Indian stock markets may be under pressure; Zee, ITC, Maruti, L&T in focus

27 Oct , 2021 By : Kanchan Joshi

MUMBAI: Indian stock markets are likely to be under pressure on Wednesday, with trends in SGX Nifty suggesting a weak opening for Indian benchmark indices. On Tuesday, the BSE Sensex ended at 61,350.26, up 383.21 points or 0.63%. The Nifty closed at 18,268.40, up 143 points or 0.79%.

Asian stocks edged lower Wednesday as traders weighed the latest US earnings reports amid lingering concerns about growth risks from elevated inflation and China’s indebted property sector.

Equities fell in Japan and South Korea and fluctuated in Australia. The S&P 500 eked out a record high.

Back home, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday ruled that Invesco’s demand that Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd convene a special shareholders’ meeting to oust managing director Punit Goenka and recast the board is not legally compliant. This will provide a breather to Zee group founder Subhash Chandra, who is battling a revolt against his family’s control of India’s largest publicly traded broadcaster.

India’s biggest initial public offering (IPO) is expected to get even bigger with One97 Communications Ltd., which runs the Paytm payments service, planning to increase its public issue size to Rs18,300 crore.

Among key companies, ITC, Maruti, L&T, Bajaj Auto, Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports, SBI Life Insurance, Punjab National Bank, Lupin, Titan and Indian Overseas Bank will declare their September quarter results today.

Bond yields and the Australian dollar jumped after the nation’s core inflation beat estimates, with the three-year yield topping 1% for the first time since 2019.

Treasury yields also climbed, particularly in the short end. The dollar was steady. The energy crunch continues to ripple across the global economy. Coal stockpiles at U.S. power plants plunged to the lowest in at least 24 years.

WTI crude oil traded above $84 a barrel.

Investors are counting on earnings to support equity prices and so far the reporting season has been solid overall. But worries remain that over time rising raw material and wage costs and supply-chain snarls could crimp margins.