Stocks to Watch, October 21, Diwali Muhurat Trading: Auto, FMCG, RIL and financials may hog the limelight

Muhurat Trading is a symbolic and auspicious one-hour session conducted every year on Diwali. It represents the beginning of a new financial year, according to the Hindu calendar.

Traditionally, Muhurat Trading is held in the evening; however, this year it is being conducted in the afternoon.

The term “Muhurat” refers to an auspicious period chosen to start something new. During this time, trading is believed to bring prosperity and good fortune.

The market is otherwise closed for normal operations and will resume trading on Thursday, October 23.

Stock exchanges BSE and National Stock Exchange (NSE) will hold a special Muhurat trading session from 1:45 pm to 2:45 pm for Laxmi Pujan, according to notices from both exchanges.

According to the latest investor's presentation, Sobha Ltd will launch 13 projects across Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Pune, Chennai, Calicut, Thrissur, and Trivandrum.

The company will launch a 16 million sq ft area in these 13 projects with an estimated sales value of nearly Rs 22,000 crore.

It would also launch two commercial projects with an area of 0.74 million square feet, taking the total forthcoming projects pipeline to 15 projects covering 16.7 million square feet of built-up area.

Besides, as per the latest data released by industry body SIAM, automobile exports from India rose 26% year-on-year (YoY) in the September quarter (Q2 FY26), driven by the highest-ever shipments of passenger vehicles, two-wheelers, and three-wheelers during the period.

Passenger vehicle exports grew 23% to 2,41,554 units in the September quarter as against 1,96,196 units in the same period of the last fiscal year.

Passenger car exports grew 20.5% to 1,25,513 units in the second quarter as against 1,04,196 units in the September quarter of last fiscal year.

The company is among the top five primary producers of silver globally and the country's biggest producer of the white metal.

"...I had predicted 46 dollars per troy ounce by January, but that has been outsmarted, and we have already crossed that milestone, and the predictions are it can be anywhere between 50 and 55 dollars per troy ounce by December, and it will remain steady at that for a considerable time," Misra told PTI in an interview.

Amidst global headwinds, he said India is an oasis for investments.

The minister added that today, India is emerging as a preferred investment destination.

Even in turbulent times, foreign direct investment (FDI) continues to flow robustly, the minister said.

"In the last few months itself, investors from all over the world have announced plans to invest over ₹50,000 crore in India's finance and banking sector," he said in a post on X.

This surge in FDI highlights the growing attractiveness of the Indian economy to global investors, he said.

FDI in India rose 15% to $18.62 billion during April-June this fiscal year, while the inflow from the US nearly tripled to $5.61 billion during the quarter, according to government data.