>> Price targets for bank stocks swell
>> Tata Sons to buy out Air Asia stake
>> Loan recast estimates lowered
AND
>> Atanu Chakraborty named next chairman of HDFC Bank
And there is more. But first, a quick glance at the state of the markets..
>> Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded with 31.50 points gain at 8 am (IST), signalling further gains on Dalal Street.
ELSEWHERE
· Asian shares retreated on Wednesday as investors cashed in on a recent rally. Shares retreated in Australia and South Korea. Japan’s Nikkei share average lost 0.03% after jumping to a 30-year high on Tuesday.
· Wall Street lost ground overnight and retreated from intraday highs. Dow fell 68.3 points, or 0.22%, the S&P500 lost 8.32 points, or 0.22%, and the Nasdaq 49.20 points, or 0.38%.
IN OIL MARKET
· Oil prices gained more ground. WTI crude futures rose 27 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to $48.27 a barrel, while Brent futures added 24 cents, or 0.5 per cent, to $51.33.
IN CURRENCIES
· Rising for the fourth straight session, the rupee appreciated by 7 paise to close at 73.42 against the US dollar on Tuesday, amid heavy buying in domestic equities and unabated foreign fund inflows.
· The dollar weakened. The euro flirted with highs not seen in more than two-and-a-half years. The Australian dollar was within sight of a two-and-a-half year high, while sterling traded sideways. The yen was little changed, with some traders saying it will be pinned in a range now.
AND IN BULLION
· Gold prices rose marginally by Rs 39 to Rs 49,610 per 10 gm in Delhi on Tuesday, continuing the upside for the third consecutive day. Silver prices gained marginally, rising by Rs 36 to Rs 68,156 a kg. In international markets, the yellow metal was steady at $1,878.73 an ounce.
All in all, the trade setup on Dalal Street looked set for some consolidation. On Tuesday, Nifty climbed for the fifth session in a row and topped the 13,900 level, but formed a Doji on the daily chart, signalling indecisiveness.
LET ME NOW GIVE YOU A HEADS-UP on some of the top news we are tracking at this hour.
… ICICI Securities has raised its share price targets on Indian banks by as much as 57% as it believes long-term growth and value drivers are offsetting the immediate disruption in the sector. The brokerage has downgraded its rating on Kotak Mahindra Bank to ‘hold’ and on AU Small Finance Bank to ‘add’ but raised the targets for HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, SBI, IndusInd Bank, Bandhan Bank, Federal Bank, DCB Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, City Union Bank and YES Bank by 13-57%.
… Profitability of NBFCs may be impacted due to loan impairment, lower credit demand and a tendency to preserve cash, Reserve Bank of India said in its report on Trends and Progress of Banking in India. The stronger and the deposit-taking NBFCs may, however, fare better as many have reported strong revival in disbursements and collections, almost to pre-Covid levels, the regulator observed.
… India’s financial sector should brace for challenging times ahead with an increased risk of deterioration in asset quality and lower demand for loans, RBI said in a report on Tuesday. The performance of the Indian banking sector improved in fiscal 2020, when lenders reported a profit on an aggregate basis after two years of losses. Bad loans fell and capital buffer improved, but they need to be vigilant about competition from nimbler tech rivals.
… With the loan restructuring window coming to a close, analysts are cutting the estimates on loan recast by banks to 2.5-4.5% of their total advances from the previously projected 6-8%. Analysts are also forecasting lower credit provisions and better profitability for banks in the next fiscal year starting April 1, on the back of improved asset quality with a quick economic turnaround.
… Tata Sons will buy 32.67% of AirAsia Berhad’s stake in the Indian joint venture AirAsia India, giving the group complete freedom to make it the vehicle for its upcoming Air India bid. Tata’s stake in AirAsia India will rise to 83.67% while the Malaysian carrier’s stake will drop to 16.33%. The deal was done for $37.6 million (Rs 275.9 crore).
LASTLY, AN UPDATE ON ALL THE STOCKS BUZZING THIS MORNING
· Promoters of Vedanta have pledged their holding in the company to raise $1.4 billion, mostly for repaying the debt that was coming up for maturity.
· Sebi has slapped a Rs 5 crore penalty on NDTV for not disclosing information on loan agreements with Vishvapradhan Commercial to public shareholders.
· HDFC Bank is set to appoint former economic affairs secretary Atanu Chakraborty as the next chairman, after the tenure of current chairman Shyamala Gopinath ends on January 1, 2021.
· EID Parry India, promoter of Coromandel International, is looking to sell up to 2% stake or 58.5 lakh shares of the fertiliser and chemicals company through open market on Wednesday to raise up to Rs 483 crore
· Bharti Airtel is likely to give the 700 MHz band a miss again in the upcoming spectrum auction due to its high price.
That’s it for now. For all the market news through the day, do track ETMarkets.com. Have a great day ahead! Bye-bye
