Share markets in India are presently trading marginally higher.

The BSE Sensex is trading up by 190 points, up 0.4% at 49,934 levels.

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading up by 75 points.

ONGC and Tata Motors are among the top gainers today. Kotak Bank and Asian Paints are among the top losers today.

The BSE Mid Cap index is trading up by 1%.

The BSE Small Cap index is trading up by 0.6%.

On the sectoral front, stocks from the real estate sector, are witnessing most of the buying interest.

On the other hand, stocks from the finance sector are witnessing most of the selling pressure.

US stock futures are trading higher today, indicating a positive opening for Wall Street.

Nasdaq Futures are trading up by 66 points (up 0.5%) while Dow Futures are trading up by 101 points (up 0.3%)

The rupee is trading at 72.35 against the US$.

Gold prices are trading up by 0.1% at Rs 46,954 per 10 grams.

Gold prices today struggled in Indian markets after a sharp surge in the previous week. On MCX, gold futures were flat at Rs 46,947 after surging Rs 700 in the previous session.

After an over 2% drop last week, gold prices have rebounded this week as traders refocus on rising inflation expectations and the potentially massive economic stimulus in the US.

Moving on to stock-specific news...

Among the buzzing stocks, today is Bharat Forge.

Engineering and technology conglomerate Bharat Forge and global aerospace and technology company Paramount Group have announced cooperation that will see them join technologies, capabilities, and expertise to manufacture armored vehicles in India.

An agreement to this effect was signed by both companies during the International Defence Expo (IDEX 2021) in Abu Dhabi.

"The Kalyani M4 is a fantastic new-generation vehicle and we want to position it as the future of protection in all markets worldwide," said Amit Kalyani, Deputy Managing Director of Bharat Forge.

"This collaboration brings together the manufacturing and technology excellence of two leading companies, which have matching synergies and complementary capabilities," he said in a statement.

Ivor Ichikowitz, Chairman of the Paramount Group, said this model of world-beating innovative technology is fundamental to enhancing any country's contemporary defense and technology capabilities.

We will keep you posted on more updates from this space. Stay tuned.

At the time of writing, Bharat Forge's share price was trading up by 2.8% on the BSE.

Moving on to news from the IPO space...

Heranba Industries IPO Opens for Subscription Today

The initial public offering (IPO) of Heranba Industries opens for subscription today. The Rs 6.2 billion issue will remain available for subscription till February 25, 2021.

Ahead of the issue, Heranba Industries managed to raise Rs 1.8 billion from anchor investors, allotting them 2.9 million equity shares. The agrochemical company's IPO includes a fresh issue of Rs 600 million and the remaining is an offer for sale (OFS) by existing investors.

Post issue, the stake of the promoters in the company will be trimmed from 98.8% to 74%. Other shareholders made up just 1.2% prior to the issue, which is expected to increase to 26%.

Investors can bid from today (February 23, 2021) for the issue in the price band of Rs 626 to 627 per share. The bid lot is of 23 equity shares, making the minimum application size of Rs 14,421.

Of the total Rs 6.2 billion issue size, 50% of the portion is reserved for Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIB), while retail investors can place bids for 35% of the issue, and non-institutional investors (NII) can bid for merely 15% of the total issue.

The proceeds from the OFS will go to the selling shareholders, while the amount received from the fresh issue of shares will be used for funding working capital requirements and general corporate purposes. The selling shareholders include Sadashiv K Shetty, who is the Promoter, Chairman, and Executive Director of the Company, along with Raghuram K. Shetty who is the promoter and Managing Director of the Company.

Heranba Industries is a crop protection chemicals manufacturer, exporter and marketing company. It has over 9400 dealers/distributors across 16 states and 1 Union Territory in India and exports to over 60 countries across the Middle East, South East Asia and Africa.

How this IPO sails through remains to be seen. Meanwhile, stay tuned for more updates from this space.

Speaking of small caps, note that since the lows in March 2020, the smallcap index has gained more than 100%.