Markets rise, NHPC zooms on raising capital, Zee resolves conflict with IndusInd Bank and more

Opening Bell:

SGX Nifty is up by 15.5 points in the early morning trade, indicating a positive opening for Indian stock market.

Asian stock market indexes are trading higher on Friday, tracking the positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The Japanese Nikkei is up by 0.93 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is up by 1.26 percent and South Korea’s Kospi is up by 0.92 percent in early morning deals.

U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday as easing fears of a banking crisis shifted the focus back to key consumer spending data due later in the week that could shape expectations for the Federal Reserve’s future policy path The S&P 500 was up 0.57 percent and Nasdaq Composite added 0.73 percent, respectively.

Stocks News:

?Reliance Industries Limited has started the process of demerger of its financial services business. A meeting of the creditors and shareholders of Reliance Industries will be held on May 02, 2023, to consider and approve the proposed scheme of arrangement between Reliance Industries Limited and Reliance Strategic Investments (RSIL). After the demerger, the name of the Reliance Strategic Investments shall be changed to Jio Financial Services Limited.

?Nestle is among final bidders competing to acquire India’s Capital Foods Pvt as it seeks to boost its presence in the fast-growing economy. Capital Foods makes the Ching’s Secret brand of spicy noodles and fusion chutneys infused with so-called “desi Chinese” flavors. It also sells Smith & Jones cooking pastes and masala mixes.

?Bajaj Auto has nearly 15 percent upside, according to JP Morgan, led by domestic and export demand recovery, rise in electric-vehicle (EV) volumes, and improving margins. Positive stance is driven by expectations of: (a) likely bottoming of exports (more than 50 percent of EBITDA) and potential recovery from 2QFY24; (b) domestic 2W recovery (industry still 21 percent below pre-Covid); (c) EV volume ramp up (both 2W and 3W); and (d) improving margins due to better overall mix.

?Four IPOs being launched for bidding on March 31 More than Rs 100 crore worth of funds is going to be raised by these four companies. Of these, MOS Utility and Infinium Pharmachem will be launched from the NSE Emerge platform and other two, Exhicon Events Media Solutions and Sancode Technologies, will open on the BSE SME segment.

?Foreign institutional investors (FII) bought shares worth Rs 1,245.39 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DII) bought shares worth Rs 822. 99 crores on March 29, National Stock Exchange’s provisional data showed.

Domestic and International Events

• Oil prices rose more than 1% on Thursday, supported by lower U.S. crude stockpiles and a halt to exports from Iraq’s Kurdistan region, which offset pressure from a smaller-than-expected cut to Russian supplies.
• Jeremy Siegel a renowned American economist and a professor of finance at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, also the author of the best-selling book, “Stocks for the Long Run” is out with a dire warning for investors in his recent commentary. He has declared that the US economy is on the verge of an economic downturn.
• China’s small banks have problems — but they don’t carry the same risks as those exposed by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, said Zhu Min, vice president of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, a state-backed think tank.
• Gold prices closed flat, drawing support from a weaker US dollar even as higher bond yields and receding fears of a full-blown banking crisis limited gains for the safe haven asset.

Key Equity Indices