At 10:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 0.39 points to 48,677.67. The Nifty 50 index was up 13.30 or 0.09% at 14,631.15.
In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.13% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.07%.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 1386 shares rose and 1145 shares fell. A total of 121 shares were unchanged.
COVID-19 Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 154,788,266 with 3,237,808 global deaths.
India reported 35,66,398 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 230,168 deaths, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
India recorded 4,12,784 new cases, by far the highest single-day count in any country so far. Meanwhile, the day's death toll climbed close to the 4,000 mark.
The five most affected states by total cases are Maharashtra (48,80,542), Kerala (17,43,932), Karnataka (17,41,046), Uttar Pradesh (13,99,348), and Tamil Nadu (12,72,602).
Economy:
S&P Global Ratings on Wednesday slashed India's GDP growth forecast for the current financial year to 9.8% saying the second COVID wave may derail the budding recovery in the economy and credit conditions. The US-based rating agency in March had a 11% GDP growth forecast for India for the April 2021-March 2022 fiscal on account of a fast economic reopening and fiscal stimulus.
S&P, which currently has a 'BBB-' rating on India with a stable outlook, said the depth of the Indian economy's deceleration will determine the hit on its sovereign credit profile. It said the projections assume that initial shocks to private consumption and investment filter through to the rest of the economy.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Auto index added 0.89% to 9,728.70, rising for second trading session. The index has rallied 1.58% in two days.
Bajaj Auto (up 2.75%), Eicher Motors (up 1.92%), TVS Motor Company (up 1.84%), Motherson Sumi Systems (up 1.41%), Bosch (up 1.36%), Maruti Suzuki India (up 1.22%), Tata Motors (up 0.89%), Balkrishna Industries (up 0.85%) and Amara Raja Batteries (up 0.81%) were top gainers in automobile segment.
Results Today:
Hero MotoCorp (up 2.3%), Tata Consumer Products (down 1.01%), Adani Power (up 1.65%), Adani Transmission (up 3.32%), Blue Star (up 0.38%), Bombay Burmah Trading Company (up 1.63%), CreditAccess Grameen (up 1.05%), ICRA (up 7.3%), IIFL Finance (up 0.65%), HIkal (up 3.59%), Procter & Gamble Health (up 0.29%), Raymond (up 0.38%), Praj Industries (down 2.18%) and Solara Active Pharma (up 0.07%) are among companies that will announce their March quarter results today.
Earnings Impact:
Tata Steel jumped 3.56% after the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 6,644.15 crore in Q4 FY21 as against net loss of Rs 1,481.34 crore in Q4 FY20. Net sales during the quarter increased 39.4% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 48,950.89 crore. The steel major reported a pre-tax profit of Rs 9,356.86 crore in the fourth quarter compared with net loss of Rs 1,870.55 crore reported in the same period last year. EBITDA surged at Rs 14,290 crore in Q4 FY21 compared with Rs 4,824 crore in Q4 FY20 as Rs 9,652 crore in Q3 FY21. EBITDA per ton surged to Rs 18,253 in Q4 FY21 from Rs 6,838 in Q4 FY20 and from Rs 13,021 in Q3 FY21. While the company's steel production increased by 1.5% to 8.02 million tonnes, deliveries jumped by 10.9% to 7.83 million tonnes in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20.
Gillette India gained 2.68% after the company's standalone net profit surged 101.7% to Rs 105.66 crore on 32% jump in net sales to Rs 536.62 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20. The growth was largely behind base impact from lockdown related material operational disruption in the corresponding period last year, a one-time write back of provision of Rs 16.28 crore, resulting from settlement of certain tax disputes and productivity savings.
Deepak Nitrite fell 0.16%. The chemical maker reported 68.4% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 290.11 crore on 38.6% rise in net sales to Rs 1463.23 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20. Profit before tax surged 94.1% to Rs 389.94 crore in Q4 FY21 from Rs 200.85 crore registered in Q4 FY20. Total expenses rose by 27.1% to Rs 1008.57 crore in Q4 FY21 over Q4 FY20.
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