Asian shares extended a global selloff on Wednesday while the dollar held gains as market optimism about early and aggressive US interest rate cuts ebbed ahead of the release of Fed minutes and jobs data.

closed the first trading session of 2024 lower, weighed by a fall in Apple shares after a broker downgrade and declines among other big-tech names.

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

Data Source: Equitymaster

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading 332 points lower and NSE Nifty is trading 85 points lower.

HDFC Bank and Vodafone Idea are among the top gainers today.

Adani Ports and Adani Enterprises on the other hand are among the top losers today.

Broader markets are trading higher. The BSE Mid Cap is treading 0.4% lower and the BSE Small Cap index is trading flat.

Sectoral indices are trading mixed, with socks in the FMCG sector and the power sector witnessing the most buying. Meanwhile, stocks in the metal sector and IT sector witness selling pressure

The rupee is trading at Rs 83.32 against the US dollar.

In commodity markets, gold prices are trading 0.1% higher at Rs 63,329 per 10 grams today.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading flat at Rs 74,094 per 1 kg.
 

REC Partners RVNL

State-owned REC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) to finance infrastructure projects worth up to Rs 350 bn over the next five years.

The agreement focuses on a range of projects, including multi-modal logistics hubs, rail infrastructure, road, port, and metro projects.

REC is a Maharatna CPSE that primarily provides long-term loans and financing for the power-infrastructure sector, including generation, transmission, distribution, renewable energy, and other technologies like EV and green hydrogen.

REC has recently expanded into non-power infrastructure sectors, including roads, metro rail, and hospitals.

REC's loan book currently exceeds Rs 4,742.8 bn.

On the other hand, RVNL, a "Schedule 'A' Navratna" CPSE under the Ministry of Railways, contributes to approximately 30% of Indian Railways' infrastructure needs.

Besides focusing on railway projects, RVNL has ventured into road, port, irrigation, and metro projects.
 

Hero MotoCorp Sales Rise 5%

Two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp on Tuesday reported a 5% rise in its total sales at 54.99 lakh units in 2023 compared to 5.2 m units sold in the previous year.

In December 2023, total sales were marginally down at 3,93,952 units against 3,94,179 units in the year-ago month.

Motorcycle sales stood at 3,54,658 units last month as compared to 3,56,749 units in the corresponding period a year ago.

Scooter sales in December 2023 were, however, higher at 39,294 units as against 37,430 units in the year-ago month.

Hero MotoCorp hits a 33-month high. 

With strong household spending and increased demand for two-wheelers, which two-wheeler stock is leading the race?

Hero MotoCorp, one of the top companies in the EV sector could be prime beneficiaries as Nifty heads towards 40,000.
 

Coal India's Supply Growth

Coal India's supplies to power plants have jumped by 5% on year between April-December 2023; and to the non-regulated sector (NRS), it surged to an all-time high during the same period, as per a release issued by the state-owned coal supplier on 2 January.

The offtake to power plants during the first nine months of this fiscal came in at 454 metric tonnes (mts), which is 5% higher compared to 433 mts in the year-ago period. The quantum of supply is also higher than the committed quantity of 433 mts for the period.

The company also noted that its supply to NRS consumers peaked at an "all-time high" of 98 mts between April and December, which is 31% higher than 75 mts recorded in the comparable year-ago period.

With all the Coal India producing arms posting positive growth, the public sector coal miner produced 532 mts of coal at the end of the nine months of December 2023, logging 11% growth.

Coal India, stands among the top monopoly stocks.

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