Equity investors make Rs 2 lakh crore in 90 mins: What's driving the rally

NEW DELHI: Stock investors were on a buying spree on Tuesday after crude oil prices fell to a 13-month low on Monday as the coronavirus outbreak curtailed Chinese demand.

The BSE flagship Sensex soared 917.07 points, or 2.30 per cent, to 40,789.38, while NSE benchmark Nifty gained 271.75 points, or 2.32 per cent, to 11,979.65.

The total market capitalisation on BSE-listed firms added nearly Rs 2 lakh crore during the first 90 minutes on Tuesday. By 1.30 pm, the index had added Rs 2.65 lakh crore to investor wealth at Rs 156.37 lakh crore against Rs 153.72 lakh crore on Monday.

India VIX, the measure of volatility in the market, slipped 7.6 per cent to 14.58. All sectoral indices were up on NSE. Nifty Financial Services, Nifty IT, Nifty Media and Nifty Metals gained above 1 per cent each. Among other gainers were Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Auto and Nifty Pharma.

Here are the top factors that boosted market sentiment:

Oil sees sharp plunge
Crude oil futures plunged on Monday as coronavirus outbreak curtailed Chinese demand and sparked potential supply cuts by Opec and its allies. Brent crude settled $2.17, or 3.8 per cent, lower at $54.45 a barrel, its lowest level since January last year. However, it gained a bit in Tuesday’s trade. Brent traded at $54.66 a barrel by 0227 GMT, up 21 cents, or nearly 0.4 per cent, while WTI crude rose 32 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to $50.43 a barrel.

Cheaper crude oil in international markets bodes well for India, as the country imports more than 80 per cent of its domestic needs. This will also help the government keep the fiscal deficit in check. Both Brent and WTI are currently down more than 20 per cent from this year's peak hit on January 6.

Meanwhile, three Opec+ sources and an industry source familiar with the discussions told Reuters on Monday that Opec and allies, including Russia, were considering cutting oil output by a further 500,000 barrels a day (bpd) due to the impact on oil demand from the coronavirus.

Rupee gains
Rupee jumped 0.23 per cent or 16 paise against the US dollar in early trade, boosting sentiments on Dalal Street. It was trading at 71.20/$ level. A stronger rupee makes import of goods cheaper.

Dividend payout before March?
Abolition of the dividend distribution tax, which was proposed in the Union Budget on Saturday, and taxing the same in the hands of shareholders kindled hopes that companies will pay their dividend before the end of the fiscal. Once the new rules kick in, dividends will be taxed at a high 43 per cent in the hands of promoter-owners from next financial year instead of 20.56 per cent currently.

Shares of high-dividend paying companies have surged after the Budget. Vedenta, InterGlobe Aviation, Deepak Fertilisers, Edelweiss Financial, IIFL Finance, Hindustan Zinc, Swan Energy and UPL — having dividend payout ratio above 100 per cent — traded with gains. Shares of cash-rich companies like TCS, Infosys also gained.

Global markets hold gains
Traders in India took positives from global markets that held their ground despite a flurry of bad news from China. Asian stocks bounced on Tuesday with Chinese markets reversing some of their previous plunge. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1.0 per cent, led by gains in South Korea and Australia. Japan's Nikkei inched up 0.1 per cent.

The Shanghai Composite stood flat in choppy early trading, while the blue-chip CSI300 rebounded 0.9 per cent, one day after an almost 8 per cent slide on Monday as markets resumed from the Lunar New Year holiday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 0.7 per cent.

Overnight, US stocks also closed with gains boosted by heavyweight technology shares and surprising strength of US manufacturing activity. Dow Average rose 143.78 points, or 0.51 per cent, to 28,399, while S&P 500 gained 23.4 points, or 0.73 per cent, to 3,248 and Nasdaq added 122.47 points, or 1.34 per cent, to 9,273.4