INDICES PARE SOME GAINS; EUROPEAN MRKT DECLINE

The key equity indices pared some gains and traded with moderate gains in afternoon trade. The Nifty traded below the 23,700 level after hitting day�s high of 23,869.55 in early afternoon trade. Banking, realty and metal shares advanced while IT and auto stocks declined.

At 13:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rallied 279.88 points or 0.36% to 78,319.82. The Nifty 50 index jumped 101.15 points or 0.43% to 23,688.65.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.10% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.63%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,636 shares rose and 2,349 shares fell. A total of 164 shares were unchanged.

Economy:

India`s foreign exchange reserves dipped by $1.98 billion to $652.87 billion as of December 13, according to data shared by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday.

The Weekly Statistical Supplement released by the RBI showed that the primary contributor to this decline was the drop in Foreign Currency Assets (FCAs), which fell by $3 billion to $562.58 billion.

Meanwhile, gold reserves were up by $1.12 billion, bringing the total to $68 billion.

The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) dipped by $35 million, now totaling $17.99 billion, while the reserve position in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) contracted by $27 million, standing at $42.40 billion.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty PSU Bank index gained 1.15% to 6,651.40. The index fell 5.74% in past four consecutive trading sessions.

Bank of Baroda (up 2.18%), Canara Bank (up 1.61%), State Bank of India (up 1.28%), Union Bank of India (up 1.14%) and Punjab National Bank (up 1.03%) were the top gainers. Among the other gainers were Indian Bank (up 0.06%).

Stocks in Spotlight:

Coastal Corporation jumped 2.91% after the company announced that its board has approved 5-for-1 stock split.

Redtape rose 1.75% after the company�s board scheduled a meeting on 26 December 2024 to consider a proposal of interim dividend and bonus issue.

Piramal Enterprises shed 0.39% after the administrative committee of its board approved the public issuance of secured non-convertible debentures (NCDs) aggregating up to Rs 2,000 crore in one or more tranches.

Larsen & Toubro fell 0.07%. The company informed that its precision engineering systems business vertical of L&T secured `major� order for the supply of K9 Vajra-T Artillery Platforms to the Indian Army.

AGI Greenpac declined 3.58%. The company informed that its board has approved proposal for raising of funds through issuance of equity shares and/or equity linked securities for up to Rs 1,500 crore, subject to necessary approvals.

Suraksha Diagnostic fell 1.66%. The company reported 21.85% jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 10.15 crore in Q2 FY25 as compared with Rs 8.33 crore in Q2 FY24. Revenue from operations increased 11.18% YoY to Rs 66.75 crore during the quarter ended 30 September 2024.

Global Markets:

European market declined as Britain�s economy failed to achieve any growth in the three months to September, revised figures from the U.K.�s Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Monday.

A preliminary estimate for the third quarter, published by the ONS last month, said U.K. GDP grew at 0.1% during the period. However, the final data released on Monday showed 0% GDP growth from the previous quarter.

The Dow Jones index futures were up 152 points, signaling a positive opening for U.S. stocks today.

Asian stocks rallied after the US inflation data came in below expectations, boosting hopes for potential interest rate cuts. The dollar remained relatively stable.

Relief washed over markets as the US averted a government shutdown. President Biden signed a bill on Saturday, ending a period of uncertainty after Congress passed a temporary funding plan just before the deadline. This deal funds the government until March 14 and includes disaster aid and agricultural assistance.

US stock markets rebounded on Friday. Technology stocks, which had declined sharply after the Fed`s decision, saw some recovery on Friday. NVIDIA (+3.1%), Micron (+3.5%), Broadcom (+1.1%), and Intel (+2.4%) all experienced gains.

On Friday, the S&P 500 gained 1.1% to 5,930.90, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.2% to 42,841.06, and the NASDAQ Composite climbed 1% to 19,572.60.

The PCE price index, a key inflation measure, rose 0.1% in November, slower than the October increase of 0.2%. This brought the annual PCE inflation rate to 2.4%, still above the Fed`s 2% target, suggesting persistent inflationary pressures.

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