Indian share markets continued to trade in the green during the closing hours of the trading session and ended the day on a positive note. Gains were largely seen in the banking sector and telecom sector.
At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 136 points (up 0.4%) and the NSE Nifty closed higher by 26 points (up 0.2%). The BSE Mid Cap index ended the day up by 0.3%, while the BSE Small Cap index ended the day up by 0.4%.
Asian stock markets finished on a mixed note as of the most recent closing prices. The Hang Seng stood up by 0.5% and the Nikkei was trading down by 0.1%. The Shanghai Composite stood lower by 1.3%.
European markets were trading on a positive note. The FTSE 100 was up by 0.20%. The DAX, was up by 0.27% while the CAC 40 was up by 0.19%
The rupee was trading at 68.78 to the US$ at the time of writing.
In the news from FMCG sector, Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) share price was in focus today after the company said it has signed an agreement with Vijaykant Dairy and Food Products Ltd (VDFPL) and its group company to acquire 'Adityaa Milk' brand ice cream and frozen desserts and front-end distribution network across geographies for an undisclosed sum.The company said that this proposed acquisition is in line with HUL's strategic intent to strengthen its position in the rapidly growing ice cream and frozen dessert market in India.
As per the company statement, VDFPL will manage the business until the transaction is completed, and will also continue to manufacture for HUL for an agreed period of time.
HUL Chairman and Managing Director Sanjiv Mehta said ice creams and frozen desserts is an exciting category for the company and it sees great potential for growth and the acquisition will complement the company's existing portfolio of Kwality Wall's.
HUL share price closed today's trading session down by 1.7% on the BSE.
In the news from commodity space, crude oil witnessed buying interest today. Gains were seen as Saudi crude production registered a decline in July and US drilling cooled off.
As per the data, Saudi Arabia pumped around 10.29 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude in July. This was down about 200,000 bpd from a month earlier.
The news relieved worries about oversupply and meant crude oil prices trade on a positive note.
Speaking of crude oil, note that global oil prices have climbed steadily this year, helped by rising demand. However, rising crude oil prices doesn't bode well for the Indian economy, as it not only affects fuel prices, but also has many other repercussions on the macroeconomic level.
They can be a big worry for the Modi government as well as it has been a big beneficiary of lower crude oil prices.
Have a look at the chart below. It shows India's total import bill of crude oil and petroleum products on an annual basis during the Manmohan Singh regime and the Narendra Modi regime.
Here's Why Crude Oil Was Modi's Best Friend So Far
As Ankit Shah wrote in one of the editions of The 5 Minute WrapUp...
- During the UPA II regime, India's average annual oil import bill was US$ 133 billion. In fact, in the last three years of Manmohan Singh's leadership, the oil import bill exceeded US$ 150 billion. Compare that with an average annual oil bill of US$ 95 billion during the four years of Modi's leadership.
The actual savings would have been even higher, because I believe the consumption of crude oil and petroleum products would have been quite higher in the Modi era than the Manmohan era.
Last Thursday, Brent crude oil prices shot above US$ 80 a barrel.
This is the highest level since 2014. In the past one year alone, oil prices have surged more than 50%.
Now, what if oil prices go back to the levels during the Manmohan Singh regime? What would happen to India's current account and fiscal deficit? What would happen to inflation and RBI's stance on interest rates?
With the next general elections just a year away, rising crude oil prices are going to be a big worry for the Modi government.
It should worry you too...
Apart from that, what does rising crude oil prices mean for stock markets?
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