Indian share markets extended gains as the session progressed and ended on a strong note.

The Sensex, which crossed the 45,000-mark last week for the first time, continued momentum and rose more than 340 points today supported by financials, pharma, and FMCG stocks.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 347 points (up 0.8%).

The NSE Nifty closed higher by 97 points (up 0.7%).

Adani Ports and UPL were among the top gainers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 13,421, up by 94 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE MidCap index and the BSE SmallCap index ended up by 1% and 1.3%, respectively.

On the sectoral front, gains were largely seen in the telecom sector, FMCG sector, and finance sector.

Asian stock markets ended on a negative note today. As of the most recent closing prices, the Hang Seng ended down by 1.2% and the Shanghai Composite ended down 0.8%. The Nikkei ended down by 0.7%.

The rupee is trading at 73.88 against the US$.

In news from the commodity space...

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading flat at Rs 49,152 per 10 grams.

Gold prices were mixed today in Indian markets as optimism around Covid-19 vaccines roll-outs offset hopes of a US stimulus package being passed this week.

In the previous session, gold futures had declined 0.2% to Rs 49,209 per 10 grams.

Speaking of the precious yellow metal, how lucrative has gold been as a long-term investment in India?

The chart below shows the annual returns on gold over the last 15 years...

As you can see, barring just two years - 2013 and 2015, gold has delivered positive returns in 13 of the last 15 years.

The recent price volatility in the bullion market has rattled many traders. Even with the recent volatility in prices, gold remains one of the best-performing commodities this year to combat the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Moving on to stock-specific news...

Yes Bank was among the top buzzing stocks today.

Yes Bank including four other firms- Adani Enterprises, PI Industries, Hindustan Aeronautics, and Jubilant Food-Works - are likely to get upgraded as part of the half-yearly market-cap categorization by mutual fund industry body Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), which is expected to release a fresh list by January 5.

As per a report in the Economic Times, ICICI Securities has assigned a high probability to the first four and a low probability for Jubilant FoodWorks for getting upgraded to large cap stock.

Note that AMFI categorizes stocks into large caps, midcaps, and small caps stocks based on the average market capitalization every six months. Mutual fund schemes are required to align their portfolios based on the share categories.

ICICI Securities said it expects 4-5 switches between large caps and midcaps and 11-12 switches between midcaps and small caps.

The lower end of the size limit for large caps and midcaps have increased to Rs 276 billion and Rs 82 billion respectively based on market data for the second half of 2020 available so far.

As per a circular dated October 6, 2017, by the Indian stock market regulator, mutual funds have one month to align their portfolios as per the fresh list.

NMDC, MRF, United Breweries, Container Corporation, General Insurance, and Bank of Baroda may be recategorized as midcap from large cap.

Meanwhile, IndiaMart InterMesh, Laurus Labs, Navin Fluorine, Dixon Technologies, Alok Industries, AstraZeneca Pharma, Deepak Nitrite, Bombay Burmah, and Suven Pharma are likely to be recategorized as midcap from smallcap.

As per market experts, if Yes Bank shares get upgraded to large cap as expected, then the stock may witness buying from mutual funds.

How this pans out remains to be seen. Meanwhile, we will keep you updated on all the developments from this space.

Moving on to news from the IPO space...

Premium biscuit-maker and a leading supplier of buns to fast-food chains like Burger King and McDonald's, Mrs Bectors Food Specialities, is preparing up to launch its initial public offering (IPO) next week.

The move comes a few days after the Burger King IPO, which opened on December 2, saw an impressive response from stock markets and was oversubscribed 157 times.

As per the news, the IPO is being driven by the private equity investors CX Partners and Gateway Partners who are seeking a partial exit.

The company manufactures and markets a range of biscuits under its flagship brand 'Mrs Bectors Cremica' and its bakery products under the brand 'English Oven'.

ITC & Britannia are the firm's key listed peers in the biscuits and bakery products segment while other branded rivals include Parle, Modern, and Harvest Gold.

How the above IPO sails through remains to be seen. Meanwhile, we will keep you updated on the latest developments in this space.

Speaking of IPOs, so far this year, 12 companies have raised nearly Rs 250 billion through IPOs compared with Rs 123.6 billion raised by 16 companies in 2019.

Some of the companies that had deferred their IPO plans, now want to tap the market again on robust investor appetite.

Furthermore, nearly half a dozen companies are lining up to launch their IPO this month.

Companies like Suryoday Small Finance Bank, ESAF Small Finance Bank, Nazara Technologies, RailTel, Kalyan Jewellers, and Antony Waste Management are among those that are conducting roadshows and planning IPOs in December, The Economic Times mentioned in a report citing bankers.