Indian share markets open flat; telecom & IT stocks in focus

The Hang Seng is down 0.7%, while the Shanghai Composite is trading on a flat note. Japan’s Nikkei is up 0.5%.

US stock markets ended mixed with the Nasdaq edging higher to record highs, as investors balanced worries about the slowing pace of economic recovery with expectations that the Federal Reserve will maintain its accommodative monetary policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.8% while the Nasdaq gained 0.1%.

Back home, Indian share markets have opened on a flat note, following the trend on SGX Nifty.

The BSE Sensex is trading down by 54 points. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading lower by 9 points.

Power Grid and Infosys are among the top gainers today. Bharti Airtel, on the other hand, is among the top losers today.

The BSE Mid Cap index has opened up by 0.1%. The BSE Small Cap index is trading higher by 0.3%.

Sectoral indices are trading mixed with stocks in the telecom sector and banking sector witnessing buying interest.

Power stocks and IT stocks, on the other hand, are trading in red.

Shares of Jain Irrigation and Tube Investments hit their 52-week highs today.

The rupee is trading at 73.48 against the US$.

Gold prices are trading up by 0.2% at ₹47,026 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading up by 0.1% at ₹64,654 per kg.

In news from the consumer durables sector, Voltas, Blue Star, Dixon Technologies, Amber Enterprises, and Hindalco are set to apply for the government’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for air-conditioner components, bringing immediate investments of more than ₹30 bn.

As per an article in The Economic Times, this scheme for ACs is open only for the production of components unlike in mobile phones where finished products are also covered and several companies that were considering investing in manufacturing of air-conditioners expecting finished goods will be allowed have therefore shelved their plans.

The application window for the PLI scheme for air-conditioner components ends on 15 September.

Executives of these companies have confirmed their investment plans.

Amber Enterprises will make a ₹4-bn investment proposal, while Blue Star will set up a plant for heat exchanger and sheet metal as part of its ₹2.5-bn investment.

While Dixon Technologies will enter into a joint venture with a Japanese company to manufacture printed circuit boards for air-conditioners.

For ACs, 75-80% of the components are currently imported, whereas more than 95% of ACs are now locally manufactured, after the government banned import of ACs with refrigerant.

As per industry executives, the absence of incentives on finished goods would mean India wouldn’t have any competitive edge on AC exports as compared to China.

Also, local industry production will not scale up and, hence, investing huge money in components may not justify economies of scale.

The government made it clear last month that the scheme was only for AC components and would not include finished goods. It has allocated ₹62.4 bn for five years under the PLI scheme for AC and LED lights together.

We will keep you updated on the latest developments from this space. Stay tuned.

Moving on to stock specific news…

Dr Reddy’s Lab is among the top buzzing stocks today.

Dr Reddy’s Lab has said it initiated supply of the first dose component of Russian Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V to partner hospitals all over the country.

The development came following the announcement that Panacea Biotec supplied the first shipment of the second component of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine manufactured by it for sale in India.

Note that earlier, Dr Reddy’s had suspended the supply of the first dose of Sputnik V following supply constraints from Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF).

Dr Reddy’s has also launched a website to keep the public updated on the availability of the Sputnik V vaccine.

With more batches of the second dose component to follow from the manufacturing site, Dr Reddy’s is expecting the momentum and supply to continue.

The drug maker is in a pact with RDIF to sell the first 125 m people doses (250 m vials) of Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V in India.

Dr Reddy’s Lab share price has opened the day down by 0.3%.

Here’s an interesting data on Dr. Reddy’s Lab, investing just ₹100,000 in Dr. Reddy’s Labs in 1992, it would have given a whopping ₹4.89 crores in 2014!

Co-head of Research, Tanushree Banerjee believes, the opportunities in the Rebirth of India are not only more profitable than the ones in 1991 but the gains could come faster too.

This article is syndicated from Equitymaster.com