Indices trade with minor cuts; pharma stocks advance

Key equity barometers traded in a narrow range with minor losses in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty hovered below the 18,350 mark after hitting day`s high at 18,392.60 in mid-morning trade. Pharma shares witnessed buying demand for third consecutive session.

At 14:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 106.02 points or 0.17% to 61,875.77. The Nifty 50 index lost 37.25 points or 0.20% to 18,310.75.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.31% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.18%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,688 shares rose and 1,709 shares fell. A total of 149 shares were unchanged.

Numbers to track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper declined to 6.986 as compared with previous close of 7.016.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 82.7275, compared with its close of 82.85 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2023 settlement fell 0.02% to Rs 60,185.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.03% to 103.51

The United States 10-year bond yield slipped 0.03% to 3.694.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for July 2023 settlement gained 91 cents or 1.18% to $77.75 a barrel.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty pharma advanced 1.08% to 12,447.65. The index jumped 2.67% in three trading sessions.

Laurus Labs (up 6.54%), Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries (up 2.29%), Biocon (up 1.92%), Granules India (up 1.5%), Dr Reddys Laboratories (up 1.22%), Alkem Laboratories (up 1.16%), Sanofi India (up 1.09%), Cipla (up 0.6%), Torrent Pharmaceuticals (up 0.22%) and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (up 0.15%) advanced.

On the other hand, Gland Pharma (down 0.67%), Zydus Lifesciences (down 0.55%) and Ipca Laboratories (down 0.45%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Thyrocare Technologies declined 2% after the company reported 40.7% decline in net profit to Rs 12.60 crore in Q4 FY23 from Rs 21.24 crore posted in Q4 FY22. Revenue from operations grew by 4.1% year on year to Rs 135.88 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2023.

India Cements fell 2.84% after the cement maker`s consolidated net loss widened to Rs 226.90 crore in Q4 FY23 as against Rs 10.58 crore posted in Q4 FY22. Revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,485.73 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2023, registering a growth of 4.8% on YoY basis.

Sudarshan Chemical Industries surged 13.58% after the company`s consolidated net profit stood at Rs 32.57 crore, steeply higher from Rs 0.58 crore in Q4 FY23 over Q3 FY23. Revenue from operations jumped 31.62% to Rs 685.17 crore in Q4 FY23 as compared to Rs 520.85 crore in Q3 FY23.

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