IT firms rally on strong Accenture guidance
- Indian IT stocks inched up as Accenture Plc raised its revenue growth forecast for FY21 (it follows a Sep-Aug fiscal) from 2-5% to 4-6%.
- Its healthy deal pipeline and improving demand outlook augurs well for Indian tech companies such as Infosys (+2.3%), Mphasis (+2.1%), Wipro (+1.7%) and TCS (0.4%) compete in the same (US and EU) markets.
Flyers on the rise in November
- Indian airlines carried 63.5 lakh passengers in November, 20% higher than October. While this looks encouraging, the number is down 51% from last November.
- The passenger load factor ranged between 66% and 77%. With airlines now allowed to operate at 80% capacity, there is room for growth once all flight restrictions are lifted. Meanwhile, shares of airline companies—Indigo (+9.0%) and Spicejet (+42.1%)—have posted strong gains in December.
PVC price hike boosts DCW
- Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) prices are up by ~28% in Q3FY21 after an increase of ~19% in Q2. The rise in price is largely attributed to supply-side shortages.
- Shares of DCW, a diversified chemical company, rose 7.6% today coupled with a surge in volumes. In FY20, DCW earned about ₹454 crore of revenues from PVC sales.
- Further, rise in PVC prices also augur well for PVC pipe makers as sales jump with buyers of pipes advancing their purchase in anticipation of the price hike. Major pipe makers such as Finolex Industries (+1.3%), Astral Poly (+2.5%) and Supreme Industries (+0.4%) ended the day on a positive note.
Garware Poly surges on entry into PPF segment
- Garware Polyester announced that it has started manufacturing paint protection film (PPF), making it the first Indian company to enter the segment. PPF is used by automobile makers and has an estimated global market size of $500 million.
- Garware, which clocked a revenue of about ₹925 crore in FY20, expects PPF to contribute ₹300 crore (about 20%) to revenues in FY23. The stock rose 6.1% today and is trading at its lifetime high.