Asian share markets slipped today while the euro took a fresh spill after Russia shut a major gas pipeline to Europe, leading some governments to announce emergency measures to ease the pain of soaring energy prices.

The Nikkei fell by 0.2% while the Hang Seng was down by 1.5%. The Shanghai Composite is trading lower by 0.3%.

US markets will be closed today on account of the Labour Day holiday.

US stocks had closed last week on a negative note on Friday, as early gains from a jobs report that showed a labor market that may be starting to loosen, gave way to worries about the European gas crisis.

The Dow Jones fell by 1.1% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq ended lower by 1.3%.

Back home, Indian share markets are trading on a strong note.

Benchmark indices opened in the green today following the trend on SGX Nifty. And as the session progressed, gains were extended.

At present, the BSE Sensex is trading higher by 412 points. Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading up by 114 points.

NTPC and HCL Technologies are among the top gainers today.

Nestle and Asian Paints are among the top losers today.

Broader markets are trading on a positive note. The BSE Mid Cap index is up by 0.5% while the BSE Small Cap index is trading higher by 0.8%.

Sectoral indices are trading on a positive note, with stocks in the banking and capital goods sectors witnessing buying.

FMCG stocks are trading mixed today with Colgate and Marico down half a percent each.

Lakshmi Machine and SKF India hit their 52-week high today.

In the commodity markets, gold and silver prices rise today. Today, gold prices are trading higher by Rs 70. Currently, gold prices are trading at Rs 50,480 per 10 grams.

Note that gold prices have fallen and have taken quite a knock in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, silver prices are trading higher at Rs 52,637 per kg. Silver prices have fallen a lot in recent days.

The rupee is trading at 79.9 against the US dollar

In news from the IT sector, Tanla Platforms considers a buyback of shares.

In an exchange filing on Friday, the company said,

'This is to inform you that the Board of Directors of the Company will consider a proposal for buyback of Equity Shares of the Company including matters related/incidental thereto, at its meeting which is scheduled to be held on Thursday, September 08, 2022.'

Following this news, the share price of Tanla Platforms spiked 4% intraday on Friday and ended 3% higher.

Tanla Platforms has recently been in focus after giving hefty returns. It has turned out to be one of the best multibagger stocks.

Take a look at the chart below.

In other news, Tata Group, Shapoorji Pallonji's (SP) Group's holding in Tata Sons has been in focus after the tragic death of the ex-chairman.

Cyrus Mistry's tragic death in a car accident on Sunday has put the spotlight again on SP Group's substantial 18.4% holding in Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata group as the SP Group had talked about separation in the past after a troubled relationship with Ratan Tata.

There were media reports in March this year that SP Group was taking a Rs 150 bn loan against its holding in Tata Sons.

SP Group had talked about separation two years back in September 2020 before the Supreme Court.

The largest shareholder in the Tata Group, SP Group, had said before the Supreme Court Tuesday that a separation from the Tatas is necessary.

The SP Group stated before the Supreme Court that a separation from the Tata Group is necessary due to the potential impact this continuing litigation could have on livelihoods and the economy.

They stated that it was crucial that an early resolution is reached to arrive at a fair and equitable solution reflecting the value of the underlying tangible and intangible assets.

The current situation has forced the Mistry family to sit back and reflect on the past, present and possible future for all stakeholders, SP Group had said.

Moving on to news from the telecom sector, debt-laden Vodafone-Idea (VI) to pre-pay its debt.

Loss-making VI has prepaid a short-term loan of about Rs 27 bn to SBI in a bid to shore up lenders' confidence.

This comes as the company urgently seeks fresh bank funds to tie up equipment supply deals for 5G networks and also clear some of its near Rs 150 bn trade payables, comprising dues to tower companies, network gear vendors, and other suppliers.

With the government showing no signs of urgency in converting Vi's accrued interest on deferred AGR-related dues into equity, external equity funding appears to be further delayed. This leaves the telco with no option but to arrange more debt to firm up its 5G plans.

Meanwhile, VI's trade payables jumped almost 13.6% sequentially to Rs 149.6 bn in the June quarter. These payables - part of Vi's current liabilities - include dues to tower firms and network vendors/other suppliers, estimated at around Rs 95 bn and Rs 55 bn, respectively, at the end of the June quarter.

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