Asian markets traded lower on Monday, tracking steep losses on Friday amid weak economic data. Japanese markets are closed for a public holiday. South Korea's Kospi declined 0.71%, while the Kosdaq dropped 1.21%.

US stock market ended lower on Friday on the back of dour economic reports, new tariff threats and worries of softening consumer demand.

Here's a table showing how US stocks performed on Friday:

Source: Equitymaster

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading 510 points lower and NSE Nifty is trading 158 points lower.

Maruti Suzuki, Cipla, and Bajaj Finserv are among the top gainers today.

Trent, HCL Tech, and TCS on other hand are among the top losers today.

The BSE Midcap index is trading 1.5% lower and the BSE Smallcap index is trading 1.8% lower.

Sectoral indices are trading lower today with stocks in the realty sector, capital goods sector, and IT sector witnessing selling pressure.

The rupee is trading at Rs 86.66 against the US dollar.
 

RVNL wins Rs 1.6 bn order

Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) has emerged as the lowest bidder (L1) for the supply of a 2x25 KV Overhead Equipment (OHE) and Power Supply Installation (PSI) system from South Western Railway. The project is valued at Rs 1.6 billion (bn).

The contract involves Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) work for the design, supply, erection, testing, and commissioning of the 2x25 KV OHE and PSI system. It includes the installation of Traction Substations (TSSs), Sectioning Posts (SPs), and Subsectioning Posts (SSPs), along with Electrical General Services, Engineering, and Telecommunication works.

Covering the TK-RDG Section, the project spans 99.463 Route Kilometers (RKM) or 114.145 Track Kilometers (TKM) between Rayadurga (Excl.) (CH: 205/463) and Topavagada (Incl.) (CH: 106/000). The total project cost is Rs 156.35 crore, with an expected completion period of 18 months.

Rail Vikas Nigam specializes in executing diverse railway infrastructure projects, including new lines, doubling, gauge conversion, railway electrification, metro projects, workshops, major bridges, cable-stayed bridges, and institutional buildings.

NTPC Green Energy Shares in Focus

Shares of newly listed state-run company NTPC Green Energy Ltd., a subsidiary of NTPC Ltd., will be in focus on Monday, February 24, as its three-month shareholder lock-in period comes to an end.

According to Nuvama Alternative & Quantitative Research, the expiry of the lock-in period will make 18.33 crore shares, equivalent to 2% of the company's outstanding equity, eligible for trading in today's session. However, this does not imply that all these shares will be sold in the open market-it simply means they can now be traded.

NTPC currently holds an 89% stake in NTPC Green Energy, following its stake divestment during the company's IPO. Notably, the stock fell below its IPO price of Rs 108 on February 11 and has been trading below that level since.
 

Marico Eyes Double-Digit Revenue Growth

Homegrown FMCG major Marico expects to achieve double-digit revenue growth in FY25, driven by a sequential improvement in volume and price hikes, according to MD & CEO Saugata Gupta. However, he noted that profitability could face pressure in the second half of FY25 due to rising material input costs. Despite this, the company aims to maintain an operating margin in the "broad region of 20%" through a strong and institutionalized cost management system.

Gupta highlighted that Marico has consistently improved its volume growth each quarter and remains focused on delivering top-quartile volume expansion.

The company's diversification strategy, particularly in the food segment, continues to gain traction, with the category reaching an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of Rs 1,000 crore in the last two quarters.

Additionally, Marico's digital business is scaling well, with two of its digital brands showing significant growth and minimal cash burn.

On the international front, Marico has maintained robust performance, recording double-digit constant currency growth.

Despite facing challenges in certain markets, the company has remained resilient, particularly in Bangladesh. Meanwhile, Marico has implemented a price hike in Saffola following the government's increase in import duty on edible oil last year.
 

Coal India Forms JV for Renewable Energy

Coal India has announced plans to establish a joint venture with EDF India, a subsidiary of France's EDF, to develop renewable energy projects across South Asia.

The partnership will primarily focus on setting up pumped-storage hydropower projects and other renewable energy initiatives in India and neighboring countries, as per Coal India's statement on Sunday. The two companies have signed a non-binding shareholders agreement to formalize the collaboration.

Additionally, EDF has entered into a joint venture agreement with state-run NTPC to develop hydropower projects and explore opportunities in power distribution, NTPC stated. The 50-50 joint venture will implement projects within India and across the region.

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