Pre Market: Gap-up start seen for Sensex, Nifty; HCL, HDFC AMC, Zee Media shares eyed

Indian equity benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, are expected to open higher on Tuesday after four consecutive sessions of decline, tracking mixed cues from global markets. Positive trends on Gift Nifty also indicate a gap-up start for the domestic bourses. At the time of reporting, Gift Nifty futures were trading at 23,276, up 146 points, or 0.63%.

On the global front, shares in the Asia-Pacific region edged higher, while Wall Street closed mixed overnight as a rise in bond yields pushed the U.S. dollar index higher. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield surged to 4.805% in overnight trade, its highest level since early November 2023, while the dollar index hit a more than two-year high amid reports that the Trump administration is considering a gradual rather than sudden tariff plan.

Asian stocks, except for Japan’s Nikkei 225, were trading mostly higher with marginal gains. China's Shanghai Composite, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, and Australia’s ASX 200 edged higher in early trade, while Japan's Nikkei 225 opened lower after a holiday break.

In overnight U.S. trade, stocks closed mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 gained 0.86% and 0.16%, respectively, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.38%.

Back home, investors will react to CPI inflation data, which moderated to a four-month low of 5.22% year-on-year in December, primarily due to easing food prices (-1.5% month-on-month), particularly for vegetables, fruits, meat, and pulses. Meanwhile, IIP growth improved to 5.2% year-on-year in November, aided by a favourable base effect and led by higher growth in manufacturing (5.8% YoY), electricity (4.4% YoY), and mining (1.9% YoY). Today, WPI inflation data is set to be released.

On Monday, equity indices ended lower for the fourth consecutive session, with the Sensex and Nifty50 declining by up to 1.5% amid concerns over mixed earnings, rising bond yields, and strong U.S. jobs data, which raised fears of fewer rate cuts by the Federal Reserve this year.

The 30-share Sensex closed 1,049 points, or 1.36%, lower at 76,330, while the Nifty50 settled at 23,086, down 346 points, or 1.47%. Broader markets were hit the hardest, with the Nifty Smallcap100 and Nifty Midcap100 indices plunging over 4% each.

The market witnessed broad-based selling, with 46 out of the 50 Nifty stocks ending in the red, except for Axis Bank, TCS, Hindustan Unilever, and IndusInd Bank. The biggest losers were Adani Enterprises, Trent, BPCL, Power Grid Corporation, and Bharat Electronics, which fell up to 6%.

On the sectoral front, all indices closed in negative territory, led by the real estate sector, which slumped 6.5%, followed by Nifty Media, down 4.5%. Among others, Nifty PSU Bank, Metal, Consumer Durables, and Healthcare indices declined by up to 3%.

Stocks to watch

HCL Tech: The IT heavyweight released its December quarter earnings post market hours on Monday, posting a 5.1% year-on-year rise in its net revenue to ₹29,890 crore for the October-December 2024 quarter. The net income surged 5.5% on a YoY basis to ₹4,591 crore, according to the latest exchange filing by the IT services major. 

Zee Media: The board of the company approved a fundraising plan of up to ₹400 crore via equity shares, convertible bonds, debentures, warrants, preference shares, or foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs).

Afcons Infrastructure: The Shapoorji Pallonji-backed firm emerged as the lowest bidder for constructing the Pune Ring Road (East) Packages PRR E5 andE7.

PB Fintech: The Goods and Services Tax (GST) authorities on January 13 reportedly conducted a search at the Gurugram office of PB Fintech, the holding company of online insurance aggregator Policybazaar.

Q3 results: Hathway Cable & Datacom Ltd., HDFC Asset Management Company Ltd., Network18 Media & Investments Ltd., Shoppers Stop Ltd. are set to release their results today. Atishay Ltd., Benares Hotels Ltd., Golkunda Diamonds & Jewellery Ltd., Sayaji Hotels (Pune) Ltd., Sita Enterprises Ltd., SRM Energy Ltd., and Swastik Safe Deposit & Investments Ltd. will also unveil their earnings.

IPO listing: As many as five companies will debut on the stock market today. The list includes two mainboard IPOs of Capital Infra Trust InVIT and Quadrant Future Tek; and three SME issues of B.R. Goyal, Avax Apparels and Ornaments, and Delta Autocorp.

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