Asian stock markets are lower today as Japanese and Hong Kong shares fall. The Nikkei 225 is off 1.2% while the Hang Seng is down 2.4%. The Shanghai Composite is trading down by 1%. US stocks snapped a three-day rally on Friday as Apple shares dropped following a disappointing forecast and the White House dampened optimism over US-China trade talks.
Back home, India share markets have opened the day on a negative note. The BSE Sensex is trading down by 123 points while the NSE Nifty is trading down by 22 points. The BSE Mid Cap index opened the day down by 0.2% while BSE Small Cap index opened flat.
Sectoral indices have opened the day on a mixed note with realty stocks and healthcare stocks witnessing maximum buying interest. While power stocks and PSU stocks have opened the day in the red.
The rupee is trading at Rs 72.80 against the US$.
Healthcare stocks opened the day on a mixed note with Torrent Pharma and Panacea Biotech leading the pack of gainers. Cadila Healthcare reported a 17% year-on-year (YoY) dip in consolidated net profit for the second quarter of this fiscal year to Rs 4.1 billion, as revenue from operations declined 8.1%.
The company posted revenue from operations of Rs 29.6 billion during the quarter under review, compared to Rs 32.2 billion in the corresponding period last fiscal year. Cost of materials consumed increased by 12% YoY to Rs 6.5 billion. Employee costs, too, increased by 13% during the quarter.
At the operating level, Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) dipped 20% YoY to Rs 6.9 billion and margin contracted 340 basis points to 23.2% for the quarter ended September 2018.
For the half-year period, Cadila Healthcare posted a 7.2% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 58.5 billion. Net profit for the period increased by 37% to Rs 8.8 billion.
To know more about the company, you can access Cadila Healthcare's latest result analysis and Cadila Healthcare's stock analysis on our website.
Cadila Healthcare share price opened the day down by 1.9%.
Moving on to the news from the currencies space. the Indian rupee on 2 November clocked its biggest single-day gain in over five years, surging by 100 paise to close at 72.45 against the US dollar.
The surge came on the back of easing crude oil prices and possibility that the US might grant waivers to India from sanctions on Iranian oil imports.
Besides, a bullish trend in the equity market and fresh foreign fund inflows provided support to the domestic currency, which has witnessed a massive 150 paise rise in the last two trading sessions.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the domestic unit on 2 November opened on a higher note at 73.14, then gained further ground and touched an intra-day high of 72.43, a jump of 102 paise.
It, however, closed at 72.45 against the greenback, showing a rise of 100 paise, the best day for the Indian unit since September 2013.
Note that, the rupee is the worst performer in Asia in 2018. It has fallen by around 12% against the US dollar this year.
Indian Rupee is the Worst Performing Currency in Asia
This selling pressure was seen on the back of a strong dollar and high oil prices. Similarly, the spill-over from the emerging-market turmoil in Argentina and Turkey is weighing on the rupee.
The falling rupee also triggered sales of bonds and stocks, which in turn further pressured the rupee.
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