After opening the day on a positive note, Indian share markets gave up all the gains as the session progressed and ended marginally lower.

Indian shares reversed gains amidst volatility due to extended FII selling and higher oil prices, which offset better-than-expected earnings from the country's largest private lender HDFC Bank.

FII selling in Indian equities was the result of high domestic valuations and rising allocations to other markets such as China and Taiwan, which were cut earlier due to Covid curbs.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood lower by 168 points (down 0.3%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed lower by 62 points (down 0.3%).

Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, and Infosys were among the top gainers today.

Adani Enterprises, Axis Bank, and JSW Steel on the other hand were among the top losers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 17,945, down by 94 points, at the time of writing.

Broader markets settled on a negative note. The BSE Midcap inched 0.3% lower while the BSE SmallCap index ended 0.1% lower.

Sectoral indices ended on a mixed note with stocks in the power sector, IT sector, and media sector witnessing heavy selling pressure.

While stocks in the telecom sector and metal sector witnessed buying.

Shares of Federal Bank, IDFC, and Jindal Stainless hit their 52-week highs today.

Asian share markets ended the day on a mixed note.

The Hang Seng ended flat, while the Shanghai Composite index ended 1% higher. The Nikkei edged 1.1% lower.

US stock futures are trading on a negative note. Dow futures are trading lower by 0.2% while Nasdaq futures are trading low by 0.7%.

The rupee is trading at 81.6 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading higher by 0.2% at Rs 56,937 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading up by 0.3% at Rs 69,600 per kg.
 

Federal Bank Q3 results

In news from the banking sector, shares of Federal Bank rallied 1.3% today.

Private lender Federal Bank today reported its highest-ever net profit of Rs 8 bn on higher interest income and lower provisions. This was 54% YoY higher compared to Rs 5.2 bn in the same quarter in the previous fiscal year.

The bank's net interest income for the December 2022 quarter grew by 27.1% to Rs 19.6 bn from Rs 15.4 bn last year.

Other income rose 10.3% to Rs 5.3 bn from Rs 4.8 bn in the same period of the previous year.

Non-performing assets and net interest margins also improved.

As a percentage of total loans, gross NPAs stood at 2.4% compared to 3.1% in the year-ago period. Net NPAs were at 0.7% in the December quarter compared to 0.7% in the previous quarter.

Federal Bank is one of the major Indian commercial banks in the private sector.
 

L&T Construction bags significant order

Moving on to news from the engineering sector, shares of Larsen and Toubro were in focus today.

L&T Construction's buildings & factories (B&F) Fast business has received a significant repeat order from a reputable and prestigious commercial developer.

The mandate is to build two commercial office towers in Hyderabad with approximate built-up areas of 2.9 million square feet and 2.8 million square feet, respectively.

The project scope includes civil work for the composite structure, including MEP, finishes, and facade, to build towers with 6B+G+22 and 6B+G+41 floors. The project is expected to take 18 months to complete.

The B&F Fast unit had recently constructed a 7-storey Flight Control System Integration Centre for DRDO in just 45 days.

Larsen & Toubro is an Indian multinational engaged in EPC projects, hi-tech manufacturing, and services. It operates in over 50 countries worldwide.

The company has rewarded investors with 10 bonuses over the last 7 decades and the CAGR over the last 20 years stands at an impressive 25.6%.

L&T has been an investor's favorite stock for a long time and also a stock that makes it to the top 5 infrastructure stocks.
 

Paytm Payments Bank gets final RBI nod

Moving on to news from the fintech sector, shares of Paytm were buzzing today.

Paytm Payments Bank today received final approval from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as a Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit (BBPOU).

Under Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS), a BBPOU is allowed to facilitate bill payment services for electricity, phone, DTH, water, gas insurance, loan repayments, FASTag recharge, education fees, credit card bills, and municipal taxes.

It is owned by the National Payments Corporation of India.

So far, Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) has been undertaking this activity under in-principle authorization from RBI.

Under RBI's guidance, PPBL will display all agent institutions onboard on its website.

Paytm is India's leading financial services company that offers payments and financial solutions to consumers.
 

GPT Infraprojects bags Rs 2.2 billion order

Moving on to the news from the real estate sector, shares of GPT Infraprojects jumped 5% today.

The rally came in after the firm bagged an order worth Rs 2.2 bn.

The company bagged this order from Maharashtra Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited for the proposed extensions of the Ghatkopar Cable Stayed Road Over Bridge in Mumbai.

It has orders worth approximately 22 bn, including a cumulative order inflow of Rs 8.6 bn in the current financial year.

GPT Infraprojects is engaged in the execution of civil and infrastructure projects, especially large bridges and rail overbridges for the railways.

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