a year ago.
Its revenue comes in at Rs 4,070 crore for the third quarter of the current financial year, as against Rs 3,552 crore for the year-ago period, according to a regulatory filing.
Buy Bharat Petroleum: Mehul Kothari
Mehul Kothari of Anand Rathi Shares & Stock Brokers shares two stock ideas:
- Buy BPCL at Rs 332 for a target of Rs 352 with a stop loss at Rs 322
- Buy the Rs 2,150 call option of MPhasis at Rs 48 for a target of Rs 80 with a stop loss at Rs 28
Buy Triveni Turbine, KPIT Tech: Swati Hotkar
Swati Hotkar of Nirmal Bang Securities shares two stock picks:
- Buy Triveni Turbine for a target of Rs 350 with a stop loss at Rs 275
- Buy KPIT Tech for a target of Rs 840 with a stop loss at Rs 780
RBI Policy LIVE | MPC votes 4:6 to hike rate in Feb 2023 review, to continue with current policy stance
Four of the six MPC members voted to continue with its current policy stance of "withdrawal of accommodation".
RBI delivers its 6th straight rate hike of the current cycle of tightening
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announces a hike of 25 basis points in the repo rate, the key interest rate at which it lends money to commercial banks, to 6.5 per cent. This is its sixth back-to-back increase in the key lending rate in the current cycle of monetary tightening.
The RBI Governor-led Monetary Policy Committee — the central bank's rate-deciding panel — voted 6:4 for the increase in rates.
It lowers the consumer inflation projection for the year ending March 2023 to 6.5 per cent from 6.7 per cent, and for the quarter ending March 2023 to 5.6 per cent from 5.9 per cent. It pegs inflation in the next year at 5.3 per cent.
The RBI forecasts the country's real GDP to grow 6.4 per cent in the year ending March 2024. For the quarter ending June 2023, the RBI projects GDP growth of 7.8 per cent, higher than its earlier estimate of 7.1 per cent.
Rate-sensitive stocks a mixed bag ahead of RBI policy decision
Banking and other financial services
| Stock | Change (%) |
| HDFCLIFE | 2.47 |
| CHOLAFIN | 2.19 |
| ICICIPRULI | 1.76 |
| SBILIFE | 1.61 |
| BAJFINANCE | 1.48 |
| SHRIRAMFIN | 0.83 |
| SBIN | 0.76 |
| ICICIBANK | 0.68 |
| HDFC | 0.63 |
| HDFCBANK | 0.6 |
| BAJAJFINSV | 0.56 |
| ICICIGI | 0.44 |
| AXISBANK | 0.3 |
| HDFCAMC | 0.25 |
| SBICARD | 0.1 |
| KOTAKBANK | -0.02 |
| RECLTD | -0.29 |
| PFC | -0.38 |
| IEX | -0.54 |
| MUTHOOTFIN | -0.69 |
Auto
| Stock | Change (%) |
| SONACOMS | 1.6 |
| M&M | 0.44 |
| TATAMOTORS | 0.42 |
| TVSMOTOR | 0.37 |
| BALKRISIND | 0.05 |
| MARUTI | -0.07 |
| BOSCHLTD | -0.16 |
| ASHOKLEY | -0.17 |
| BHARATFORG | -0.42 |
| BAJAJ-AUTO | -0.51 |
| MOTHERSON | -0.62 |
| TIINDIA | -0.66 |
| MRF | -0.74 |
| HEROMOTOCO | -1.19 |
| EICHERMOT | -1.26 |
Realty
| Stock | Change (%) |
| SOBHA | 0.29 |
| DLF | 0.17 |
| GODREJPROP | -0.19 |
| LODHA | -0.36 |
| IBREALEST | -0.47 |
| OBEROIRLTY | -0.51 |
| BRIGADE | -0.53 |
| PRESTIGE | -0.79 |
| SUNTECK | -1.92 |
| PHOENIXLTD | -4.42 |
Consumer Durables
| Stock | Change (%) |
| TITAN | 1.01 |
| VGUARD | 0.61 |
| BLUESTARCO | 0.48 |
| KAJARIACER | 0.39 |
| AMBER | 0.36 |
| HAVELLS | 0.35 |
| VOLTAS | -0.15 |
| WHIRLPOOL | -0.33 |
| CROMPTON | -0.39 |
| RELAXO | -0.54 |
| DIXON | -0.58 |
| BATAINDIA | -0.6 |
| TTKPRESTIG | -0.64 |
| ORIENTELEC | -1.43 |
| RAJESHEXPO | -1.91 |
RBI rate decision due at 10 am; could the central bank spell a pause in increases for now?
The RBI's Monetary Policy Committee — the central bank's rate-deciding panel — will announce its first policy statement of 2023 shortly.
The committee is likely to go for a hike of 25 basis points in the repo rate — the benchmark interest rate at which the RBI lends money to commercial banks — to 6.5 per cent, according to a poll of economists by Zee Business.
Here's what to expect from RBI policy today | Catch LIVE RBI policy updates here