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Israel’s Innovative ‘Sponge Bombs’: Unveiling a Unique Tool to Counter Gaza’s Underground Tunnels

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Israel is on the verge of introducing a groundbreaking tactical tool, referred to as the “sponge bomb,” in its ongoing efforts to counteract the complex network of underground tunnels used by Hamas in Gaza.

These specialized devices are encased within a protective plastic container featuring a precisely engineered metal barrier that divides two distinct liquids. When the moment arises, a trained soldier activates the “sponge bomb,” allowing these liquids to merge as it advances towards its intended destination.The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have ingeniously designed these “sponge bombs” to serve a very particular purpose. Unlike traditional explosive devices, they do not inflict harm through explosions. Instead, they work by promptly sealing any gaps or tunnel openings that might be exploited by hostile combatants.

To address this intricate challenge, the IDF has formed specialized tunnel reconnaissance units within the engineering corps. These units are equipped with an array of cutting-edge tools, including ground-penetrating radar, both aerial and ground sensors, and advanced drilling systems.Recent reports indicate that IDF personnel have been furnished with specialized equipment to facilitate underground visibility. Given the absence of natural light in the underground environment, troops are now reliant on thermal technology for night vision, supplemented by specially designed radios capable of reliable communication in these challenging conditions.In addition to these measures, Israel is actively exploring the use of drones and robots to navigate the complex tunnel network. However, deploying these technologies underground has posed significant technical challenges.The introduction of the “sponge bomb” and these highly specialized tools represents a concerted effort by Israel to adapt and respond effectively to the evolving threats posed by underground tunnel networks. These endeavours are part of a broader strategy to ensure the safety and security of Israeli soldiers as they confront the complex and perilous reality of the “Gaza Strip.”

Nifty has to hold above 15,150 to continue bullish trend; HDFC Bank among 4 technical stocks to buy

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By Shrikant Chouhan

The market continued to remain range bound, trading between 15150/51200 and 14900/50200 levels. However, towards the end, Nifty IT and Bank Nifty helped the broader market to move higher. To a greater extent, broad-based buying in the technology sector has helped the market to close higher compared to the financial sector. From the financial sector, private banks topped the day, while the PSU banks closed in the negative territory on Tuesday. The Nifty and Sensex have formed bullish reversal formation by closing at the highest point of the day. On the day of the weekly expiration of Index options, we could see a bullish continuation if these indices manage to hold above 15150/51200 levels. Above, 15150/51200 the market would face the biggest hurdle at 15270/51750. If the index falls below the level of 15000/50750, the bullish pattern would fail.

HDFC Bank 

BUY, CMP: Rs 1,562.5, TARGET: Rs 1,640, SL: Rs 1,530

Post correction from the multiple highs of around 1630 the stock was into a sloping channel formation, eventually, it has managed to reverse from support of its 50 day SMA and formed a bullish candlestick formation on the daily chart.

Tech Mahindra

BUY, CMP: Rs 988.15, TARGET: Rs 1,040, SL: Rs 965

On the weekly chart, after the vertical rally from the lows of 460 to 1080 stock had corrected and got stuck in a broader range for few weeks and currently a breakout from its inverse head and shoulder chart pattern along with closure above 50 day SMA is evident which indicates a new leg of the uptrend from current levels.

Escorts Ltd 

BUY, CMP: Rs 1,362.6, TARGET: Rs 1,430, SL: Rs 1,335

The stock had reversed sharply with a long bullish candle from its short term trend line on the weekly chart, and is into a rising channel pattern forming a higher top and higher bottom series with incremental volume activity on the daily chart.

Ambuja Cements

BUY, CMP: Rs 291.05, TARGET: Rs 305, SL: Rs 285

The stock is comfortably trading above the upper range of the parabolic SAR indicator which indicates a strong trending up move in the stock to persist. Moreover, the structure of the stock has a bullish continuation formation with a higher bottom series on the daily chart which specifies bullish momentum to continue over a period of time.

(Shrikant Chouhan is the Executive Vice President, Equity Technical Research at Kotak Securities. Views expressed are the author’s own.)

Yields rise to 7.312% on hawkish Fed stance

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Bond yields went up to 7.312% on Thursday, a level last seen on August 8. Dealers said the markets were somewhat nervous after the US Fed hiked the funds rate by 75 bps and sounded more hawkish than expected.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) meets next week to review the monetary policy. The markets are expecting a 50-bps hike in the repo which would take it to 5.9% from 5.4% at present. The central bank’s commentary on liquidity is keenly awaited given that the banking system liquidity has slipped into a deficit.

Meanwhile, the RBI received bids worth Rs 94,267 crore for the overnight variable rate repo auction on Thursday, nearly twice the notified amount of Rs 50,000 crore. The cut-off rate was 5.58%, a little lower than the Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) rate of 5.65%.The auction was ostensibly aimed at helping ease the liquidity deficit which had gone up to Rs 21,873 on Tuesday.

On Wednesday the net injection of funds was much smaller at Rs 11,886.4 crore. The weighted call money rate which had gone up to 5.64% on Tuesday, remained steady on Wednesday. The money supply data from the central bank revealed that currency with the public stood at Rs 2.3 trillion as on September 9, up 8% year-on-year.

Buy these two stocks with strong support on charts while Nifty reverses its short-term uptrend

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By Subash Gangadharan

Markets have reversed their short term uptrend this week. The reversal was confirmed once the recent low of 14222 was broken on Wednesday. With the Nifty now trading below the 20 day SMA and the 14 day RSI in decline mode, the technical indicators too are confirming the weakness seen in the markets.We expect the Nifty to play down towards the next support of 13707 in the coming sessions. This level coincides with the 50 day SMA. A failure to hold above this support could see the Nifty moving down further towards a trend line support at 13330. Any pullback rallies could find resistance at 14238.Buy SBI LifeSBI Life has corrected from a high of 955 and recently tested the 200-day EMA. Today, it bounced back from these supports and showed relative strength against the Nifty which is in correction mode.

Also Read: Share market live update; Check how Dalal Street benchmark indices are performing today

With the medium and long term technical setups looking healthy, we expect the stock to gradually move higher in the coming weeks. We, therefore, recommend a Buy between the 870-890 levels. CMP is 883. Stop loss is at 835 while targets are at 1000.

Buy Container CorporationContainer Corporation has shown relative strength this week. While the Nifty has corrected, Container Corp has bounced back from a low of 403 and gained 1.22% so far this week.

The 200 day EMA and 50 day SMA are currently providing support to the stock. With the medium and long term technical setups looking healthy, we expect the stock to gradually move higher in the coming weeks. We, therefore, recommend a Buy between the 430-436 levels. CMP is 433.9. Stop loss is at 410 while targets are at 490.

(Subash Gangadharan is a Senior Technical and Derivative Analyst at HDFC Securities. The views expressed are the author’s own. Please consult your financial advisor before investing.)

Rupee tumbles to record low, breaches 81-mark intra-day

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The rupee plunged to a fresh record low on Friday, hitting 81.2250 to the dollar in intra-day trades before closing at 80.99 per dollar, against Thursday’s close of 80.86. Currency market dealers said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had intervened in the market, though this could not be independently confirmed. The rupee has now closed lower in seven out of eight sessions.

Meanwhile, the yield on the benchmark closed at 7.393%, a level last seen on July 22, up 8 basis points over Thursday’s close of 7.312%.

Also Read: US Stocks: Wall Street set for fresh bout of selling on growth angst

The sentiment in the currency market has worsened after the US Fed hiked benchmark rates by 75 bps on Wednesday and its commentary sounded more hawkish than anticipated. The escalation of geopolitical tensions added to the gloom.

Ritesh Bhusari, DGM- Treasury, South Indian Bank, said it was possible the rupee could go to lower levels if policy rates do not increase here as per the expectations. The dollar is strong, there have been FPI outflows and that there is demand for dollars from importers. “The central bank would want to minimise volatility in the currency market but the rupee could fall to levels of 81.50,” he said.

Bhusari said he is expecting higher cut-offs at the T-Bill auction next week. “The OIS market is already indicating rates could head up,” he said

While bond yields were relatively steady ahead of the Fed rate hike, in anticipation India would soon join a global bond index, yields have trended up in the last few sessions. Moreover, the banking system saw a liquidity deficit on a couple of days earlier this week.

Pointing out that the yield on the Indian benchmark has risen far less than the yield on the 10-year US treasury, over the past one month or so, Wadhwa said it was possible yields would go up further. “While earlier the expectation was that RBI would hike the repo by 35 bps, it now looks like it’s going to be 50 bps,” he said.

Bhusari said he was expecting higher cut-offs at the T-Bill auction next week. “The OIS market is already indicating rates could head up,” he said.

Sebi to auction properties of Saradha Group of Companies on November 1

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Markets regulator Sebi on Friday said it has lined up as many as 69 properties of Saradha Group of Companies for an auction on November 1 at a reserve price of Rs 30 crore.

The move is part of Sebi’s efforts to recover money raised by the company from public through illicit schemes.

Also Read: Sebi allows foreign investors to trade in commodity derivatives

The properties to go under the hammer include land parcels located in West Bengal.

The total reserve price of these properties is pegged at about Rs 30 crore and the regulator has appointed C1 India as the e-auction provider. Online registration and e-auction will be conducted through Quikr Realty.

The development came after the Calcutta High Court passed an order in June, whereby it directed Sebi to proceed with the auction of properties of Saradha Group of Companies. The entire exercise was directed to be completed within 3 months.

Saradha Group, a consortium of over 239 private companies, allegedly ran chit fund operations in West Bengal, Assam and Odisha and mopped up Rs 4,000 crore from 1.7 million depositors before it collapsed in April 2013.

As per the notice, the market watchdog said bidders should make their own independent enquiries regarding the encumbrances, litigations, attachments, acquisition liabilities of the property put on auction, prior to submitting their bid.

“The properties are being sold with all the existing and future encumbrances, whether known or unknown to Sebi/ the agency. Sebi/ the agency shall not be responsible in any way for any third party claims/rights/dues, etc,” the notice said.

Delhivery Rating: Reduce – Relying on past track record in network infra

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Operationally, Delhivery is well-positioned to drive a 26% decadal Ebitda CAGR, much ahead of sectoral volume growth prospects. Its diversified customer & business mix should protect it strategically from changes in the industry structure. The CMP does not factor in a growth moderation in e-commerce sector volumes and limitations to the pace of share gains in the PTL (Partial Truckload) business. We initiate with a Reduce rating and a DCF-based FV of Rs 540.

Past decade of investments make Delhivery well-placed to grow market share, margin and TAMWe expect Delhivery to record an Ebitda CAGR of 26% over FY2025-35E, much ahead of the sectoral growth prospects in its current segments. We expect such an outperformance to be driven by a combination of Delhivery gaining market share in its existing lines of work, growing profitability and entering the large-sized Slow Part Truck Load segment. The key hypotheses are: (i) Delhivery’s ability to continue scaling up its presence; and (ii) Delhivery retaining a part of the incremental cost deflation benefits. On scalability, we rely on Delhivery benefitting from and sustaining past track record of investments in network infrastructure and technology.

We expect 26% revenue CAGR over FY2022-25E and FCF generation from FY2026Adjusted for SpotOn, we see 26% revenue CAGR over FY2022-25E. We are ~6% below consensus, as we factor in a moderation in sectoral e-com activity and limitations to how fast Delhivery can grow the PTL business from current scale. We expect adjusted Ebitda margin to improve to 7.6% from 1% over FY2022-25E.

Initiate with REDUCE and a DCF-based FV of Rs 540In our DCF-based FV, we factor in a healthy ~24%/26% CAGR in revenues/service Ebitda over FY2025-35E, 10%/11% over FY2035-45E and 5% terminal growth; corporate overheads growing at a slower 16%/8% CAGR over FY2025-35E/35-45E; and modest improvements in capex intensity and working capital on incremental sales.

Kharif castor sowing rises by over 1,00,000 hectare in 2022-23 season: SEAI

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Kharif castor sowing for 2022-23 season in the country has gone up by over 1,00,000 hectare from 0.74 million hectare to more than 0.88 million hectare due to prevailing higher prices of oilseeds, as per Solvent Extractors’ Association of India (SEAI).

Due to prevailing higher prices of castor seeds, farmers have opted for castor crop over groundnut in Gujarat and Rajasthan – the two major castor seed producing states, said Atul Chaturvedi, president of SEAI.

“Prices of castor seeds in the current month have crossed Rs 1,500 per 20 kg in the domestic market which was around Rs 1,200 per 20 kg in September 2021, “said Shailesh Baldha, Head, Castor Division, Adani Wilmar. According to him, prices of castor oil too are as high as $1,850 (nearly Rs 1.48 lakh) per tonne compared to nearly $1,300 (nearly Rs 1.04 lakh) per tonne last season in the same month.

Also Read: NCDEX relaunches derivatives contract in Robusta Cherry AB Coffee

The main reason for higher prices of castor is tight supply of the commodity during the current 2021-22 season. Due to this factor, prices of castor oil remained higher despite a dip in exports, Baldha said. As per SEAI, exports of castor oil remained at 4,19,759 MT for the first eight months (January-August) of the current calendar year as against 5,03,420 MT during the same period of year 2021.

Due to recession in China, castor oil exports have plummeted but tight supply kept the prices high globally. With over 40% share in India’s total exports, China is the biggest consumer of castor oil from India. Carry forward stock of castor was less than 1,00,000 tonne in the current 2021-22 season compared to 2,50,000 tonne previous year.

For the upcoming 2022-23 season, carry forward stock is likely to remain even lower. Castor oil and its derivatives are used in many industries, including air-conditioning, air-fuel, pharmaceutical, dyes & chemical, soap, paints, inks, plastic, perfumes, adhesive, paper, lubricants, food, rubber and others. The US and European countries are also importing castor oil from India.

Apart from these markets, India also exports castor oil to Middle East and Latin American countries. India is the largest producer of castor and castor oil in the world with almost 90% share. In India, Gujarat has a lion’s share of 80% in production of castor seed. Apart from Gujarat, castor is being cultivated in Rajasthan, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in smaller quantities.

Global Markets: Stocks slip, yields climb on oil, economy worries

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A two-day stock rally lost steam Wednesday, as Wall Street turned lower and Treasury yields regained ground as the prospect of higher oil prices and continued Federal Reserve rate hikes weighed on investors.

U.S. stocks stepped back from steep losses but remained lower in midday trading, after opening the fourth quarter with surging gains over the last two days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was last down 0.22%, the S&P 500 fell and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.69%.

At the same time, U.S. Treasury yields reversed two days of losses to resume an upward climb as investors lost hope the Fed might be ready sooner to ease up on higher interest rates in its inflation battle. The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasuries , was up 16 basis points to 3.7729%.

Also Read: Global Markets: Dust settles on stocks surge, OPEC+ talks supply cuts

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback versus a basket of six currencies, regained 1.12% to 111.291 after two days of sharp declines.

Stocks surged earlier in the week on some signs that the economy was slowing, in turn hinting central banks could begin preparing to back away from persistent interest rate increases.

But that hope took a blow Wednesday on several fronts. The Bank of New Zealand stuck with a sizeable rate hike, the ADP National Employment report showed private employment rising by more than estimated in September, and the Institute for Supply Management reported the service sector shrank less than expected in September and employment ticked up. That all combined to suggest the economy was not yet slowing enough in response to rate hikes for central banks to rethink their approach.

“The stock and bond rally of the last few days was driven by weaker economic and labor market data. Today, stocks and bonds are both selling off after a more hawkish policy decision from New Zealand and stronger economic data from the U.S.,” said Jacob Manoukian, U.S. head of investment strategy at JPMorgan Private Bank.

“It’s hard to read too much into day to day price moves when markets are this skittish, but the broad driver of markets for the rest of the third quarter will probably be the trajectory of policy rates.”

Also Read: US stocks: Wall Street closes with sharp gains as final quarter begins

Oil prices looked set to enjoy a third straight day of gains, hitting a three-week high after OPEC+ key ministers, known as the joint ministerial monitoring committee, agreed to cut oil output by 2 million barrels per day, which accounts for roughly 2% of global supply.

Brent crude was last up 2.11% at $93.75 a barrel. U.S. crude was last up 1.88% at $88.14 per barrel.

Elsewhere, spot gold traded at around $1,711 per ounce, down about 84%.

IPOs worth Rs 24k cr face uncertainty

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The turmoil in Indian equities last week has put a cloud on public share sales lined up for this year.

Regulatory approvals for as many as 19 initial public offerings (IPOs), valid for a year, expire in the next two months. Most of these IPOs may not be able to hit the market within the given timeframe, said a senior banker familiar with matter. Together, these firms aim to raise anywhere between Rs 23,000-24,000 crore.

“Markets are still volatile. A few launches would happen but a deluge of IPOs is unlikely,” said Pranav Haldea, managing director, PRIME Database. “We have seen this in the past as well. If market conditions are not good, companies are happy to let the approval lapse.”

Also Read: Mankind Pharma files papers for $700 million plus IPO; Largest ever in sector

The benchmark BSE Sensex slid 1.6% last week.

Experts suggest that there is a large pool of private capital available today and public markets are not the only source of funds.

“As we have seen lately, withdrawal of draft offers may happen for some issuers who may have imminent funding requirement or would want to pursue a strategic investment route instead,” said Ravi Dubey, partner, IndusLaw.

API Holdings, owner of India’s largest online pharmacy PharmEasy, for instance, withdrew its IPO last month, citing market conditions and strategic considerations. The company said it plans to raise funds via a rights issue.

“Investors have put in stronger filters in terms of business models, management quality and profitability while selecting companies. That’s why we are not seeing the kind of rush that we saw last year,” said a senior banker, on condition of anonymity.

This also rules out the possibility of new-age firms tapping the market any time soon. “It will be tough for loss-making companies to launch in these conditions, unless they become profitable or demonstrate a defined path to profitability,” said a second banker.

To be sure, the success of Dreamfolks Services and Harsha Engineer this month has buoyed sentiment somewhat. The sub-thousand crore issues were oversubscribed 57x and 74x, respectively.

“A fair number of mid-size issuers with strong fundamentals are receiving positive feedback during roadshows and investors are nudging them for a launch,” said a lawyer.

But the markets are still waiting for an opportune time to launch thousand-crore-plus issues. One of the reasons for the lacklustre response for big-ticket trades, according to the lawyer, is the mismatch in valuation expectations between promoters and investors.

Several larger companies had done their roadshows between May and July, and got a weak response from investors as the markets were in considerable turmoil. Investors were not receptive, particularly to sectors such as BFSI back then. Some of the companies in this space are trying to hit the market again amid an uptick in sentiment but the going may be difficult, said bankers.

Last week, Ujjivan Small Finance Bank raised Rs 475 crore through a qualified institutional placement. In August, AU Small Finance Bank raised around Rs 2,000 crore from qualified institutional investors.

“We have started receiving inquiries for mid-size IPOs in varied sectors, including financial services, manufacturing and healthcare,” said Dubey. However, the heightened regulatory scrutiny may impact the timelines in receiving final approval and it is advisable for IPO candidates to factor this in for their listing plans, he added.

Sixty seven companies with issuances worth nearly Rs 1 trillion have the regulatory approval. Another 46 companies that could potentially raise Rs 67,000 crore are awaiting regulatory nod.