Gujarat Election Results 2017: Sensex, Nifty Close Higher; BJP Wins Gujarat, Wrests Himachal Pradesh From Congress

The Gujarat Election Results 2017 data spurred the markets ahead of the results of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh state elections. PM-Modi led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wrested control of Himachal Pradesh from Congress and also won Gujarat, though by a decidedly lower margin of victory than last time. Analysts had predicted that a big win for BJP in the Gujarat election will add to the momentum the party got with its sweep of Uttar Pradesh earlier this year. Rahul Gandhi conceded defeat saying the Congress "accepts the verdict."

7: 20 pm: "Gujarat and Himachal results show that India is ready for reforms," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the BJP headquarters this evening.

6:51 pm: The BJP today retained power in Gujarat, securing a simple majority by winning 92 seats in the 182-member Assembly, according to a report by Press Trust of India. It is leading in seven more, according to the Election Commission tally.

6:28 pm: BJP gets majority in Gujarat, according to Election Commission tally.

6:09 pm: A unit of India's JSW Group said it will buy a 49 per cent stake in iron ore pellets manufacturer Brahmani River Pellets Ltd for an undisclosed amount, after Tata Steel Ltd, which was a front-runner to acquire the company, dropped out. The deal will give the Sajjan Jindal-controlled steel giant access to a 4 million tonne per annum (mtpa) pellet plant and a 4.7 mtpa iron ore beneficiation plant in the eastern state of Odisha, and a 230 kilometres long pipeline connecting both, where the group has been trying to get a foothold for a long time.

5:53 pm: Anita Gandhi, Whole Time Director of Arihant Capital Markets on today’s market performance and near-term outlook:

“Equity markets underwent a very volatile session in the morning trade, before the final outcome of Gujarat elections. As the vote count came in  favour of BJP, the indices staged a very smart and fast recovery. Overall, it was very exciting trading session. Going forward, the outlook remains positive with a focus on housing, cement, infrastructure and metal stocks. The structural bull market sentiment will continue. However, some year-end profit-taking by FIIs cannot be ruled out."

5:38 pm: HDFC Securities Stock Pick of the Week: Laurus Labs, with sequential target price at Rs. 590 & Rs. 633.

Time Horizon - four-six quarters

Incorporated in 2005, Laurus Labs (LLL) is a leading research and  development driven pharmaceutical company in India. The company has grown consistently to become one of the leading manufacturers of Active  Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) for anti-retroviral (ARV) and Hepatitis C. It also manufactures APIs in oncology and other therapeutic areas. LLL has a manufacturing facility in Vishakapatnam and R&D centre in Hyderabad.

Laurus Labs shares closed 2 per cent higher at Rs 535.

5:13 pm: The rupee ended at 64.23 against the US dollar today, recovering from day’s low of 64.68. The rupee had closed at 64.04 yesterday.

5:00 pm: Sanjeev Zarbade, Vice-president – PCG Research, Kotak Securities, On Today’s Market Performance:

“Equity benchmarks remained strong as elections results have indicated that BJP will form its government in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. The market breadth was positive as well. European stocks opened higher, amid heightened expectations US lawmakers could pass a long-awaited tax bill. Going ahead, the future direction of the market would be influenced by global monetary developments and fund flow from domestic and foreign investors. Central bank tightening and high oil prices would be the key risks.”

4:45 pm: HDFC Securities Stock Pick of the Week: Subros Limited, with target price of Rs 318.

Time Horizon - Four quarters

Subros shares today ended nearly 4 per cent higher at Rs 275.

4.10 pm: Summing up the day's trading, Jayant Manglik of Religare Securities said: "It was an eventful day as Nifty witnessed a swing of nearly 400-odd points in the early trade and finally settled with gain of over half a percent. Initially, markets fell drastically, citing unexpected lead by the Congress in Gujarat election results, but not for long. The situation completely reversed as the BJP progressed towards comfortable win against Congress. However, volatility remained high on stock specific front, keeping the uneasiness intact. Nifty has again reached closer to its record high, clearly indicates that bulls are in control."

3.30 pm: Sensex closed at 33,602 points, 139 points, or 0.41%, higher while Nifty gained 56 points, or 0.54%, before closing at 10,389 points. M&M (Mahindra and Mahindra), Sun Pharma, State Bank of India (SBI), Wipro and ICICI Bank were the major gainers with gains in the range of 1.7% to 2.7%.

3.25 pm: Sensex rises 134 points to trade at 33,597 points while Nifty rises 47 points, 0.45%, to trade at 10,380 points.

3.09 pm: Sensex rises 181 points, 0.54%, to trade at 33,644 points, while Nifty rises 63 points, or 0.61%, to trade at 10,396 points.M&M, Wipro, Sun Pharma and ICICI Bank are the major gainers reporting gains of around 2%. 

2.50 pm: Only six stocks fall while 24 stocks trade positive on Sensex. Both market indices, Sensex and Nifty, hold on to gains.

2.40 pm: Metal stocks rise. BSE metal index jumps 1.79%. Jindal steel rises 5.79%, Vedanta rises 3.29%, Hindalco rises by 2.68%, Hindustan Zinc by 1.91%, Steel  Authority (SAIL) by 1.47%, and Tata Steel by 1.39%

2.25 pm: Metal, Banking and auto stocks jump on BSE. The BSE metal index rises by 1.76%, the BSE banking index rises by 1.03%, and the BSE auto index rises by 1.37%. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), SBI (State Bank of India) are the top gainers with gains to the tune of 3%, and 2.51%, respectively. 

1.55 pm: Sensex rises 301 points, 0.90%, higher to trade at 33,764 points while Nifty surges 92 points, or 0.89%, to trade at 10,426 points. Coal India, Yes Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank are major losers. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma are major gainers with gains to the tune of 2.6%, 2.5%, and 2.5%, respectively.

1.45 pm: Sensex rises 260 points, or 0.78%, to trade at 33,723 points. Nifty trades 83 points higher to trade at 10,416 points.

1.15 pm: The rupee halted its slide against the dollar with a loss of only 5 paise at 64.09 as the BJP's tally of leads improved in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly election results. The domestic unit opened lower and crashed instantly to 64.72 as early reports of vote counting had pointed to a close fight between the BJP and the Congress in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elections.
However, things took a dramatic turn for the rupee, with the BJP taking the lead for both the states. The impact was immediate as the local unit turned around and hit 64.09, but still down by 5 paise, at 11.09 am. Seeking a sixth straight term in Gujarat, the BJP is ahead in 100 seats while the opposition Congress is leading in 70 seats, the Election Commission (EC) trends available for 175 of the 182 seats at stake showed. 

1.05 pm: Sensex rises 288 points to trade at 33,752 points while Nifty rises 91 points to trade at 10,424 points. M&M, ICICI Bank, SBI and Sun Pharma post major gains on BSE. 

12.45 pm: Adani Enterprises shares hit their 52-week high on NSE. The scrip touched Rs 166.45 surpassing its previous 52-week high of Rs 162 on November 20. Similarly, Adani Ports registered a considerable rise of 2.83% to trade at Rs 413 on BSE. Adani Power posts 3.26% jump in the intraday trading to trade at Rs 36.40 on BSE. 

12.15 pm: Forty three stocks hit all-time highs on BSE. Some of these stocks include Adani, Dynamic Cables, Graphite India, among others. Some 19 NSE stocks hit their 52-week highs. Sensex trades at 33,742.35 points, 273 points higher while Nifty trades at 10,425.25, 92 points higher. 

11.30 am: The Indian rupee (INR) pared nearly all of its sharp losses early on Monday, as it became clear that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP would comfortably win an election in Gujarat. At around 9.20 am, the rupee was down as much as 1.1 percent, its biggest intraday loss since May 18, as initial counting showed a close fight between the ruling BJP and the main opposition Congress. Later, three news television channels said the BJP won more than 100 of 182 assembly seats. At 11.16 am, the rupee was down just 0.1 percent. "This election in Gujarat is like a barometer gauge said Christopher Wong, an FX strategist with Malayan Banking. "Fears of an upset election dissipated as Modi was set for a win"
11.25 am: Sensex stays higher for over an hour now in a stark departure from the early market volatility when the 30-share index fell by over 800 points. Sensex rises 222 points, or 0.66%, to trade at 33,685 points. The NSE Nifty rises 69 points, or 0.67%, to trade at 10,402 points.

11.00 am: Sensex is higher by 265 points while Nifty rises by 92 points. BSE healthcare, BSE metal and BSE auto indices rise by 1.27%, 1.92%, 1.39%, respectively, while BSE power, BSE realty and BSE IT stocks post gains to the tune of less than 1%. M&M and Sun Pharma are the maximum gainers as the scrips rise by 3.5% and 2.3%, respectively.

10.45 am: Barring IT stocks, all other major Nifty indices rise. The Nifty IT index falls 0.04% while all other Nifty indices. Nifty metal index rises by 1.58%, while Nifty pharma is up 0.97%. Nifty auto index is higher by 0.85%. Sensex is higher by 219 points while Nifty is higher by 61 points. 

10.20 am: Sensex is higher by 193 points, 0.58% higher, to trade at 33,656 points. The Nifty is higher by 55 points, 0.53%, to trade at 10,388 points. Only five Sensex stocks are in negative while the remaining 25 stocks are in green. Maximum gains are posted by M&M, Adani Ports, Tata Steel, HDFC Bank and Asian Paints.

10.05 am: Sensex rises 80 points to trade at 33,543, while Nifty rose 20 points to trade at 0.19%. All stocks that had fallen early morning trade have now recovered and trade in green. The stocks such as Adani Ports, ICICI Bank, Airtel and HDFC Bank are trading higher. 

10.00 am: The rupee plunged 68 paise to 64.72 against the dollar on Monday after early trend suggested that the BJP and the Congress are neck and neck in Gujarat Assembly sweepstakes after one hour of counting of votes. The Congress is leading in 7 seats while the BJP is leading in 6 in the Himachal Pradesh Assembly polls as early trends poured in.

9.38 am: Sensex pares some losses and now trades only 84 points down, 0.25%, at 33,379 points. Nifty trades only 97 points down to trade at 10,236 points. A few stocks come in green. The stocks that post gains include SBI, Sun Pharma, M&M and Asian Paints. 

9.25 am: Sensex fell to 32,596 points, 867 points lower, against the previous session's closing. The market opened at 33,364.52, 98 points lower than the Friday's closing. The Adani stocks fell 4.8% to trade at Rs 383. The other stocks that posted major losses are Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank and Coal India that posted the losses to the tune of 2.5% to 3%. Not even a single Sensex stock posted gains on Monday morning. Telecom and realty stocks posted maximum losses to the tune of 3-3.5%. Banks and financial stocks also plunged. BSE finance and BSE banking indices posted losses to the tune of 2.4% and 2.47%, respectively. At 9.20am, BJP leads in 91 of the Gujarat's 182 seats, the Congress in 84, with the latter gaining in 23 seats that it had lost last time. The BJP is trailing in 18 seats it had won in 2012.
9.14 am: Sensex loses 98 points to trade at 33,365 points. Nifty loses 70 points to trade at 10,263 points as Congress rebounds and is ahead in 80 seats in comparison to 89 by BJP
 
8.43 am: Sensex and Nifty are expected to surge as the PM Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to get victorious in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections, as the early data suggest. The real estate companies may be under pressure on Monday after the cabinet on Saturday approved the GST anti-profiteering body which is likely to crack down on the realty firms for not passing on the benefits of lower GST tax rate.

8.21 am: BJP is ahead on 32 seats while Congress is ahead on 7 seats in Gujarat.

7:45 am: Analysts says that the trading sentiment in the stock market this week will be driven by the election results in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. Besides, the Gujarat election, Investors will also be keeping an eye on global factors like the progress on US tax reforms and crude oil prices. "The cues from winter session (of Parliament) will also be closely followed. Any deviation from exit polls could negatively impact the market sentiment in the near to medium term," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Teena Virmani, vice president of PCG Research at Kotak Securities, said, "Globally, eyes would be on US tax bill related developments as well as on crude prices." Over the last week, the Sensex notched up a significant gain of 212.67 points, or 0.63 per cent. The Nifty was up 67.60 points, or 0.65 per cent.

Only for a week the market will be active after which year-end holiday mood will grip the whole world, say analysts.