Sensex down 100 points, Nifty slips below 8,200

Markets extended losses in late noon trades with Tata Motors and Infosys leading the decline

Markets extended losses to trade near their day's low as investors turned cautious ahead of Britain's referendum outcome on Thursday whether to stay in the EU or not.

At 1:55pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 114 points at 26,698 and the Nifty50 was trading 38 points  lower at 8,181.

Tata Motors was the top Sensex loser down nearly 3% along with index heavyweights Infosys and ITC.
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(Updated at 1:10pm)
Markets continue to trade in a narrow range as participants remain edgy ahead of Thursday’s crucial referendum that will decide whether Britain will stay in the European Union or not. Meanwhile, weakness in rupee further dented sentiments.

At 1:10 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 32 points at 26,782 and the Nifty50 was trading 13 points  lower at 8,207.

BUZZING STOCKS

Tata Motors is the top loser and has shed over 2.5% ahead of the key Brexit referendum in the UK on Thursday. A vote in favour of Brexit will hit profitability of Tata Motors' UK subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover.

Force Motors inaugurated its brand new facility in Pune, entailing an investment of Rs 100 crore, to supply engines and axles to Mercedes-Benz India. The stock gained 1%.

Shares of metal, auto, IT and pharma companies are suffering the most ahead of the Brexit vote. Tata Steel, TCS, Tech Mahindra and HCL Tech have lost up to 2%.

Hindustan Unilever fell over 1% as shares of India's biggest FMCG player went ex-dividend today.

Shares of Kwality were up nearly 2% after the company plans to raise funds. 

Mandhana Industries is locked in lower circuit for third trading sessions, down 10% at Rs 160 on the BSE, with no buyers  seen in the counter. The stock is currently trading at its lowest level since October 2010.

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(updated at 11:25 am)
 

Benchmark share indices remained rangebond oscillating between positive and negative terrain as investors turned cautious ahead of the referendum on Thursday in which Britain will decide to stay or leave the European Union.

At 11:25am, the S&P BSE Sensex was unchanged at 26,813 and the Nifty50 was trading 4 points  lower at 8,216. The broader markets also came off their early highs with BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices trading flat with positive bias. Market breadth turned negative with 1082 losers and 1032 gainers on the BSE.

The Indian rupee depreciated for the third day in a row. It has opened lower by 11 paise at 67.60 per dollar against previous close of 67.49.

Meanwhile, oil prices climbed in early Asian trading on Wednesday, with US crude joining Brent above $50 a barrel after data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed a larger than expected draw on stocks.

US crude inventories fell by 5.2 million barrels for the week ended June 17, the API said. The US government's Energy Information Administration will issue official stockpile data on Wednesday.

STOCKS

Tata Motors was the top Sensex loser down over 2% amid reports that its UK-based arm Jaguar Land Rover's annual profit would be sharply impacted over the next few years if Britain decides to exit from the European Union.

Textile and telecom companies have gained in early trades ahead of the Cabinet meet later today which is likely to announce new measures for both the sectors.

In the textile space, Aarvee Denims, Lakshmi Machine Works, Arvind and Bombay Dying have gained between 1%-12%. In the telecom space, Reliance Communication, Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular are trading with marginal gains.

ITC is trading 0.5% lower as Yogesh Chander Deveshwar is set to step down from executive role from February 2017, after which he will stay on as Non-Executive Chairman.

Technology stocks continue the upward march on the back of a depreciating rupee. Wipro and Infosys have gained 0.4% each.

Escorts has moved higher to its fresh 52-week high of Rs 202, up 11% on the BSE in early morning trade on hopes of good monsoon will aid tractor sales growth.

Tech Mahindra is up 0.6% after the committee of Board of Directors of the Company on June 21, 2016 approved the proposal to acquire Bio Agency Limited, a UK based entity.

Tata Power climbed 0.6% after its 100% subsidiary Tata Power Renewable Energy (TPRE) has won 30 MW solar gird connected PV project in Maharashtra under the National Solar Mission.

Muthoot Finance has gained 1% after the company said it has completed acquisition of Muthoot Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd (MIBPL) by transfer of equity shares from its existing shareholders for a consideration of Rs 20 crore.