Closing Bell: Sensex ends marginally higher, Nifty holds 11,650; YES Bank falls 5% ahead of Q1 earnings

Closing Bell: Sensex ends marginally higher, Nifty holds 11,650; YES Bank falls 5% ahead of Q1 earnings##Closing Bell: Sensex ends marginally higher, Nifty holds 11,650; YES Bank falls 5% ahead of Q1 earnings

- Indian benchmark indices ended marginally higher on Wednesday led by banking, IT and FMCG stocks. Gains in index heavyweights like Kotak Bank, Infosys, SBI, HDFC Bank and HUL also lifted the indices.

- The Sensex ended 85 points higher at 39,216 while the broader Nifty50 index added 25 points to end at 11,687. In broader markets, the Nifty Midcap and the Nifty Smallcap index fell 0.3 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively.

- Indiabulls Housing, UPL, Zee, Hindalco, and SBI were top gainers on the Nifty50 while YES Bank, Eicher Motors, GAIL, ONGC, and Maruti led the losses.

- All sectoral indices, except the Nifty Auto and the Nifty Pharma, ended higher for the day. The Nifty PSU Bank index gained 1.1 percent followed by the Nifty FMCG which was up 0.8 percent. Meanwhile, the Nifty IT advanced 0.6 percent, the Nifty Bank added 0.5 percent and the Nifty Fin Servcies rose 0.4 percent.

- Nifty Auto fell 1 percent, whereas, Nifty Pharma was down 0.2 percent. 

Pharma firms troubled by US FDA warning letters; data integrity issues worry industry, investors##Pharma firms troubled by US FDA warning letters; data integrity issues worry industry, investors

For Indian pharmaceutical manufacturers, 2019 has so far been a difficult year as many are finding it tough to comply with US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) norms. At the last count, there are at least four listed companies that have received warning letters in the span of five months. READ MORE

SpiceJet extends gains, up 8 percent on IndiGo promoter dispute, fall in crude oil prices##SpiceJet extends gains, up 8 percent on IndiGo promoter dispute, fall in crude oil prices

Global sugar prices may rise from October due to drop in production, says Abinash Verma of ISMA##Global sugar prices may rise from October due to drop in production, says Abinash Verma of ISMA

India has a chance to tell the World Trade Organisation to not set up a panel requested by Brazil on India's subsidies to sugarcane farmers, said Abinash Verma, Indian Sugar Mills Association. Brazil has alleged that in recent years, India has massively increased the level of domestic support under its support regime for sugarcane and sugar. “Brazil respectfully requests that the dispute settlement body establish a panel,” according to a communication submitted by the South American country to the Geneva-based WTO. READ MORE

Edelweiss falls 5% on plans to offload stake in wealth business##Edelweiss falls 5% on plans to offload stake in wealth business

Shares of Edelweiss Financial Services fell as much as 5 percent intraday on July 17 after reports of company's plan to offload part stake in its wealth business. According to a report in The Economic Times, the company is in advanced talks with US-based Kora Management to sell 20 percent stake in Edelweiss Wealth Management for a consideration of about Rs 2,000 crore. 

Here are some investing picks from stock analyst Sudarshan Sukhani & Ashwani Gujral

FMCG sector in India is inching towards a slowdown, market research firm Nielsen warns##FMCG sector in India is inching towards a slowdown, market research firm Nielsen warns

Growth in India's fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector is slowing as households continue to squeeze spending,  market research firm Nielsen said, offering a gloomy barometer of the economy. The drop in GDP is driven by the weakening of household spending which forms nearly two-thirds of the GDP for the country. There is a looming concern on increasing inflationary pressure,” Nielsen said,  quoting its retail panel data. READ MORE

Cox & Kings locked at 5% lower circuit for 16th straight session##Cox & Kings locked at 5% lower circuit for 16th straight session

Shares of Cox & Kings were locked at 5 percent lower circuit for 16th consecutive session on Wednesday after defaulted on commercial paper and RattanIndia Finance's invocation of pledged shares. The travel company defaulted on payment of Rs 45 crore towards unsecured commercial paper due on July 16 and interest payment of Rs 41 lakh on secured redeemable non-convertible debentures of Rs 50 crore due July 15.

MindTree Earnings Preview: With L&T now the promoter, street to closely look at new CEO announcement##MindTree Earnings Preview: With L&T now the promoter, street to closely look at new CEO announcement

IT stocks unlikely to deliver significantly high returns, says Invesco MF##IT stocks unlikely to deliver significantly high returns, says Invesco MF

IT stocks are not likely to deliver significantly high returns from here, said Taher Badshah, CIO-Equities of Invesco Mutual Fund, adding that one could look at them with expectations of 10-15 percent returns. “I don’t think these are stocks which can deliver significantly high returns from here. If return expectations are more in the vicinity of between 10 percent and 15 percent, they are good for that," he said in an interview with CNBC-TV18. READ MORE

Bond market getting certain of 50 bps rate cut by RBI, says ICICI Bank’s B Prasanna##Bond market getting certain of 50 bps rate cut by RBI, says ICICI Bank’s B Prasanna

The bond market is getting more certain of a likely 50 basis points rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) going forward, said B Prasanna, head-global markets group, ICICI Bank. Bond yields appear to remain stubbornly below 6.5 percent after crashing 10 basis points yesterday to December 2016 lows on slowdown blues.

“It’s been a dream run for bond markets and bond traders. The move started post-budget when there was a relief that there is no fiscal slippage or there was no extra borrowing that the government is likely to do for the year...,” said Prasanna in an interview with CNBC-TV18. READ MORE

Q1 Earnings: Dhanlaxmi Bank reports a profit vs loss in the same quarter last year##Q1 Earnings: Dhanlaxmi Bank reports a profit vs loss in the same quarter last year

US FDA finds 'significant violations' at Strides Pharma plant##US FDA finds 'significant violations' at Strides Pharma plant

US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it found adulteration and "significant violations" of current good manufacturing practice (CGMP) regulations at Strides Pharma Sciences Ltd's plant in Puducherry in South India. Shares of Strides fell 8.1 percent to Rs 347.10 per share in early trades on the National Stock Exchange. The drugmaker was caught trying to dispose quality-control records, the FDA said in a letter made public on July 16. READ MORE