The domestic equity benchmarks ended with minor gains on Wednesday. The Nifty closed above the 24,750 mark after hitting the day’s low of 24,654.50 in early trade. Consumer durables, FMCG and media shares advanced while realty, PSU bank and bank shares declined.

As per provisional closing, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, gained 102.44 points or 0.13% to 80,905.30. The Nifty 50 index added 71.35 points or 0.29% to 24,770.20.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.43% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.87%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,611 shares rose and 1,340 shares fell. A total of 87 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, tumbled 3.52% to 13.33.

IPO Update :

The initial public offer (IPO) of Orient Technologies received 3,91,69,656 bids for shares as against 74,49,846 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:25 IST on Wednesday (21 August 2024). The issue was subscribed 5.26 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Wednesday (21 August 2024) and it will close on Friday (23 August 2024). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 195 to Rs 206 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 72 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

The initial public offer (IPO) of Interarch Building Products received 37,11,59,104 bids for shares as against 46,91,585 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:25 IST on Wednesday (21 August 2024). The issue was subscribed 79.11 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Monday (19 August 2024) and it will close on Wednesday (21 August 2024). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 850 to Rs 900 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 16 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Consumer Durables index added 1.47% to 40,671.15. The index rallied 6.43% in eight consecutive trading sessions.

Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals (up 3.19%), Titan Company (up 2.45%), Havells India (up 1.65%), Voltas (up 1.21%), Cera Sanitaryware (up 1.13%), Dixon Technologies (India) (up 0.42%), V-Guard Industries (up 0.4%), Whirlpool of India (up 0.15%), Kajaria Ceramics (up 0.15%) and Bata India (up 0.1%) edged higher.

On the other hand, Amber Enterprises India (down 1.4%), Blue Star (down 0.15%) and Rajesh Exports (down 0.03%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Larsen & Toubro rose 0.59%. The EPC major announced that it has secured a large order for its Transportation Infrastructure Business for the integrated infrastructure development project in Navi Mumbai.

Meanwhile, the company informed that the Bombay High Court has quashed and set aside the show-cause notice and Rs 2,237-crore demand issued by the GST authorities.

Hindustan Zinc shed 0.35%. The company announced that it has received a GST demand notice amounting to Rs 26.12 crore from the Office of the Commissioner of Central Excise & CGST Commissionerate.

Exide Industries advanced 2.31% after the company said that it has invested Rs 74.99 crore in its wholly owned subsidiary, Exide Energy Solutions (EESL) by way of subscription to share capital on right basis.

Oriental Rail Infrastructure was locked in 5% upper circuit after the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 4.37 crore in Q1 FY25 as compared with net loss of Rs 8.01 crore posted in Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations was at Rs 172.03 crore in first quarter of FY25, registering a growth of 42.91% as against Rs 120.37 crore posted a year ago.

Genus Power Infrastructures was locked in 5% upper circuit after the company’s subsidiary secured three letters of award (LoAs) worth Rs 3,608.52 crore.

RMC switchgears was locked in 5% upper circuit after the company’s subsidiary, RMC Green Energy secured approval from the Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation to establish a 50 megawatt (MW) renewable energy park in Rajasthan.

Indoco Remedies gained 4.84% after the firm received final approval from the US Food and Drug administration (USFDA) for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) for Lofexidine Tablets. Lofexidine Tablets is indicated for mitigation of symptoms associated with acute withdrawal from opioids and for facilitation of the completion of opioid discontinuation treatment.

Global Markets:

European stocks advanced while most Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday, tracking a pullback on Wall Street and reflecting investor caution ahead of a key speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell later this week.

The weakness in the U.S. market, where the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 0.15%, the S&P 500 fell 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.33%, spilled over into Asia.

Japan's Nikkei index likely mirrored this cautiousness, as data revealed a smaller-than-expected export growth and a surge in imports, resulting in a trade deficit for July.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was further pressured by a significant decline in e-commerce giant JD.com's stock price. News reports suggesting Walmart's planned sale of its stake in JD.com for $3.74 billion contributed to the 11% drop in JD stock.