On March 22, 2024, the Sensex commenced trading at 72,231.66, climbing to an intraday peak of 73,115.62 and bottoming out at 72,172.09. It concluded the session at 72,831.94, marking a 191-point increase, or 0.26%.
Similarly, the Nifty 50 began at 21,932.20, reached a high of 22,180.70 and a low of 21,883.30, and settled at 22,096.75, up 85 points, or 0.39%.
Moreover, the BSE-listed firms witnessed a surge in market capitalisation, soaring to almost ₹382.2 lakh crore from around ₹380 lakh crore in the preceding session, resulting in a wealth addition of over ₹2 lakh crore.
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Impact on the stock market
The Nifty IT sector index recorded a decline of 2.33 %. Conversely, all other sectoral indices closed higher.
Nifty Realty and Auto saw gains of 1.76 % and 1.67 %, respectively, while the Media and Pharma indices both experienced a rise of 1.25 %.
| Sector/Index | Performance |
| Information Technology | -2.33% |
| Healthcare | +1.27% |
| Oil & Gas | +0.19% |
| Realty | +1.76% |
| PSU Banks | +0.97% |
Top gainers today
| Company | Price | Change (%) |
| UPL | 472.10 | 3.63% |
| Hero Motocorp | 4,683.00 | 3.61% |
| Maruti Suzuki | 12,315.15 | 3.42% |
| Apollo Hospital | 6,377.35 | 3.15% |
| Bajaj Auto | 8,979.75 | 2.62% |
Top losers today
| Company | Price | Change (%) |
| LTIMindtree | 5,005.00 | -3.00% |
| Infosys | 1,508.85 | -2.95% |
| Wipro | 487.10 | -2.67% |
| HCL Tech | 1,557.85 | -2.38% |
| Tech Mahindra | 1,262.65 | -1.57% |
Market aftermath: Impact on stocks
KP Green Engineering soars 38% on SME BSE debut
KP Green Engineering debuted strongly on SME BSE on March 22, listing at a 38% premium of ₹ 200 compared to its issue price of ₹ 144. The IPO, amounting to ₹ 189.5 crore, garnered significant interest and was oversubscribed by 20 times.
Proceeds will be allocated for capital expenditure and general corporate purposes. KP Green’s FY23 standalone net profit surged to ₹ 12.4 crore from ₹ 4.5 crore the previous year, with revenue increasing to ₹ 114.2 crore from ₹ 77.7 crore.
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Bharat Dynamics surges 2% on interim dividend approval
Bharat Dynamics shares surged 2% post-board approval of an interim dividend for FY23-24. The declared dividend of ₹8.85 per equity share of ₹10 each marks a substantial return.Â
Additionally, the company plans to subdivide its equity shares, subject to shareholder nod.
Financially, Q3 FY24 showed a robust 30.35% revenue growth and 61.25% profit increase year-on-year, despite a slight decline from the previous quarter.
IT stocks plummet
IT giants TCS, Infosys, HCL, and Wipro witnessed a 3-5% decline after Accenture slashed its FY24 revenue growth forecast to 1-3%, down from 2-5%. Accenture’s Q2FY24 revenues stood at $15.8 billion, flat YoY in constant currency.
Despite robust outsourcing-driven deal bookings of $21.6 billion, its weak Q3 revenue guidance led to a negative market sentiment. Nomura suggests a higher cut in organic growth, with Accenture expecting flat revenue growth in consulting and mid-single-digit growth in managed services for FY24.
Oil prices dip
Brent crude settled down 0.2% at $85.78 a barrel, while US WTI futures ended 0.3% lower at $81.07, following a 1.8% decline in the previous session. US crude inventories unexpectedly dropped, but gasoline product supplied dipped below 9 million barrels, suggesting overbuying.Â
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The market also reacted to reports of a UN draft resolution for a Gaza ceasefire. Investors found some relief in the US Fed’s decision to maintain interest rates at 5.25% to 5.50%.
Conclusion
In today’s stock market update for March 22, 2024, Indian indices witnessed a positive trend, with the Sensex and Nifty 50 both recording gains.
KP Green Engineering soared on its SME BSE debut, while Bharat Dynamics saw a boost. The IT sector fell due to Accenture’s results. Despite a slight dip in oil prices, market sentiment remained upbeat.Â
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