Indian share markets witnessed selling pressure during closing hours today to end marginally lower.

Benchmark indices traded on a lackluster note throughout the session today as investors awaited inflation data and for clues on the central bank's interest rate trajectory.

India's annual wholesale price-based inflation (WPI) eased in October to 8.39% year-on-year, the lowest since March 2021, helped by a fall in commodity prices.

Meanwhile, more than 1,000 companies were scheduled to report results today including SpiceJet, Biocon, Apollo Tyres, and Godrej Industries among others.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood lower by 171 points (down 0.3%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed lower by 21 points (down 0.1%).

Hindalco and Apollo Hospitals were among the top gainers today.

Dr Reddy's Lab and Coal India, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 18,365, down by 71 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE MidCap index and the BSE SmallCap index ended higher by 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively.

Sectoral indices ended on a mixed note with stocks in the metal sector, realty sector, and IT sector witnessing most of the buying.

FMCG stocks and power stocks, on the other hand, witnessed selling pressure.

Shares of KRBL and RVNL hit their 52-week highs today.

Indian Hotels' share price is falling even after reporting good quarterly results.

Asian stock markets ended on a negative note today.

The Nikkei and the Shanghai Composite ended the day down by 1.1% and 0.1%, respectively. Meanwhile, Hang Seng gained 1.7%.

US stock futures are trading on a negative note today with Dow Futures trading down by 97 points.

The rupee is trading at 81.26 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading up by 0.4% at Rs 52,527 per 10 grams.

In crypto markets, Bitcoin slipped below the US$16,000 mark with a fall of 5%, followed by Ethereum, which was trading below US$1,200 after a 6% cut.

The damage was more for altcoins as the collapse of the FTX exchange has sent crypto markets for their worst seven-day stretch since June 2022.
 

Voltas Enters into Agreement with Denmark-Based Company

In news from the consumer durables space, Voltas was among the top buzzing stocks today.

The Tata group company has entered into a technology license agreement with Denmark's Vestfrost Solutions to develop, manufacture, sell and service medical refrigeration and vaccine storage equipment in India.

Vestfrost is one of the leading developers and manufacturers of innovative and efficient refrigerators and freezers in the bio-medical and cold chain industry. It will provide the technology and know-how for making the products at Voltas' facilities in India.

The press release that Voltas shares said this partnership will leverage the strong brand presence and wide sales and distribution network of Voltas.

Note that ever since Voltas reported its quarterly results, shares of the company have been reeling under pressure.

In fact, a continuous fall in its margins has resulted in a sharp fall in Voltas' share price. In the past year, the stock is down around 30%.

Voltas is the market leader in the overall room air conditioner business with a market share of 22.8%. It may be facing stiff competition but being associated with Tatas gives it an edge.

It has already taken steps to reduce costs, improve margins and increase revenues. For example, it has undertaken the BEE labeling program and Voltas Beko initiative.
 

Defense Stock Rallies on Health Order Book Update

Moving on to news from the defense sector, Cochin Shipyard shares hit a new high today.

Shares of the shipbuilding company have now surged around 13% in two days after it reported September quarter results.

While declaring results, its board also declared an interim dividend of 70% or Rs 7 per equity share. The company has fixed 22 November 2022 as the record date for the same.

In the recent past, the company has secured shipbuilding orders from internationally renowned companies from Europe and the Middle East.

Among the defense stocks with big growth stories, Cochin Shipyard is India's first greenfield shipyard that builds and maintains shipping vessels such as tankers, defense ships, passenger ships, and bulk carriers.
 

Keystone Realtors IPO

Moving on to the latest developments from the IPO space, the Rs 6.4-bn initial public offering (IPO) of Keystone Realtors kicked off for subscription today. The offer will remain open till Wednesday, 16 November in the price band of Rs 514-541 apiece.

The Rustomjee group company's IPO includes a fresh issue worth Rs 5.6 bn and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to Rs 750 m by the promoters.

As of March 2022, the real estate developer had 32 completed projects, 12 ongoing projects, and 19 forthcoming projects across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

In 2022, the company reported a revenue of Rs 12.7 bn against Rs 8.5 bn a year ago. Profit for the same period stood at Rs 1.4 bn.

The IPO received a muted response today and was subscribed to 5% by the afternoon session.

While retail investors and high-networth individuals started bidding for the offer, qualified institutional buyers were yet to get started.

Retail and non-institutional investors had each bought 7% of the shares set aside for them.

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