Asian Paints Rating: buy; Not just a shade card; a full catalogue

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We expect Asian Paints (APL) to reinforce its leadership in FY23 with double-digit volume growth. Q2FY23 in our view, will likely benefit from a strong September, but see a weak Jul-Aug as heavy rains delay exterior painting. On a three-year basis, APL’s 20% CAGR is much brighter than the industry’s 15%. Auto coatings has picked up well with a fair share in Indian OEMs. Kitchen, bath, lighting etc. make up 4% of revenue, and APL aims to scale it up to 8–10% in four years.

Waterproofing revenue, which had doubled in FY22, would continue to undergo strong double-digit growth. In our view, the paints sector has huge moats, and would not be an easy pushover for new entrants. Maintain ‘BUY’ with a TP of `3,815.

Also read: Paytm share price rises 7% in 6 months, may rally this much more; JP Morgan bullish, should you buy?

* Demand: July-August demand postponed due to excessive rainfall. Management anticipates a good festive season—advanced to the third week of October.

* Barring crude-linked raw material (RM), majority of the RMs have not stabilised.

* Waterproofing business: Doing well in repair and renovation. In our view, Pidilite is more into new projects, so we expect both to do well.

* 22 patents filed; 29 products developed in FY22. 200-plus scientists in R&D: It is focussed on alternative material sourcing and formulation optimisation.

* Second factory in Bangladesh with initial capacity of 25,000KL/year operational.

* Indonesia foray: APL is gaining good presence in the ‘value for money’ market segment.

* Safe Painting service gained major traction in FY22, up almost 3x YoY. This is a strong differentiator vis-à-vis competition.

Outlook and valuation: Fundamentals strong; maintain ‘BUY’

Also read: Tata Motors eyes 4WD in its upcoming electric SUVs to level up its EV game

APL continues to be the dominant player, and we expect the status quo to sustain despite Grasim’s impending entry. APL’s industry-leading growth in the decorative segment (31%/36% y-o-y by volume/value in FY22) was driven by upgradation of ‘bottom-of-the-pyramid’ and focus on premiumising the mid/top-end. Auto coatings has picked up well over the past 5-6 months, and APL has a fair share of Indian OEMs.

Kitchen, bath, lighting and others make up 4% of revenue. APL aims to scale it up to 8–10% of revenue in four years. The Indonesia arm too has scaled up well due to creditable presence in ‘value for money’. We expect meaningful growth in decorative volumes to sustain. Maintain ‘BUY/SO’ with a target price of `3,815.

OPEC+ agrees deep cuts to oil production despite US pressure

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OPEC+ agreed its deepest cuts to oil production since the 2020 COVID pandemic at a Vienna meeting on Wednesday, curbing supply in an already tight market despite pressure from the United States and others to pump more.

The cut could spur a recovery in oil prices that have dropped to about $90 from $120 three months ago on fears of a global economic recession, rising US interest rates and a stronger dollar.

“Higher oil prices, if driven by sizeable production cuts, would likely irritate the Biden Administration ahead of U.S. mid-term elections,” Citi analysts said in a note.

Also Read: Crude oil may fall to Rs 6500/bbl, recession, rate hike talks may weigh on oil prices; adopt sell on

“There could be further political reactions from the U.S., including additional releases of strategic stocks, along with some wildcards including further fostering of a NOPEC bill,” Citi said, referring to a U.S. antitrust bill against OPEC.

JPMorgan also said it expected Washington to put in place counter measures by releasing more oil stocks.

OPEC+ sources said the agreed production cuts of 2 million bpd or 2% of global demand would be made from existing baseline figures.

That means the cuts would be less deep because OPEC+ fell about 3.6 million barrels per day short of its output target in August.

Under-production happened because of Western sanctions on countries such as Russia, Venezuela and Iran and output problems with producers such as Nigeria and Angola.

Also Read: Make the right energy choices

Goldman Sachs analysts said they estimated the real production cuts would therefore amount to 0.4-0.6 million bpd mainly by Gulf OPEC producers such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

Analysts from Jefferies said they estimated the real cuts at 0.9 million bpd.

OIL PRICES RISE

Saudi Arabia and other members of OPEC+ – which groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers including Russia – have said they are seeking to prevent volatility rather than to target a particular oil price.

Benchmark Brent crude traded flat at $92 per barrel on Wednesday, after climbing on Tuesday.

The West has accused Russia of weaponising energy, creating a crisis in Europe that could trigger gas and power rationing this winter.

Moscow, meanwhile, accuses the West of weaponising the dollar and financial systems such as SWIFT in retaliation for Russia sending troops into Ukraine in February.

While Saudi Arabia has not condemned Moscow’s actions in Ukraine, U.S. officials have said part of the reason Washington wants lower oil prices is to deprive Moscow of oil revenue.

Relations have been strained between Saudi Arabia and the administration of Biden, who travelled to Riyadh this year but failed to secure any firm cooperation commitments on energy.

“The decision is technical, not political,” United Arab Emirates Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazroui told reporters ahead of the meeting.

“We will not use it as a political organisation,” he said, adding that concerns about a global recession would be one of the key topics. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who was put on the U.S. special designated nationals sanctions list last week, also travelled to Vienna to participate in meetings. Novak is not under EU sanctions.

If Nifty holds above 14,900, it may touch 15,200, Bank Nifty to remain in positive range; TCS, Airtel in focus

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By Rajesh Palviya

Nifty started the week on negative note however buying momentum throughout the week recovered some of the earlier losses to close in positive terrain. Nifty closed at 14823 with a gain of 192 points on a weekly basis. On the weekly chart index has formed a bullish candle and remained restricted within previous week’s High-Low range indicating lack of strength on either side. Since past couple of months index is consolidating within broad range of 15000- 14200 levels representing sideways trend.

The weekly strength indicator RSI is moving downwards and is quoting below its reference line indicating negative bias. However momentum oscillator Stochastic has turned positive from the oversold zone indicating a possible consolidation or an up-move in the near term

Nifty derivative outlook

Nifty in current expiry has seen Short build up with a price cut of -0.42% and OI addition of 20 lac shares increasing from 102.38 Lac share to 122.41 Lac shares , while in Banknifty also there is Short build up with price cut of -2.27% & OI addition of 1.33 lac shares increasing from 13.97 Lac to 15.31 Lac shares. The sentiment indicator PC Ratio is currently trading at 1.33 well above the median line but still in a comfortable zone indicating positive bias. In Nifty the highest OI on the CALL side in the weekly expiry scheduled 12th May is at 15,000 -15,200 & 15,500 strike, with 15,200 & 15,400 acting as a strong resistance wherein there has been writing of 11.34Lac shares & 8.44 Lac shares respectively. The highest OI on the PUT side is at 14,500 -14,600 & 14,800 strike, with 14,500 & 14,600 acting as a strong support provided Nifty closes & sustains below 14,800 as there has been of writing of 17.83Lac shares in the said strike clearly indicating a strong support level.

Bank Nifty outlook

Bank Nifty started the week with a downward gap however short covering along with buying support at lower levels recovered some of the earlier losses. Bank Nifty closed at 32905 with a gain of 123 points on a weekly basis. On the weekly chart the index has formed a small Bullish candle with shadows on either side indicating indecisiveness amongst participants regarding the direction. The index is moving in a Lower Top and Lower Bottom formation on the daily chart indicating negative bias.

The chart pattern suggests that if Bank Nifty crosses and sustains above 33500 level it would witness buying which would lead the index towards 34000-34300 levels. However, if the index breaks below 32500 level it would witness selling which would take the index towards 32000-31500. Bank Nifty is now well placed above its 20 SMA indicating positive bias in the short term. Bank Nifty continues to remain in an uptrend in the medium term, so buying on dips continues to be our preferred strategy. For the week, we expect Bank Nifty to trade in the range of 34500-32500 with a positive bias.

The weekly strength indicator RSI is moving downwards and is quoting below its reference line indicating negative bias. However momentum oscillator Stochastic has turned positive from the oversold zone indicating a possible consolidation or an up-move in the near term

The trend deciding level for the day is 32980 If BANKNIFTY trades above this level then we may witness a further rally up to 33185-33465-33675 levels. However, if BANKNIFTY trades below 32980 levels then we may see some profit booking initiating in the market, it may correct up to 32700-32490-32210 levels.

Bank Nifty derivative outlook

BankNifty is having highest OI on the CALL side in the weekly expiry at 33,000 -33,500 & 34,000 strike, with 34,000 acting as a strong resistance wherein there has been writing of 4.89Lac shares, while on the PUT side highest OI is at 32,000 & 31,000 strike, with 33,000 acting as a pivotal level for this weekly expiry as there has been addition of 4.66Lac shares on CALL side & 4 Lac addition on PUT side suggesting that any sustain move on either side of this level will decide the trend in Banknifty. IndiaVix is currently at 20.82 % and has been in downward trajectory from its recent high of 24.54% suggesting confidence and stability in current market trend and further descend from these levels will augment for uptrend in market.

Sector and stocks in focus this week

We expect Pharma, Healthcare, IT, Metal and Oil & Gas sectors to do well in the near term . One can focus on stocks like Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, Lupin, JSW Steel, MOIL, TCS, Wipro, Bharti Airtel, Adani Ports, CESC for near term bullish trend.

(Rajesh Palviya is the Deputy Vice President – Research (Head Technical & Derivatives) at Axis Securities Limited. The views expressed are the author’s own. Please consult your financial advisor before investing.)

Buy these two stocks for near term gains while Nifty reverses upside trend

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By Nagaraj Shetti

After showing an upside bounce in the last three sessions, Nifty reversed down sharply on Wednesday and closed the day with a hefty loss of around 265 points. After opening on a negative note, Nifty slipped into weakness in the early part of the session. It later shifted into a range move with an attempt of upside recovery. The sharp intraday weakness triggered in the later part and the Nifty closed near the lows.

Nifty is forming lower highs and lows on the daily chart and is expected to revisit the lower gap support of 14350 in the short term. This could also mean further down move below the crucial weekly 10 period EMA as per weekly chart at 14580 levels. 

Previously, this moving average has offered good support for the market in the subsequent weeks and led to upside bounce in past. Hence, Nifty not finding support of this moving average this time could mean chances of broad-based weakness beginning in the market.

The short term trend of Nifty seems to have reversed down after a small upside bounce. Next lower levels to be watched around 14350-14300 in the next few sessions before showing another round of small upside bounce from the lows. Any pullback rally could find resistance around 14675-14750. 

Buy Sequent Scientific Ltd – (CMP Rs 248.05) 

The downward correction of the last five weeks seems to have completed in the stock price, as per weekly timeframe chart. The stock price has witnessed sharp upside bounce on Tuesday-Wednesday and closed higher. This pattern indicate an attempt of upside breakout after a down trend. This action could be a near term bottom reversal for the stock trend around Rs 215-220 levels. The weekly 10 period EMA is continuously offering support for the stock price and the recent upside bounce has occurred from near this support around Rs 225 levels. The momentum oscillator shows positive indication.

Buying can be initiated in SEQUENT at CMP (Rs 248.05), add more on dips down to Rs 238, wait for the upside target of Rs 272 in the next 3-4 weeks. Place a stoploss of Rs 232.

Buy Balrampur Chini Mills Ltd – (CMP Rs 218) 

The prices of this Sugar stock has been in a sharp uptrend over the last few weeks. The decline of last week seems to have regained in this week, as stock price surged up by 7% as of now. Further upmove from here could result in an upside breakout of the hurdle of Rs 226 levels and that could open more upside for the short term. Weekly 14 period RSI has turned up from near 60 levels, which indicate strength of an upside momentum. Volume has started to expand with upside in the stock price.

Buying can be initiated in Balarmpur Chini at CMP (218), add more on dips down to Rs 210, wait for the upside target of Rs 240 in the next 3-4 weeks. Place a stoploss of Rs 203.

(Nagaraj Shetti is a Technical Research Analyst at HDFC securities. The views expressed are the author’s own. Please consult your financial advisor before investing.)

Gold Price Today, 19 Sep’22: Gold falls despite positive global cues; US FOMC eyed, check support, resistance

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Gold Price Today, Gold Price Outlook, Gold Price Forecast: Gold prices in India were trading lower on Monday, even as yellow metal prices gained globally. On Multi Commodity Exchange, gold October futures were ruling Rs 140 or 0.3 per cent at Rs 49,240 per 10 gram, as against the previous close of Rs 49,380. Silver December futures were trading at Rs 56,841 per kg, up 121 or Rs 0.21 per cent. Globally, yellow metal prices edged higher supported by a weaker dollar, as investors assessed some risk of aggressive rate hikes expected this week by major central banks especially the U.S. Federal Reserve to tame inflation, according to Reuters. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,677.89 per ounce, and U.S. gold futures rose 0.2% at $1,686.50.

Also read: Petrol, Diesel Price Today, 19 Sep 2022: Fuel cost unchanged; check rates in Delhi, Mumbai, other cities

Gold gained some momentum after a fall in previous week hovering around the key level of $1680, amidst a steady dollar, as investors assessed some risk of aggressive rate hikes expected this week by major central banks especially the U.S. Federal Reserve to tame inflation. Touching the highs of above 110 level, dollar index retraced by 0.2%; whereas U.S. Yields were steady near the three month highs amidst higher interest expectations. U.S. inflation data reported last week increased the market expectations for an aggressive rate hike by the Fed in the Sept. meeting scheduled this week. There is an 80% probability of a 75bps rate hike according to the CME Fed watch tool. Physical gold demand picked up in India as domestic prices fell ahead of key festivals, while premiums in China climbed further as its currency weakened. Speculators switched to net short position of 10,132 contracts in week to Sept. 13 in COMEX gold, while trimmed net short position in COMEX silver, the U.S. CFTC said on Friday. Broader trend on COMEX could be in the range of $1645-1690 and on domestic front prices could hover in the range of Rs 48,950-49,700.

Also read: Nifty may slip below 17400, resistance at 17777; buy these two stocks to pocket short-term gains

Ravindra Rao, CMT, EPAT, VP- Head Commodity Research, Kotak Securities

COMEX gold trades marginally lower near $1680/oz as the US dollar and bond yields continue to hold on to recent gains amid positioning for Fed’s rate hike decision this week. Also weighing on price is weaker investor interest and general pressure on commodities. Supporting price is global growth worries and geopolitical tensions relating to Taiwan. Gold has managed to recover from April 2020 lows set last week as Fed’s rate hike has been largely factored in; however price may remain under pressure ahead of the meeting.

Rahul Kalantri, VP — Commodities, Mehta Equities

Gold and silver prices are likely to remain volatile ahead of the Fed policy meeting and fear of global recession, as the Fed is widely expected to hike rates by 75 basis points with traders also pricing in the possibility of a 100 basis point hike. Gold has support at $1662-1650, while resistance is at $1686-1798. Silver has support at $19.18-18.95, while resistance is at $19.62-19.85. In INR terms gold has support at Rs 49,020-48810, while resistance is at Rs 49,480, 49,640. Silver has support at Rs 55,750-55,240, while resistance is at Rs 57,180–57,510.

(The views in this story are expressed by the respective experts of the research and brokerage firm. Financial Express Online does not bear any responsibility for their advice. Please consult your investment advisor before investing.)

Wall Street extends losses, US stocks tumble amid Fed tightening jitters, economic rumblings

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Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday, extending its losses in late afternoon trading as a raft of economic data failed to alter the expected course of aggressive tightening by the Federal Reserve amid growing warnings of global recession. The sell-off gathered momentum toward the end of the session, with market leaders including Microsoft Corp, Apple Inc and Amazon.com Inc hitting the tech-laden Nasdaq hardest. After the bell, FedEx Corp tumbled 14.5% after the package delivery company said its fiscal first-quarter results were hit by global volume softness and it withdrew its financial forecast, saying it expected further deterioration of business conditions.

FedEx’s warning sent shares of rival United Parcel Service down 5.7% in extended trade. Earlier, in Thursday’s trading session, the benchmark S&P 500 closed a hair above 3,900, seen by many analysts as a key technical support level that has been tested several times over the past two weeks. Interest rate-sensitive banks helped soften the blue-chip Dow’s decline. “It’s been a difficult year and investors are wary,” said Matthew Keator, managing partner in the Keator Group, a wealth management firm in Lenox, Massachusetts. “Until something changes the tie’s going to go the runner and that’s been the bear.”

That scale tipped further to the bear side after the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned of an impending global economic slowdown. A mixed bag of economic data, led by better-than-expected retail sales, cemented the likelihood of another 75 basis-point interest rate hike from the Fed at the conclusion of next week’s monetary policy meeting, as uncertainties simmered over where the central bank will go from there.

“The question is what’s going to happen in November?” said Robert Pavlik, senior portfolio manager at Dakota Wealth in Fairfield, Connecticut. “If the Fed really wants to handle it properly, it will be 50 basis-point drop in November, a 25 basis-point cut in December, and then they’ll reassess.” While the retail print surprised to the upside, declining jobless claims reaffirmed the labor market’s strength, and a drop in import prices supported the past-peak inflation narrative. But a surprise drop in industrial production and a contraction of Atlantic region manufacturing provided fodder for economic pessimists.

None of the data appeared to change the calculus regarding Fed expectations. Financial markets have now fully priced in an interest rate increase of at least 75 basis points next Wednesday, with a one-in-five chance of a super-sized, 100-basis-point hike, according to CME’s FedWatch tool. U.S. railroads remained open after the Biden administration helped broker a tentative deal with unions to avert a strike, thereby avoiding a rail shutdown which would add to supply-chain pressures at the core of hot inflation. Shares of railroad operators Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern outperformed the broader market.

Adobe Inc tumbled after the company said it would buy Figma in a deal valued at about $20 billion. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 173.27 points, or 0.56%, to 30,961.82, the S&P 500 lost 44.66 points, or 1.13%, to 3,901.35 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 167.32 points, or 1.43%, to 11,552.36. Nine the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500 ended the session in negative territory. Energy shares showed the largest percentage drop as the tentative rail agreement and demand concerns sent crude prices tumbling. Healthcare posted the biggest advance with an assist from health insurer Humana Inc, whose 8.4% surge following its strong earnings forecast made it the top gainer in the S&P 500.

Also Read: Will bulls take a backseat as bears drag Nifty fall below 17800? 5 things to know before market opening bell

Adobe Inc was the S&P 500’s biggest percentage loser, tumbling 16.8% after the company said it would buy Figma in a cash-and-stock deal that valued the online design startup at about $20 billion. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 2.79-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.35-to-1 ratio favored decliners. The S&P 500 posted no new 52-week highs and 21 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 16 new highs and 206 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 11.11 billion shares, compared with the 10.35 billion average over the last 20 trading days.

Harsha Engineers, Britannia, Embassy REIT, Coal India, BPCL, State Bank of India stocks in focus

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Indian equity markets are likely to open lower on Monday as ahead of the trading session, SGX Nifty was in red, hinting at a negative start for NSE Nifty 50, and BSE Sensex. “We expect volatility to remain high as we have important events like MPC’s monetary policy review meet and monthly derivatives expiry scheduled during the week. Besides, the prevailing pressure in the global indices would continue to weigh on the sentiment. Markets are finally giving in to the pressure of global indices especially the US and are likely to inch further lower ahead,” said Ajit Mishra, VP – Research, Religare Broking.

Stocks in focus 26 September, Monday

Harsha Engineers: The company share will debut on stock exchanges on Monday. Ahead of the listing, Harsha Engineers shares commanded a grey market premium of Rs 170. The Rs 755-crore public issue was bought 74.7 times by participants, and despite uncertainty in the equity markets, analysts expect Harsha Engineers stocks to make a strong debut with a significant premium over its issue price of Rs 330 per share.

Embassy Office Parks REIT: Blackstone Inc will reportedly sell a stake of $400 million in Embassy Office Parks REIT, India’s major real estate investment trust, through block deals. Abu Dhabi’s Sovereign wealth fund, being the world’s largest, will pick up at least half of the stake that Blackstone is to sell, reported Reuters.

BPCL: State-run Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Brazilian oil major Petrobras, to diversify its crude oil sourcing. In a statement BPCL said, the signing of the MoU will strengthen future crude oil trade relations between the two companies and explore potential crude import opportunities by BPCL, on a long-term basis, especially considering the current geopolitical situations.

Coal India: State-owned Coal India will sign agreements with three public sector enterprises — Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd., Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. and GAIL (India)– in order to set up four surface gasification projects. The government aims to achieve 100 million tonnes of coal gasification in the next eight years in order to reduce the import of crude oil which is otherwise used to produce syngas.

Britannia: The maker of the popular Good Day and Tiger biscuits has appointed Rajneet Kohli as its chief executive officer, effective September 26. Kohli is currently president and chief business officer at Domino’s India, run by food service company Jubilant FoodWorks. He also held senior leadership roles in Asian Paints Ltd and Coca-Cola Co. His appointment comes at a time when the industry is grappling with margin concerns amid soaring inflation.

Also Read: MCX crude oil Oct futures: Wait for crude to cross Rs 7,150/bbl; check key levels to watchout for next week

SBI: State Bank of India has raised Rs 4,000 crore Basel III compliant Tier 2 bonds at a coupon rate of 7.57 per cent. The public lender said that the tier 2 bonds attracted an overwhelming response from investors with bids of Rs 9,647 crores, and was oversubscribed by about 5 times against the base issue size of Rs 2,000 crores.

Wall Street opens sharply higher, clawing back more ground

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Stocks are opening sharply higher again on Wall Street as the market continues to claw back more of the ground it lost in a miserable several weeks that brought the S&P 500 to its lowest point of the year last Friday. The benchmark index was up just over 2% in the early going Tuesday. Other major U.S. indexes were also higher. Treasury yields continued to pull back from their multiyear highs. European markets also posted strong gains. Australia’s market jumped 3.8% overnight after that country’s central bank made an interest rate increase that was smaller than previous ones. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

U.S. futures are sharply higher Tuesday, potentially extending a quarter-opening rally this week after a dismal September. Futures for the Dow Jones industrials jumped 1.3% and futures for the benchmark S&P 500 rose 1.6% following Monday’s 2.6% gain. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite, which has been pummeled, lead the way with a 2% leap.

It is hoped by many investors that the Federal Reserve might ease off on its aggressive interest rate hikes intended to beat down high inflation that has rattled businesses as well as families. By raising rates, the Fed is making it more expensive to buy a house, a car or most anything else on credit with the goal of slowing the economy just enough to starve inflation of the spending that has driven prices higher.

ALSO READ US Stock Market Today: Are the bulls staging a comeback on Wall Street?

The Fed has already pushed its key overnight interest rate to a range of 3% to 3.25%, up from virtually zero as recently as March. Most traders expect that to be more than a full percentage point higher by early next year. But stresses are building in financial markets and corporate profits have weakened as central banks around the world hike rates in concert. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 jumped 3.8% to 6,699.30 after its central bank boosted its benchmark interest rate for a sixth consecutive month to a nine-year high of 2.6%. The Reserve Bank of Australia’s increase of a quarter percentage point to the cash rate was smaller than those at recent monthly meetings. When the bank lifted the rate by a quarter percentage point at its board meeting in May, it was the first rate hike in more than 11 years. It’s now at its highest point since August 2013, when the bank cut the rate from 2.75% to 2.5%.Besides stocks, lower rates also boost prices for everything from cryptocurrencies to gold, which can suddenly look a bit more attractive when bonds are paying less in income.

Elsewhere, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 added nearly 3.0% to finish at 26,992.21. South Korea’s Kospi gained 2.5% to 2,209.98. Markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai were closed for holidays. At midday in Europe, France’s CAC 40 gained 3.4%, Germany’s DAX rose 2.9% and Britain’s FTSE 100 added 1.9%. The latest update on the U.S. jobs market, the labor turnover report, arrives Tuesday. The more consequential monthly jobs report is out Friday. . It will be the last jobs report before the Fed makes its next decision on interest rates, scheduled for Nov. 2. Continued strength would give the central bank more leeway to keep hiking. Traders say the likeliest move is a fourth straight increase of a whopping three-quarters of a percentage point, triple the usual move.

In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude added $1.16 to $84.79 a barrel. It jumped Monday amid speculation big oil-producing countries could soon announce cuts to production. Brent crude, the international standard, added $1.44 to $90.30 a barrel. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar was stable at 144.81 Japanese yen from. The euro cost 98.90 cents, up from 98.40 cents.

Veranda to raise Rs 300 cr via preferential issue

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Chennai-based Veranda Learning Solutions (Veranda), a public-listed ed-tech company on Thursday announced that the board of directors has approved a preferential issue to raise Rs 300 crore. This raise includes an investment of Rs 61.40 crore to be subscribed by the promoters in the form of convertible warrants.

The fundraising is through a mix of preferential offers of equity shares and convertible warrants both at Rs 307 per share. Each warrant is convertible into 1 equity share and the conversion can be exercised at any time within 18 months from the date of allotment. Around 25% of the total consideration for convertible warrants will be payable at the time of application.

Also Read: KEC International order book robust, net working capital to improve

Kalpathi S Suresh, chairman and executive director of Veranda Learning Solutions, said, “We are pleased with the response to the private placement and the success of the fundraise places Veranda in a unique position with the necessary war chest to fuel the next leg of growth. At Veranda, our objective is to provide the highest quality education possible at an affordable price. To that end, we are building an eco-system to strengthen our offerings through a judicious mix of high-quality content propelled by cutting edge technology which we believe will take Veranda to greater heights.”

Founded in 2018, by the Kalpathi AGS Group, Veranda Learning Solutions offers a bouquet of training programmes for competitive exam preparation, including state public service commission, banking, insurance, railways, IAS, and CA, as well as a slew of professional skilling and upskilling programmes in trending technologies.

The company provides services through four subsidiaries: Veranda Race, Veranda CA, Veranda IAS, and Edureka – the customer-facing brand of Brain4ce Education Solutions. The company has also incorporated two new subsidiaries: Veranda Learning Solutions North America and Veranda Management Learning Solutions. These new subsidiaries will be used as vehicles for future growth, said a company statement.

Sensex, Nifty erase all yearly gains; Nifty support at 17166, investors poorer by Rs 5 lakh crore

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BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 ended nearly 2 per cent down on Friday, on the back of fears of a global recession. Both the indices have turned negative for 2022 with Friday’s fall. Today’s nearly 2 per cent plunge has led to an erosion of Rs 4.83 lakh crore market cap of BSE-listed companies. BSE Sensex tanked 1.7 per cent or 1,021 points to 58099, while NSE Nifty 50 index plunged 1.8 per cent or 302 points to end at 17327. Stocks of HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), ICICI Bank, Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC), State Bank of India, among others dragged the index the most. Broader market indices underperformed the equity frontliners. S&P BSE MidCap ended 2.3 per cent or 588 points at 25,271, while S&P BSE Smallcap index plunged 2 per cent or 567 points to settle at 28,813.

Also read: MCX gold may give 1% return next week, rally seems to continue; support seen at Rs 48800 per 10 gm

The Bank Nifty index last week witnessed extreme selling pressure from the higher levels after the key event of the US FED. The index breached the crucial support of 40,000 and closed below it, confirming the breakdown and activating the sell-on-rise mode. The index remains in a sell-on-rise mode with hurdles at 40,500 and the next support is visible at 39,000.

Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities

After remaining resilient against the global weakness in equities, Nifty gave in over the past three sessions. Nifty fell sharply for the second consecutive week (down 1.16%), breaking some key technical levels on the way. 17166 is the next support for the Nifty post which a sharper fall could ensue. 17490 could be the resistance for the Nifty in the near term.

Also read: Rupee likely to fall further, dollar index may rise to 114 if US Fed hikes rate by 75 bps in November

Ajit Mishra, VP – Research, Religare Broking

Markets are finally witnessing pressure after showing resilience for quite some time and indications are pointing towards further decline. The Nifty index has the next crucial support at the 17,100 zone. Since most sectors are trading in tandem with the benchmark, it’s prudent to maintain short positions also. Investors, on the other hand, should utilise this phase to accumulate quality stocks in a staggered manner.

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services

A rise in the US 10-year bond yield and a strong dollar index influenced FIIs to flee emerging markets. A fall in liquidity in the banking system, a weak currency and a current premium valuation have set the market outlook bearish for the near term. With aggressive monetary policy action by central banks, the global growth engines are in a slowdown mode, whereas India is currently in a better position with a pickup in credit growth and an uptick in tax collection. The current volatility might persist for a while. Investors are advised to wait and watch until the dust settles.