Stock markets rose half a per cent; Sensex gains 296 points & Nifty ends at 17,086

Benchmark indices ended with decent gains on Monday, December 27, 2021, amid mixed cues from the global equity markets. The S&P BSE Sensex rose 295.93 points, or 0.52 per cent, at 57,420.24. The Nifty 50 index rose 82.50 points, or 0.49 per cent, at 17,086.25. In the sectoral indices at the NSE, the Nifty Bank closed with a gain of 200.85 points, or 0.58 per cent, at 35,057.90.

In the broader markets at the BSE, the S&P BSE MidCap index rose 0.27 per cent and S&P BSE SmallCap gained 0.52 per cent.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,154 shares rose and 1,319 shares fell. On the Nifty 50 index at the NSE, 40 shares advanced and 10 shares declined. The top five gainers on Nifty 50 were Tech Mahindra (up 3.44 per cent), Cipla (up 2.26 per cent), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 2.06 per cent), UPL (up 1.75 per cent) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.44 per cent). The top five losers on Nifty were Hindalco (down 1.42 per cent), Britannia (down 0.91 per cent), ONGC (down 0.83 per cent), IndusInd Bank (down 0.52 per cent) and Maruti (down 0.51 per cent).

HP Adhesives Listing: The shares of HP Adhesives Limited made a decent debut on the exchanges on Monday, December 27, 2021. HP Adhesives shares were listed on the BSE at a handsome premium of Rs 319 per share against the Rs 274 issue price fixed by the company for this public offer. This was a gain of Rs 45 per share or 16.42 per cent. At the close, the stock ended at Rs 334.95 per share at the BSE, a premium of 22.24 per cent over the issue price. On the NSE, shares debuted at Rs 315 apiece, a gain of Rs 41 or 14.96 per cent. At the close, the stock ended at Rs 330.75 per share at the NSE, a premium of 20.71 per cent.

The initial public offering (IPO) of HP Adhesives Limited, an adhesive and sealants company, was subscribed 20.96 times on the last day of subscription on Friday, December 17, 2021. The Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) portion was subscribed 1.82 times, while the Non-Institutional Investors (NIIs) and Retail Individual Investors (RIIs) portions were subscribed 19.04 times and 81.24 times, respectively. The company had fixed a price of Rs 262-274 per equity share to raise up to Rs 125.9 crore from the primary market. The issue comprised of a fresh issue of 41,40,000 equity shares worth Rs 113.44 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of 4,57,200 equity shares worth Rs 12.5 crore.

Economy

India looks set to overtake France next year and then Britain in 2023 to regain its place as the world's sixth-biggest economy. In a report, a British consultancy firm said the world's economic output will exceed $100 trillion for the first time next year and it will take China a little longer than previously thought to overtake the US as the No. 1 economy.

CEBR predicted China will become the world's top economy in dollar terms in 2030, two years later than forecast in last year's World Economic League Table report. CEBR deputy chairman Douglas McWilliams said the important issue for the 2020s is how the world economies cope with inflation, which has now reached 6.8 per cent in the US. The report showed Germany was on track to overtake Japan in terms of economic output in 2033. Russia could become a Top 10 economy by 2036 and Indonesia looks on track for ninth place in 2034.

The US markets were shut on Friday, December 24, 2021, on account of the Christmas eve holiday. US retail sales rose 8.5 per cent during this year's holiday shopping season from November 1-December 24, powered by soaring e-commerce sales, a report showed on Sunday.

US eCommerce sales jumped 11 per cent in this year's holiday shopping season, according to another report, yet again underscoring the Covid-19 pandemic's role in transforming customers' shopping habits. Shoppers also rushed to stores amid supply chain concerns as Covid-19 cases surged, the report added.