Asian share markets fell along with oil prices as soaring Covid-19 cases in China unsettled investors who have been expecting the world's second-biggest economy to regather momentum after the relaxation of stringent Covid-19 curbs.

The Nikkei fell by 1.2% while the Hang Seng was down by 1.1%. The Shanghai Composite is trading lower by 0.3%.

Wall Street's main indices ended weaker on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq hitting a 2022 closing low, as investors grappled with mixed economic data, rising Covid-19 cases in China, and geopolitical tensions heading into 2023.

The Dow Jones ended lower by 1.1% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended lower by 1.4%

Here's a table showing the performance of US stocks yesterday:

Source: Equitymaster

Back home, Indian share markets are trading on a negative note following the trend on SGX Nifty.

Benchmark indices extended losses today tracking weak global cues.

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading lower by 390 points. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading lower by 120 points.

Tata Steel, Sun Pharma, and Bharti Airtel are among today's top gainers. Tata Motors, HDFC, and Bajaj Finance are among the top losers today.

Broader markets are trading on a negative note. The BSE Mid Cap index is trading lower by 1.2% and the BSE Small Cap index is trading lower by 0.5%.

Sectoral indices are trading on a positive note with the exception of the IT sector. Stocks in the power, realty, and auto sectors witness buying.

Shares of Mahindra CIE Auto and RBL Bank hit their 52-week high today.

The rupee is trading at 82.8 against the US dollar.

In the commodity markets, gold prices trade lower by Rs 21 at Rs 54,740 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading lower by 0.2% at Rs 68,900 per 1 kg.

Speaking of stock markets, let us talk about the big elephant of the Indian stock market - the Tata Group.

18 years after the blockbuster IPO of TCS, the Tata group has announced it will be launching the IPO of Tata Technologies and the buzz around it is getting louder by the day with some investors calling it the best-kept secret of the Tata group.

The price of Tata Technologies shares in the unlisted market has already jumped 130% over the last year. So, will Tata Technologies live up to all the hype?

Will it be the next Tata group multi-bagger? Or are investors getting carried away based on the success of the group's last big IPO?
 

The biggest wealth destroyers of 2022

"Mirror mirror on the wall, who had the hardest fall?

"New-age IT stocks Oh queen, had the hardest fall."

If there was a competition in which stocks disappointed investors the most in 2022, we're sure the crown would go to stocks like Nykaa, Paytm, and the like.

These companies witnessed a sharp decline in their share prices bringing them close to their yearly lows.

These stocks are nearing their 52-week lows.

Leading the list is CarTrade Technologies.

Shares of the company hit their 52-week last week after the overall stock market also fell on a spike in Covid-19 infections.

The stock has continued its downward momentum since October 2022 as the company missed the revenue estimate for the September 2022 quarter.

JSW Energy completes acquisition of Ind-Bharath Energy Utkal

JSW Energy has completed the acquisition of Ind-Barath Energy Utkal (Ind-Barath) pursuant to the Resolution Plan (RP) submitted under the corporate insolvency resolution process of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 and approved by the Committee of Creditors and National Company Law Tribunal.

The RP has now been implemented, consequently, Ind-Barath has become a subsidiary of the company.

Ind-Barath owns a 700 megawatt (350MW x 2 units) thermal power plant located in the Jharsuguda district of Odisha, of which Unit-I had been commissioned in 2016 but is non-operational since then due to financial stress at Ind-Barath while Unit-II is yet to be commissioned.

The project is expected to be completely operational within the next 24 months.

The acquisition is valued at an enterprise value of Rs 1,048 crore (about Rs 10.5 billion).

The company will infuse additional capital towards expenditure required for the completion of the balance work.

Further, the secured financial creditors of the project will be able to participate in the equity upside with 5% equity shares of Ind-Barath as per the terms of the RP. The company shall hold 95% of the equity shares of Ind-Barath.
 

Sheela Foam to acquire rival business

Sheela Foam, the maker of popular mattress brand Sleepwell, is in advance talks with rival Kurlon to acquire its business, according to industry sources.

If it goes through, the deal will help Sheela Foam, a market leader in the fast-growing branded mattress category, to expand its business in South, West, and other markets where Sudhakar Pai-led Kurlon has a strong presence.

The deal will also help Sheela Foam to incrementally increase its capacity as the Pai family-led Kurlon has 9 strategically located manufacturing facilities across Karnataka, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttaranchal, and Gujarat.

According to reports, the deal is estimated to be around US$ 241 million (m) (about Rs 20 bn).

Sheela Foam is the only listed company operating in the mattress space and commands nearly 25% market share.

For the financial year that ended 31 March 2022, Sheela Foam's net revenue from operations on a consolidated basis was Rs 30.6 bn.

Established in 1962, Kurlon is one of the oldest mattress companies in India.

The Indian mattress market is witnessing a steep increase in sales, primarily driven by consumer awareness and inclination towards health & hygiene, government investments for the betterment of health sector infrastructure, and rising demand for new mattresses from the real estate and hospitality segments, said Sheela Foam in its latest annual report.

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