Sensex trades lower, Nifty tests 9,650 on negative global cues

The benchmark indices were trading lower on Friday tracking negative trend seen in Asian markets after Wall Street ended sharply lower on Thursday as disappointing labor market data clashed with the possibility of a more hawkish Federal Reserve, while rising tensions in the Korean peninsula providing additional pressure.

At 12:34 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,314, down 55 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,651, down 23 points.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices were little changed.  

"The Nifty is now placed a tad below the higher end of this indicator and going ahead, we still believe that it would be a daunting task to overcome it in the near-term. Hence, we would continue to advise staying light in the market (at least index specific longs should be avoided) and should focus on individual stocks in order to get better trading opportunities," said brokerage Angel Broking in a technical note.   

"On the flipside, 9,640-9,600 are seen as immediate support levels; but, with a near term view, these levels may get breached soon," added the brokerage. 

Buzzing stocks 

Pharma stocks hogged the limelight, with top four stocks (Lupin, Dr Reddy's, Cipla and Aurobindo Pharma) on the Nifty being from the pharma space.

The Nifty Pharma index (up 1%) was the leading sectoral gainer, led by gains in Lupin, Dr Reddy's, Piramal Enterprises and Glenmark, which advanced in the range of 1% to 3% on the NSE. 

The Chennai-based Shriram Capital and IDFC Bank are set to begin 90 days of exclusive negotiations next week for an all-stock merger that could create a Rs 60,000-crore financial powerhouse, with both groups filling gaps in each other’s businesses. Shares of IDFC Bank rallied over 4% on the BSE. 

According to an investment banking source, the lending business of the Shriram group, which includes listed companies such as Shriram Transport Finance and Shriram City Union Finance, could be merged with IDFC Bank, while the unlisted life and general insurance companies could be merged with IDFC.

Global markets

Asian shares lost ground on Friday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.3% after the Dow lost 0.7% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 1% on Thursday, partly as higher Treasury yields dimmed the appeal of equities.

Japan's Nikkei was down 0.5%, South Korea's KOSPI dropped 0.3% and Australian stocks declined 1%.

China's Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong's Hang Seng were down 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively.

(With inputs from Reuters)