New high: Nifty ends at 8910, Sensex up 292 pts; banks soar

03:30 pm Market close The market ended at record highs as banks boosted trade. The Nifty ended above 8900-level for first time. The 50-share index was up 74.90 points or 0.8 percent at 8910.50. The Sensex closed up 292.20 points or 1 percent at 29571.04. About 1406 shares have advanced, 1523 shares declined, and 260 shares were unchanged. 03:20 pm De-merger Max India board today approved a corporate restructuring plan to vertically split the company through a demerger into three separate listed companies to provide sharper focus on each business. The company's board also approved divestment of its clinical research business.  "This structural reconfiguration readies us to capitalise on opportunities created by the anticipated all round growth acceleration and to henceforth look at the wider world of business opportunities," Max India Chairman Analjit Singh said. The three separate business verticals would look into life insurance, health and allied businesses, and manufacturing industries. Further the promoter of the Max India Analjit Singh announced his intention to make voluntary open offer to buy up to an additional 34.5 per cent stake in Max Ventures and Industries which will be listed post the demerger of Max India. 03:00 pm Market check The Nifty hit a record high at 8900-level. The 50-share index is up 75.80 points or 0.8 percent at 8911.40. The Sensex is up 266.19 points or 0.9 percent at 29545.03. About 1380 shares have advanced, 1466 shares declined, and 265 shares are unchanged. Cipla is up 5 percent while Axis Bank gains 4 percent, followed by financials like ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank. ITC surges 3 percent. 02:45pm Market at life high The market touched a record high today, supported by private banking & financials and capital goods stocks. Tata Motors and ITC also led the rally. The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 175.20 points to 29454.04 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 47.75 points to 8883.35. 02:30pm Maruti in Focus Maruti Suzuki missed street expectations with the third quarter net profit rising 18 percent year-on-year to Rs 802 crore, led by higher volumes, material cost reduction initiatives and favourable forex.  According to a CNBC-TV18 poll, profit was expected at Rs 875 crore for the quarter. Revenue increased 15.4 percent to Rs 12,576 crore during October-December quarter compared to Rs 10,894 crore in the year-ago period, which was slightly ahead of estimates of Rs 12,352 crore due to higher sales volume. The India's largest car maker sold 3.23 lakh units during the quarter, up 12.4 percent compared to 2.88 lakh units sold in the same quarter last fiscal. Of this, exports were at 28,709 units, a growth of 43.8 percent compared to a year ago period, says the company in its filing. Operating profit grew 17.6 percent year-on-year to Rs 1,593 crore and margin expanded 30 basis points to 12.7 percent as against expected growth of 19 percent and 60 basis points, respectively. 02:00pm Market Check The market consolidated with a postive bias continuing its gains into the eighth consecutive session. The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 107.95 points to 29386.79 and the 50-share NSE Nifty climbed 24 points to 8859.60. Krishna Kumar Karwa of Emkay Global told CNBC-TV18 that he has seen very strong global flows in last few weeks, to the tune of Rs 7,000-8,000 crore. He expects another rate cut by the RBI in the February policy and expects returns of 12-15 percent this year in equities. ICICI Bank, ITC, Tata Motors, Axis Bank and Cipla topped the buying list, up 2-3 percent followed by L&T, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel and BHEL with 1-1.8 percent upside. However, Infosys, M&M, Dr Reddy's Labs, HUL, Sun Pharma, Coal India and Hindalco Industries lost 2-4 percent. Globally, European markets opened largely flat. Markets look beyond Greece election outcome as ECB president Mario Draghi appealed to euro zone finance ministers to accelerate structural reforms to allow ECB asset purchase program to have lasting positive impact on economic growth. Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley is confident of a turnaround in India, saying he committed to meeting the FY15 fiscal deficit target of 4.1 percent. He reiterates that the government is working towards investor-friendly tax administration. US President, Barack Obama concluded his India visit. While addressing an animated audience in New Delhi, he says he is committed to a new chapter for Indo-US ties, reiterating support for India as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. More information please visit this site www.bigprofitbuzz.com