Indian shares end higher as financials and IT stocks gain

Indian shares closed higher on Thursday, helped by gains in financials and information technology stocks, while a steady decline in daily COVID-19 cases also helped investor sentiment.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.24% at 15,337.85, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was 0.19% higher at 51,115.22.

India’s central bank said the economy had not moderated as much as it did during the first wave of the coronavirus, but uncertainties might act as a short-term deterrent and private demand would be key to revival.

Economic growth prospects now essentially depend on how fast India can arrest its second wave of infections, the Reserve Bank of India said in its annual report.

Investor sentiment has improved in recent days due to the steady decline in daily COVID-19 cases. Earlier this week, the country reported its lowest daily rise of cases in more than a month.

India reported 211,298 new coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, with the number remaining well below the 300,000-mark for the eleventh day, while deaths rose by 3,847.

Global equities have received a boost after US Federal Reserve officials earlier this week reaffirmed a dovish monetary policy stance, reassuring investors worried about the prospect of rising inflation.

In Mumbai trading, Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd, State Bank of India and Axis Bank Ltd were the top three boosts to the Nifty 50, gaining between 2.1% and 2.8%.

Nifty components Eicher Motors Ltd and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd ended 1.12% and 0.61% lower respectively, ahead of their March-quarter earnings.

The Nifty Bank Index rose 1.18% and the Nifty PSU Bank Index, which tracks state-run banks, gained 2.85%. The Nifty IT Index ended 1.14% higher.

Globally, stocks were pinned down as investors awaited US data expected to offer clues on inflation, with further pressures widely seen as sparking a scaling back of central banks’ giant stimulus packages. (Reporting by Rama

Ford halts plant production: Ford Motor Co said it will halt production at its car plant in India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu after workers staged a lunchtime sit-in protest on Thursday, demanding leave and health benefits, as the country battles the coronavirus.

The automaker will stop work at its Chennai plant on Friday and Saturday as it continues to engage with the union on other health and safety demands, Ford said in a statement.

“The safety of our workforce remains our topmost priority,” a Ford India spokesman said, adding that the plant had been shut from May 14-May 22 at the behest of workers.

The sit-in protest is the latest expression of discontent and reluctance among factory employees in the southern state, home to India’s flourishing automobile industry, to work amid a surge in virus infections.

On Wednesday, the Chennai Ford Employees Union expressed concern in a letter to management after 230 workers caught the virus.

“The company should pay all medical expenses of workers affected by the coronavirus,” the union said in Wednesday’s letter, reviewed by Reuters, and called for the plant to be shut until the state government removes lockdown restrictions. It also sought compensation of 10 million rupees ($137,890) each for the families of two workers who died of the virus. The union was still in discussion with the company about its demands, one of the sources said.

South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co and France’s Renault, as well as its alliance partner Nissan Motor Co, halted production earlier this week in Tamil Nadu.

With more than 30,000 cases a day, Tamil Nadu is one of the states worst hit in India’s second devastating wave of infections. Factories turning out automobiles are among those it has allowed to stay open during lockdown.

Ford has two car manufacturing plants in India to meet domestic and export needs.

The Tamil Nadu facility, with annual capacity of 200,000 units, makes the EcoSport and Endeavour sport-utility vehicles.

The other, in the western state of Gujarat, can produce 240,000 cars a year.

Separately, the strong momentum in the watch and earwear categories led to the highest ever first-quarter shipments of wearables in India, an IDC report said on Thursday.

The India wearables market grew 170.3 per cent (year-over-year) in Q1, shipping 11.4 million units, according to the data from IDC’s ‘Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker’.

Watches grew 463.8 per cent (YoY) in Q1 to become the fastest-growing category in wearables, replacing earwear which also maintains a triple-digit growth in the first quarter. The overall wristwear category, which includes wrist bands and watches, grew 74.8 per cent YoY in the quarter.

“From style to health monitoring, the wearables have now become one of the most sophisticated devices in recent times. The category is witnessing a constant shift in the competitive landscape with new players entering the segment,” said Jaipal Singh, Associate Research Manager, Client Devices, IDC India said.