Stock Market LIVE: Sensex tanks 700 pts, Nifty below 17700; Adani stocks slump

Share market LIVE updates: Indian indices were lower on Friday as financials sustained the slide on risk aversion due to Hindenburg's report on the books of Adani group companies. At 11am, Sensex was down 754.54 pts at 59,450.52, and Nifty fell 210.50 pts to 17,681.45

Asian stocks rose on Friday and were poised for their fifth straight week of gains after data highlighted a resilient U.S. economy, boosting investor sentiment ahead of next week's slate of central bank policy meetings. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose as much as 0.55% to hit an almost nine-month high of 562.10.

Adani Group stocks fall amid attack from Hindenburg Research

Adani Group's listed companies fell on Friday, adding to losses from Wednesday when New York-based Hindenburg Research flagged concerns in a report about debt levels and the use of tax havens at the conglomerate.

Adani Transmission Ltd tumbled 19.2% and Adani Total Gas sank 19.1% in their biggest daily drop since mid-March 2020, while Adani Green Energy sank 15.8%.

Adani Enterprises kicks off share sale, shares down over 2%

Billionaire Gautam Adani's flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd will kick off a record ₹20,000 crore secondary share sale for retail investors on Friday.

This follow on public offer comes days after New York-based Hindenburg Research flagged concerns in a report about debt levels and the use of tax havens at the conglomerate.

Tata Motors surges over 6% aided by December quarter profit

Tata Motors Ltd widely surpassed Street expectations as the parent of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) swung to its first quarterly net profit in two years.

The Mumbai-based automaker posted a consolidated net profit of ₹2,597.71 crore in the three months ended 31 December, compared with a loss of ₹1,516.14 crore a year earlier. Analysts polled by Bloomberg had estimated the company to deliver a ₹1,060 crore net profit during the quarter.

The homegrown passenger and commercial vehicle maker last made a net profit in the third quarter of fiscal year 2021.

Tata's Air India to seal half of jumbo plane order today

Air India will on Friday seal half of an order worth billions of dollars for some 495 jets with Boeing and engine suppliers General Electric and CFM International, Reuters reported citing two industry sources, as its new owner seeks to revive the airline and compete with much larger rivals.

After months of closely-guarded, tough negotiations, Air India is set to place an order for 190 Boeing 737 MAX narrowbody planes as well as some 20 Boeing 787s and 10 Boeing 777X on a day marking one year since Tata Group took control of the former state-run carrier.

Oil prices edge up on strong U.S. economic data, Chinese demand hope

Oil prices edged marginally higher on Friday, extending gains for a second session on strong U.S. economic data and strengthening hope that the reopening of the Chinese economy would boost demand.

Brent futures gained 30 cents, or 0.3%, to $87.66 a barrel, while U.S. crude rose 21 cents to $81.22 per barrel.

Both benchmarks had gained more than 1% on Thursday. Brent was on track to post its second weekly rise if gains held.

Improving gross domestic product and inflation data in the United States provided hope that the U.S. Federal Reserve could slow its pace of interest rate hikes, reducing fear of curtailment in economic activity and consequent oil demand.

Tata  group plans to infuse up to $1.8 bn in Air India-Vistara

Tata Sons Ltd may invest $1.5-1.8 billion in the proposed airline behemoth created by the merger of Air India and Vistara, two people aware of the development said.

On 29 November, Singapore Airlines and Tata Sons said they plan to merge Air India and Vistara, with Singapore Airlines holding 25.1% of the merged entity. The merger is expected to be completed by March next year.

Stocks to Watch

Adani Enterprises, Bajaj Finance, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors are among the key stocks likely to be in focus in today's trade.

Bajaj Finance, Vedanta, Aarti Drugs, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, CMS Info Systems, Glenmark Life Sciences, Godfrey Phillips India, Sterlite Technologies, Zenotech Laboratories, and AIA Engineering are scheduled to announce their earnings today.

SGX Nifty indicates positive open for Indian indices 

Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 71.50 points higher at 18,025.00, indicating a positive start for Indian indices.

On Wednesday, the Sensex tanked 774 points to 60,205, while the broader Nifty fell 226 points to 17,892.

Asian markets upbeat, tick higher following US tech rally 

Stocks in Asia are set to follow US equities higher Friday after a rally in tech shares helped investors shake off mixed economic data that suggested a path to a soft landing, but the risk of recession persists.

Equities rose in Japan, South Korea and Australia, where trading resumed after Thursday’s holiday. Futures for Hong Kong also gained. India’s equity market also reopens after a holiday break, while mainland China remains closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.53% to almost nine-month highs of 561.99. The index, which fell nearly 20% last year, is up about 11% in the month and is on course for its best ever January performance. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.20%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index opened 0.2% higher after surging more than 2% on Thursday. 

Wall Street ended a choppy session higher on Thursday as investors grappled with an onslaught of economic data and a string of mixed corporate earnings, all while eyeing the clock as it ticks down toward next week's Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting.

The S&P 500 closed at the highest level in more than a month, reflecting a jump in tech stocks. The Nasdaq 100 rose 2% to the highest level since September, led by an 11% gain for Tesla Inc. as Elon Musk teased potential for the carmaker to produce 2 million vehicles this year.

In commodities, oil was set to end the week little changed as concerns of an economic slowdown were tempered by optimism over Chinese demand. Gold was steady.

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