Asian markets traded lower on Thursday following sharp decline on Wall Street overnight. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.4% and Topix dropped 1.27%, while Japanese bond yields jumped ahead of the Bank of Japan's monetary policy.

US stock market ended sharply lower on Wednesday after the Fed cut rates but disappointed with projections that signalled a more cautious path of easing next year.

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

Source: Equitymaster

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading 913 points lower and NSE Nifty is trading 272 points lower.

Dr Reddy's Lab and Tata Consumer Products are among the top gainers today.

Wipro, ONGC and Infosys hand are among the top losers today.

The BSE Midcap index and the BSE Smallcap index are trading 1.1% lower.

Sectoral indices are trading lower today with stocks in the power sector, metal sector, and IT sector witnessing selling pressure.

The rupee is trading at Rs 85.05 against the US dollar.

In commodity markets, gold prices are trading 0.9% lower at Rs 75,975 per 10 grams today.
 

ITC Ups Stake in Oberoi Group

ITC has increased its stake in Oberoi Hotel parent EIH by acquiring an additional 2.44%.

As of September 2024, ITC's stake in EIH was 13.69% which now goes up to 16.13%.

Additionally, ITC has also picked up an additional 0.53% stake in HLV Ltd, which is synonymous with The Leela Mumbai, taking its stake in the company to 8.11%.

The move comes ahead of the 1 January 2025, demerger of ITC Hotels from the parent group.
 

Lupin Receives Drug Approval

The pharmaceutical company announced that it has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Emtricitabine and Tenofovir Alafenamide Tablets (200 mg/25 mg), used in HIV treatment.

This approval enables Lupin to market a generic version of Descovy tablets, originally developed by Gilead Sciences Inc.

As one of the first companies to secure approval, Lupin is entitled to 180 days of shared generic exclusivity in the US market.
 

Asian Paints Top-Level Resignation

On Wednesday (18 December), Asian Paints announced the resignation of two senior management executives. Shyam Swamy, Vice President of Home Improvement, Decor, Services & Retailing, and Vishu Goel, Associate Vice President of Retail Sales, Commercial & Marketing, tendered their resignations on 17 December 2024.

The company accepted their resignations, effective immediately, and both ceased to be employees and senior management members at the close of business on the same day.

The reasons for their departures were not disclosed.

Borosil Renewables Unveils Expansion

Solar glass manufacturer Borosil Renewables Ltd on Wednesday (18 December) said its board of directors has approved key decisions, including a temporary cooldown of its German subsidiary's furnace, a production capacity expansion in India, and revised fundraising strategies to support growth amid improving market conditions.

Borosil's step-down subsidiary, GMB Glasmanufaktur Brandenburg GmbH, based in Tschernitz, Germany, will temporarily cool down its 350 tonne per day (TPD) furnace by the end of December 2024.

This decision stems from declining demand for solar glass in Europe, driven by large-scale dumping of solar modules from Southeast Asia and sluggish EU market conditions. GMB will maintain limited operations to process semi-finished glass for pending orders while awaiting a market recovery.

In light of recent government measures, including a 10% basic import duty on solar glass and a provisional anti-dumping duty on imports from China and Vietnam, Borosil Renewables has revived its capacity expansion plans.

The board approved adding 500 TPD capacity at its Bharuch facility, either through two 250 TPD furnaces in phases or a single 500 TPD furnace, at an estimated cost of Rs 6.8 bn.
 

Bank of Baroda to Raise Bonds

On Wednesday, the state-owned Bank of Baroda said its board of directors approved the issuance of long-term bonds amounting to up to Rs 100 bn for financing infrastructure and affordable housing projects.

The bonds may be raised in single or multiple tranches during the financial year 2024-25 and beyond, depending on market conditions and feasibility.

So far in the current financial year, Bank of Baroda has raised Rs 100 bn through two infrastructure bonds. This has come as banks have become more aggressive at tapping into such avenues because of slower deposit growth in the system.

Banks and financial institutions raise money through infrastructure bonds to finance long-term infrastructure projects.

These bonds have a minimum maturity of seven years and are eligible for some regulatory exemptions, such as the mandatory requirements of the statutory liquidity ratio and the cash reserve ratio.

Affordable housing loans can also be used to finance infrastructure bonds.

More By This Author:

Sensex Today Tanks 502 Points; Nifty Ends Below 23,200
Sensex Today Trades Marginally Lower; Nifty Below 24,350
Sensex Today Tanks 1,064 Points; Nifty Ends Below 23,350