Asian shares are set to end the week on a sour note, as uncertainty across the geopolitical landscape and in major economies added to headwinds for investors even as the global rate easing cycle gets underway.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slid 0.1% and was headed for its worst week in over a month with a 2.4% loss.

Wall Street's top indices fell as a rebound in tech shares tumbled, adding to losses triggered by fears of new trade tensions.

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

Source: Equitymaster

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading 15 points lower and NSE Nifty is trading 50 points lower.

ITC, Infosys, and Asian Paints are among the top gainers today.

Tech Mahindra, Hindalco, and Tata Steel the other hand are among the top losers today.

Broader markets are trading on a negative note. The BSE Midcap index is trading 0.5% lower and the BSE Smallcap index is trading 0.6% lower.

Barring It stocks, all other sectoral indices are trading on a negative note today, with stocks in the metal sector and energy sector witnessing the most selling pressure.

The rupee is trading at Rs 83.65 against the US dollar.

In commodity markets, gold prices are trading 0.7% lower at Rs 73,630 per 10 grams today.
 

Ceat Q1 Results

Tyre maker CEAT on Thursday (18 July) reported a 6.6% year-on-year (YoY) increase in net profit at Rs 1.5 bn for the first quarter that ended 30 June 2024.

In the corresponding quarter, CEAT posted a net profit of Rs 1.4 bn, the company said in a regulatory filing. The company's revenue from operations increased 8.8% to Rs 31.9 bn as against Rs 29.4 bn in the corresponding period of the preceding fiscal.

At the operating level, EBITDA dipped 1.1% to Rs 3.8 bn in the first quarter of this fiscal over Rs 39.7 bn in the corresponding period in the previous fiscal.

The EBITDA margin stood at 12% in the reporting quarter compared to 13.2% in the corresponding period in the previous fiscal. EBITDA is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization.

The company manufactures tyres majorly for trucks and buses. It also manufactures tyres for two and three-wheelers, passenger cars, farm equipment, and light commercial vehicles.

It has a strong domestic presence with a network of over 300 distributors, 3,400 dealers, and 35,000 sub-dealers.

The company also operates over 300 exclusive outlets and has a presence in over 400 multi-brand outlets.

Tata Tech Q1 Results

Tata Technologies Ltd., the IT products and services provider of the Tata Group reported June quarter results where revenue growth was flat compared to the same period last year.

Revenue for the quarter stood at Rs 12.7 bn, which is 1% higher than the same quarter last year.

Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortisation (EBITDA) stood at Rs 2.3 bn, which is a 7.6% drop, compared to the June quarter last year.

EBITDA margin for the quarter narrowed to 18.2% from 19.9% last year, while net profit declined by 15.4% year-on-year to Rs 1.6 bn.

The gross margin for the company on a consolidated basis stood at 28.2% from 28.3% sequentially, while the services business saw a gross margin drop to 31.1% from 31.4% in the previous quarter.

The company's core services business saw a sequential revenue drop of 1% to ?985.5 crore. The management said that the VinFast transition is largely behind them and that the sequential growth in the services business will accelerate from the current July-September quarter.

The services vertical contributed to 78% of the company's overall topline during the quarter.

Tata Technologies won five strategic deals across the automotive and aerospace verticals during the April-June period.
 

Zydus Jarod Unit Faces USFDA Action

Zydus Lifesciences Ltd on Thursday said the US health regulator has classified as "official action indicated" for its injectables manufacturing facility at Jarod, near Vadodara in Gujarat, following an inspection. The US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) conducted an inspection at the injectables manufacturing facility between 15 April and 23 April 2024.

The company has received a report from the USFDA and it has determined that the inspection classification of this facility is 'Official Action Indicated' (OAI).

As per the USFDA, OAI implies that the regulator may withhold approval of any pending product applications or supplements filed from such facility till the outstanding observations related to noncompliance with manufacturing norms laid down by it.

The company will work closely with the agency to resolve the regulatory status of this facility expeditiously.

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