Category: News

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) have kept the selling spree alive, offloading a staggering ₹5,015 crore from Indian equities on January 27. With this, total outflows for January 2025 have soared to ₹74,095 crore, marking the steepest monthly sell-off since October 2024, when FPIs pulled out ₹1.14 lakh crore. The drivers behind this exodus are a mix of global and domestic uncertainties. Concerns about U.S. President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade policies, including potential tariffs on Columbia, Canada, and Mexico, coupled with fears of fewer U.S. Fed rate cuts in 2025, have rattled investor sentiment. Despite domestic institutional investors stepping in with net purchases of ₹73,586 crore to cushion the blow, it wasn’t enough to halt the slide. The Nifty 50 and Sensex are down 12% from their September peaks, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 and Midcap 100 indices have plunged by 20% and 15.31%, respectively. Brokerages are starting to recalibrate expectations. InCred Equities recently slashed its Nifty 50 target by 8% to 23,260, reflecting weaker economic data and earnings revisions. In a bearish scenario, it predicts the index could tumble further to 21,016. Looking ahead, market sentiment hinges on two major events this week: the U.S. Fed’s policy decision and the Indian Union Budget. Hopes are pinned on fiscal stimulus measures, particularly income tax cuts, to provide a much-needed boost.

SpiceJet finally got some lift on Tuesday, with shares climbing nearly 7% during intraday trading. Airline has reintroduced its first grounded Boeing 737 MAX aircraft back into service, a move announced late Monday. Investor sentiment rallied, with the stock opening at ₹44.48 on the BSE—up 1.4% from Monday’s close—and soaring to an intraday high of ₹46.90. For a stock that’s been nosediving from September highs of ₹79.90 to a 52-week low of ₹43.61 just days ago, this fleet update is a welcome breather. The return of the fuel-efficient MAX aircraft marks a critical milestone in SpiceJet’s efforts to rebuild its fleet and streamline operations. The plane is set to take to the skies on January 29, 2025, and will serve high-demand routes like Jeddah and Riyadh without operational restrictions, potentially boosting both revenue and efficiency. To ensure its MAX fleet is ready for action, SpiceJet has inked partnerships with U.S.-based StandardAero Inc. for engine maintenance and CFM International, Inc., the OEM for the LEAP-1B engines. This marks the first step in the airline’s broader plan to restore 10 aircraft, including four Boeing 737 MAX planes, by mid-April 2025.

Tuesday wasn’t kind to Kaynes Technology. Shares tumbled over 19% after the company slashed its FY25 revenue guidance to ₹2,800 crore from an earlier projection of ₹3,000 crore. The blame is in  execution delays in the December quarter that left ₹100 crore worth of industrial orders unfinished. The management, however, expects most of these pending orders to be wrapped up this quarter, offering a glimmer of hope. Despite the stumble, Kaynes had some numbers to cheer about. The third quarter of FY25 saw a 47% surge in profit after tax (PAT), hitting ₹66.5 crore. Revenue also jumped 30% year-on-year to ₹661.2 crore, while EBITDA (excluding other income) rose by 35% to ₹94 crore. Margins edged up too, with the EBITDA margin hitting 14.2%, up 50 basis points from the previous year, and PAT margin climbing 120 basis points to 10.1%. The long-term story still looks ambitious. The company projects FY26 revenue of ₹4,500 crore with margins expected to top 15%. Their order book, sitting at a hefty ₹60,471 million as of December 31, 2024, promises solid revenue visibility. Even the net working capital cycle has improved, shrinking to 107 days from 117 days a year ago.

The Reserve Bank of India has thrown a lifeline to the financial system, and markets are loving it. After announcing an $18 billion cash infusion late Monday to tackle the worst liquidity crunch in over a decade, both bonds and stocks rallied, with banking heavyweights like ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank leading the charge. The RBI’s move has reignited hopes of a rate cut as early as February 7, with analysts now betting on an easier monetary policy stance to support an economy growing at its slowest pace in four years. This cash injection isn’t just about plugging liquidity holes; it’s setting the stage for smoother policy transmission when rate cuts begin. Lower bond yields, cheaper borrowing costs—it’s all part of the package. On Tuesday, the yield on the 10-year benchmark bond fell four basis points to 6.64%, while the rupee took a slight hit, underscoring the delicate balance the central bank is managing. Big players like Goldman Sachs and Citibank wasted no time revising their forecasts. Goldman now expects a quarter-point rate cut next week, followed by another in April. Standard Chartered also shifted its call for a rate cut forward, signaling confidence that the RBI’s liquidity boost is more than a short-term fix.

Swiggy’s stock is feeling the heat, slipping another 5% on Tuesday to hit a fresh 52-week low. This marks the third straight day of losses, with the stock already down over 26% this month alone. It’s now trading below its IPO price of ₹390, scraping an intraday low of ₹389.25. Compare that to its December high of ₹617, and we’re looking at a 37% tumble in just over a month. The pressure ramped up after Zomato, Swiggy’s biggest rival, revealed its December quarter numbers last week. While Zomato’s revenue soared 64% year-on-year, its profits nosedived by 57%, largely due to aggressive investments in its quick-commerce arm, Blinkit. The move is bold—Zomato plans to scale up to 2,000 dark stores ahead of schedule—but it’s also a cash guzzler, which hasn’t done much to lift investor confidence in the sector. Swiggy’s silence isn’t helping either. With no word yet on its own December quarter results, market sentiment is running cold. Analysts have mixed feelings—JPMorgan sees Swiggy bouncing back with a ₹730 target price, while HSBC remains cautious with a “Hold” and a ₹550 target. What’s clear is that Swiggy is now trading at a steep discount compared to Zomato on key valuation metrics, which some call overly pessimistic.

Indian pharmaceutical stocks supplying antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to African countries faced a sharp sell-off on January 27, following a US government order halting all foreign aid funding for 90 days, including the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). This program, crucial for HIV treatment in around 50 countries, many in Africa, faces an uncertain future under the executive order issued by President Donald Trump. PEPFAR funding accounts for a significant share of global HIV treatment, with US HIV spending constituting 44% of its total global health funding in FY24, according to Brookings. The halt has cast doubt on the revenue streams of Indian pharma companies reliant on US-backed ARV sales. Laurus Labs, whose ARV business comprises 46% of total revenue, saw its shares plummet nearly 15%, hitting a two-month low despite strong Q3 results. Other pharma players with ARV exposure, including Strides Pharma, Aurobindo Pharma, and Cipla, also witnessed declines. The Nifty Pharma index fell 2.65% on Monday. For Aurobindo Pharma, ARV sales contribute just 3% of revenue, approximately ₹868 crore in FY24, while Cipla has reduced its ARV exposure in recent years. With the ARV market valued at $1.5 billion annually, industry watchers will monitor developments closely, particularly as Indian pharma companies navigate this temporary freeze amidst efforts to diversify revenue sources and reduce dependence on foreign aid-driven sales.

Wall Street took a significant hit on January 27, with Big Tech stocks leading the downturn amid concerns about a potential AI competitor from China. The Nasdaq composite plunged 3.1%, weighed down by Nvidia’s staggering 16% drop. Nvidia, a key supplier of AI chips, saw its stock fall 12.3% in premarket trading as investors reacted to the rise of DeepSeek—a low-cost, Chinese AI model disrupting the market. DeepSeek has quickly become the top-rated free app on Apple’s App Store in the US, overtaking competitors like ChatGPT. What sets it apart is its ability to deliver robust AI capabilities using lower-cost chips and significantly less data. Developed with an investment of just $5.6 million, the DeepSeek-V3 model challenges the massive spending strategies of US tech giants like Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet, all of whom have committed billions to AI research and infrastructure. This sudden shake-up raises concerns about the sustainability of heavy AI investments, as DeepSeek’s cost-efficient model could upend the anticipated dominance of US tech firms. The potential for reduced demand along the AI supply chain rattled chipmakers and data center providers alike. The ripple effects extended to European markets, where the pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.8%, with tech stocks dropping 3.4%—marking their largest single-day decline since October. Semiconductor firms like ASML and ASM International took heavy hits, sliding 7% and 12%, respectively. Siemens Energy and Schneider Electric, both suppliers of hardware for AI infrastructure, saw their shares plunge 19.9% and 9.5%.

CapitalNumbers began its trading journey on the BSE SME platform with a lukewarm debut on January 27, listing at ₹274, a modest 4.18% premium over its IPO price of ₹263. However, the early enthusiasm fizzled out as the stock dropped to ₹260.30, slipping 1% below its issue price by the end of the day. The ₹169.37 crore IPO, which opened for subscription from January 20–22, 2025, was priced between ₹250–263 per share. It comprised an equal split between fresh shares and an offer for sale, each aggregating ₹84.69 crore. Despite the subdued debut, the IPO itself was a blockbuster, subscribed a staggering 134.64 times. Non-institutional investors led the charge with an eye-popping 297.32 times subscription, followed by QIBs at 122.19 times and retail investors at 72 times. CapitalNumbers plans to deploy the IPO proceeds toward advancing cutting-edge technology, fueling business development, investing in subsidiaries, pursuing acquisitions, and other strategic initiatives. While the IPO’s overwhelming subscription showcased strong investor interest, the tepid listing hints at tempered market sentiment, possibly due to broader SME market volatility or cautious evaluations of post-IPO growth prospects. Investors may now watch closely to see if CapitalNumbers can leverage its funding to drive the technological innovation and strategic expansion it has promised.

Tata Steel, the behemoth of India’s steel manufacturing landscape, unveiled a 43% drop in its Q3FY25 net profit, slipping to ₹295.49 crore from ₹522.14 crore in the same period last year. The dip came as revenues from operations slid 2.7% to ₹53,231 crore, driven by softer performance in its core India business. While overall expenses declined by 2.3%, thanks to a 7% cut in employee benefits and an 11.6% reduction in other expenses, the company’s flagship Indian operations saw a 5.5% revenue drop. This segment contributed ₹32,760.45 crore, down from ₹34,685.50 crore last year. On the brighter side, Tata Steel’s European arm showed resilience with a modest 1.9% revenue growth to ₹18,491.24 crore. The disappointment, however, extended to “Other trade-related operational revenues,” which nosedived 29%, signaling challenges in peripheral streams. On the market front, Tata Steel’s shares reflected investor unease, shedding 2.77% to close at ₹126.40. The stock has been on a rollercoaster ride, touching a 52-week low of ₹122.60 just earlier this month, after peaking at ₹184.60 in mid-2024. Over the past five years, the shares have delivered a stellar 200% return but stumbled by 6.26% in the last year amid volatile trading.

ACC Ltd posted a jaw-dropping 103% year-on-year surge in consolidated net profit for Q3FY25, clocking ₹1,091.73 crore, compared to ₹537.63 crore in the same period last year. Sequentially, profits shot up a staggering 446.8%. Yet, despite these stellar numbers, the stock treaded water on Monday, trading 0.44% lower at ₹2,048.75 on the BSE by early afternoon. Revenue also painted a promising picture, rising 7.25% YoY to ₹5,207.29 crore, while sequential growth came in at 15.2%. In fact, the December quarter recorded the highest revenue in five years at ₹5,927 crore, boosted by an 11% uptick in trade sales volume and a stronger push for premium products, which now make up 32% of trade sales. EBITDA for the quarter grew to ₹1,116 crore from ₹905 crore in Q3FY24, with margins slightly improving to 18.8%. While the cement sector grew modestly by 1.5-2% in the first half of FY25, a more robust demand is on the horizon. The pro-infrastructure and housing thrust in Budget 2025, combined with increased government spending, is expected to fuel 4-5% growth in cement demand for the full fiscal year.