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After opening the day on a positive note, Indian share markets gained momentum as the session progressed and ended on a firm footing.

Indian equity benchmarks zoomed in early trade on Wednesday amid a rally in global markets on favorable US inflation data.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 742 points (up 1.1%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed higher by 265 points (up 1.2%).

Eicher Motors and Infosys were among the top gainers today.

Sun Pharma and IndusInd Bank, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The GIFT Nifty was trading at 19,723, down by 26 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE MidCap index and BSE SmallCap index rose 1%.

Barring the power sector other sectoral indices ended on a positive note with stocks in the realty sector, auto sector, and IT sector witnessing most of the selling pressure.

Shares of Bajaj Auto and Trent hit their respective 52-week highs today.

Now track the biggest movers of the stock market using the stocks to watch today section. This should help you keep updated with the latest developments...

Asian share markets ended on a positive note. The Shanghai Composite rose 0.6% while the Nikkei tanked 2.5%.

The rupee is trading at 83.11 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading up by 0.5% at Rs 60,377 per 10 grams.

Meanwhile, silver prices were trading 0.9% higher at Rs 72,295 per 1 kg.

Here are three reasons why Indian Markets are rising today.

#1 Easing inflation pressures:

The major factor behind the bullish trend driving global markets has been the softer-than-expected US retail inflation print for October, which sparked hopes that the Federal Reserve may now put a stop to its rate-hike regime.

Some pockets within the market were also harboring hopes that the Fed may also advance its plans to cut interest rates from mid-2024.

Retail inflation in the US increased 3.2% on year in October, beating an estimated 3.35 rise amid lower gasoline prices, while underlying inflation showed signs of a slowdown.

#2 Positive global cues:

The softer-than-expected inflation print ushered in optimism across equity markets, lifting the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to post their best day since April on 14 November.

Not just that, the dollar index also cooled down and so did yields on the benchmark 10-year US treasury bonds, further lifting sentiment.

Tracking the strong overnight cues from Wall Street benchmarks across Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, and Hong Kong also soared 1-2% in today's session.

#3 Domestic inflation at 5-month low:

India's headline retail inflation rate moderated to 4.9% in October on the back of a favorable base effect and cooling prices of some items. The headline inflation has fallen below the 5% mark for the first time since June.

With this, the retail inflation also remained within the Reserve Bank of India's tolerance range of 2-6% for the second month in a row.
 

Why RVNL share price is rising

In news from the railway sector, the Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) stock rose nearly 3% in early trade on 15 November as the company received a Letter of Acceptance (LoA) for a project worth Rs 3.1 billion (bn).

In October, the RVNL-MPCC (JV) received an LOA for engineering works and supply of 50 mm machine crushed stone ballast, complete track works, including linking of track works in connection with gauge conversion work between Nadiad- Petlad of the Vadodara Division on Western Railway. The order is valued at Rs 2.5 bn and has to be completed in 24 months.

The company also received the same work order from Western Railways for the Petlad-Bhadran (22.5 km) stretch of the Vadodara division. The Rs 1.7 bn order, too, has to be completed in 24 months.

The company has reported a 3.5% rise in its consolidated net profit for the quarter ended September 2023 (Q2FY24) to Rs 3.9 bn.

RVNL has zoomed over 125% till September 2023.

Due to its scale and extensive network of connections to many industries, the railway industry is expected to see massive growth. 
 

Why Natco Pharma Share Price is Falling

Moving on to news from the pharma sector, shares of Natco Pharma dropped 2% in trade on 15 November due to profit-taking even as the pharma company reported a 550% surge in its Q2 net profit.

Natco Pharma on 14 November reported a 550% surge in its consolidated net profit during the September quarter, primarily due to growth in formulation exports and increased sales in the domestic agrochemical business.

Net profit for the quarter stood at Rs 3.7 bn against Rs 568 m a year ago, according to a press release. Total sales for the quarter more than doubled to Rs 10.6 bn, up 134.7% from Rs 4.5 bn last year. The company announced an interim dividend of Rs 1.25 a share.

Formulations exports generated Rs 7.9 bn in revenue compared to Rs 2.8 bn last year, leading the revenue contributions. The domestic formulations business followed with Rs 1 bn, and the crop health sciences segment earned Rs 560 m in the reviewed quarter.

Going by the management's commentary, Natco Pharma is expecting to clock over Rs 10 bn in annual profit in FY24. 

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