HDFC’s home run

Nifty50: 17,069 ▼ 33 (-0.2%)
Sensex: 56,975 ▼ 84 (-0.1%)

Wassup, people!

Took the day off to make it a long weekend? Smart! For those of us who showed up to trade, the markets put up a flop show and ended lower than on Friday.

• Markets remained indecisive ahead of the US Fed's meeting over May 3-4. 
• In all, 31 of the Nifty50 stocks closed lower.
• Meanwhile, the pick-up in manufacturing activity in April comes as a relief, as new orders and production expanded at a faster pace. 

Among the Nifty sectoral indices, Metal (+0.5%) and Media (+0.4%) saw minor gains, while IT (-1.5%) and Auto (-1.2%) ended the weakest.

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What’s trending

⭐Results catalyse Tata Chem stock 🧪

Higher volumes in US markets + Better pricing = 15x profit increase. That in one line is the reason Tata Chemicals stock zoomed over 10% intraday on Monday. The company has reported net profit of  ₹470 crore in the March quarter. The performance was driven by higher volumes in the US markets and better pricing per unit sold. 

⭐ Auto sales cruise along 🚗

India’s love for utility vehicles (UVs) grows stronger, with Maruti and M&M selling 33% and 22% more UVs, respectively, in April as compared to a year ago. Even EVs are selling like hot cakes, with Tata Motors’ EV sales rising 300%. However, Maruti’s ‘bread and butter’ small-car segment shrank by 22% as higher fuel costs and rising commodity prices have made entry-level cars more expensive. 

⭐Time for some Made-in-India chips! 📲

When you can’t buy ’em, you make ‘em! The world is reeling under the semiconductor shortage, but India is all set to get its first semiconductor chip plant. International Semiconductor Consortium (ISMC), a JV between Abu Dhabi-based Next Orbit Ventures and Israeli firm Tower Semiconductor, will invest $3 billion to set up a semiconductor plant in Karnataka. Vedanta too is expected to finalise the site for a plant by mid-May. It plans to invest $20 billion in the business. 

⭐Adani Wilmar’s soaring ‘fortunes’💰 

 The edible-oil maker reported a 40% year-on-year rise in revenues to ₹14,960 crore owing to higher product prices.. Further, its net profit stood at ₹235 crore, up 39% after adjusting one-time tax reversal received last year. Although investors chose to book profits in Adani Wilmar (-3.7%) today, the stock has had a phenomenal run, rising over 3x since its listing in February this year. The company is the latest entrant into the 1 lakh crore market-cap club.

⭐Who let the jobs out?😟 

There’s bad news, as another batch of newly-minted graduates get ready to hit the job market. There aren’t enough jobs, according to independent research agency, CMIE. The unemployment rate in India rose to 7.8% in April from 7.6% in March, Haryana and Rajasthan are the states with the highest rate of unemployment. CMIE also reported a rise in the urban unemployment rate to 9.2%. Meanwhile, rural India, in the middle of the Rabi harvest, fared better, with unemployment declining to 7.1%.

⭐GST bounty for the govt 💸

But, it’s not all bad news on the economy front. Guess what’s up? Not the markets! India’s GST collection hit an all-time high in April. The collection for the month stood at ₹1.68 lakh crore up 18% over March figures. The FinMin attributed the jump to the ongoing economic recovery and correction in the duty structure.

In Focus

Home Demand Fuels (Loan) Consumption

In the last year, it seemed like everyone and their grandma bought a home. Well, guess who is laughing all the way to the bank? HDFC Ltd. The company that is credited with starting the home loan business in India says housing demand is stronger than what was witnessed in the last 44 years!

No wonder then, that the company reported an over 16% rise in Q4 net profit, and beat estimates. 

This was led by a 14% rise in net interest income or the difference between the interest earned from borrowers and interest paid to depositors.

In March 2022, the company recorded its highest-ever monthly individual disbursements or home loans given to individuals. On an annual basis, individual loan disbursements during the year rose by 37% because of a revival in the real estate sector and consumer spending.

And, home loans are rising not only in the affordable housing segment but also in premium properties, the company has said. This momentum, it has said, is expected to continue.

IPO corner

The LIC IPO seems to be well ‘anchored’. According to reports, the LIC IPO anchor book was oversubscribed on the first day. The insurance giant is looking to raise ₹5,630 crore from anchor investors. The IPO opens for the public on 4 May, but you can pre-apply for it on Upstox. Click here to know more.

Good to know

What is a bid lot?

When applying for an IPO, an investor has to apply for a minimum number of shares, or a bid lot. This number is predetermined and if the buying value is higher than the set number, order can be in its multiples. So, for example, if the bid lot is 10, the investor can apply for 10 shares or in multiples of 10. 

Note: The markets will be closed on Tuesday on account of Eid-Ul-Fitr.

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