Sensex, Nifty fall 1% tracking global sell-off; SBI dips 3%

M&M was the top gainer on robust tractor sales in October while index heavyweights were the top losers

Benchmark indices continue to trade lower by over 1% tracking European and Asian cues as a new poll showing Republican candidate Donald Trump leading the US presidential race spooked investors.

Meanwhile, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)'s two-day meet on monetary policy will conclude today. The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged on Wednesday but set the stage for a hike in December amid signs the economy is picking up steam.

By 14:15 pm, the benchmark S&P Sensex was at 27,605 down 271 points and the Nifty50 index was trading at 8,537 down 89 points. Among broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are down over 1% each.

Top losers from the Sensex pack are ONGC, SBI, GAIL, Tata Motors and Tata Steel, all down between 2%-3%. Amongst gainers, NTPC, HUL and M&M are up 1%-2%.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has moved higher by 3% to Rs 1,359 on the BSE, bouncing back 4% from early morning lows, after reporting a strong 61% year on year (YoY) growth in total tractor sales at 45,177 units in October 2016.

Among other shares, Sundram Fasteners has surged 9% to Rs 352, also its 52-week high on BSE in intra-day trade, after the company posted a strong 82% year on year (YoY) growth in standalone net profit at Rs 77 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 (Q2FY17).

SKF India has rallied 10% to Rs 1,550, to hit a record high on BSE in intra-day on Wednesday, in an otherwise weak market.

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Updated at 12:30 pm

The weakness continued in noon trades tracking a sell-off in global markets ahead of the US Fed meet outcome later today and growing uncertainty ahead of the US elections next week.

Meanwhile, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)'s two-day meet on monetary policy will conclude today. The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged on Wednesday but set the stage for a hike in December amid signs the economy is picking up steam.

At 12:30pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was at 27,698 down 268 points and the Nifty50 index was trading at 8,539 down 87 points. In the broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices were down 1.7% each. Market breadth was weak with 1910 losers and 693 gainers on the BSE.

Foreign portfolio investors were net sellers in equities worth Rs 124 crore on Tuesday, as per provisional stock exchange data.

GLOBAL MARKETS

The CBOE Volatility Index (US) edged higher and was up 8.8% at 18.56. Volatility Index is a measure, of the amount by which an underlying Index is expected to fluctuate, in the near term.

Asian stocks edged lower after reports suggested that Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump is seen closing the gap with his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton ahead of the elections early next week. Japan's Nikkei emerged as the top loser down 1.8% followed by Hang Seng which eased 1.5% while China's Shanghai Composite slipped 0.4%. Singapore's Straits Times was down 0.2%.

STOCKS

SBI was down 2.8%. The five associate banks of State Bank of India (SBI) have booked heavy combined loss of Rs 3,096 crore in the financial year’s second quarter ended September, on a sharp rise in provisions for stressed loans. The highest loss this time was reported by State Bank of Patiala (SBP) at Rs 1,340 crore, followed by State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH) at Rs 776 crore.

Lupin was marginally down. The pharma major announced that it has received final approval for Norgestimate and Ethinyl Estradiol Tablets USP, 0.25 mg/0.035 mg from the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to market a generic version of Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.'s Ortho-Cyclen 28 Tablets (Norgestimate/Ethinyl Estradiol).

NTPC was up nearly 1%. The PSU power major announced that in continuation with company's earlier disclosures in respect of Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayn (HURL), a joint venture company formed between NTPC and Coal India (CIL), a supplemental joint venture agreement has been signed on 31 October 2016 amongst NTPC, CIL, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Fertilizer Corporation of India (FCIL) and Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation (HFCL) in order to induct IOC, FCIL and HFCL, as joint venture partners and shareholders in HURL.

Mahindra & Mahindra was up nearly 3% after reporting a strong 61% year on year (YoY) growth in total tractor sales at 45,177 units in October 2016.

Bajaj Auto was down nearly 1% after export of motorcycles in October 2016 declined 11% to 94,895 units compared with 106,691 units in October 2015.

Among other shares, Moil gained over 6% to hit a 5-year high after the company hiked prices of various grades of manganese ore with effect from November 1, 2016.

Ujaas Energy has surged 9% to Rs 37.10 on BSE in intra-day, extending its Tuesday’s 12% rally on the back of heavy volumes, after the company said that it has bagged order from Airport Authority of India (AAI).