Barometers hit day's low on weak global cues

A bout of volatility was witnessed as key barometers reversed gains and hit fresh intraday low in afternoon trade. Negative opening in European market and steep losses in US index futures dented sentiment. Private banks and financial shares advanced. On the other hand, metal and pharma shares declined.

At 13:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 175.25 points or 0.29% to 59,569.63. The Nifty 50 index declined 42.35 points or 0.24% to 17,779.95. The Nifty hit the day's high of 17,884.60 in early trade.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.67% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.08%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1652 shares rose and 1559 shares fell. A total of 146 shares were unchanged.

ONGC (up 3.21%), Tata Consumer Products (up 2.84%), UPL (up 2.80%), Britannia Industries (up 2.50%) and HDFC Bank (up 1.64%) were major index gainers.

Hindalco Industries (down 2.44%), SBI Life Insurance (down 2.37%), Coal India (down 2.15%), JSW Steel (down 1.78%) and Titan Company (down 1.53%) were major index losers.

IT major TCS rose 0.19%. The company said it has extended its partnership with State Bank of India (SBI), India's largest bank, for another five years.

As part of the new contract, TCS will continue to maintain and enhance SBI's application estate around core banking, trade finance, financial reporting,and financial inclusion with new features and functionality. This will support the bank's ability to launch newer offerings and respond to business and regulatory changes.

Bajaj Finance rose 0.98%. The NBFC major's customer franchise grew 19.7% to 52.8 million as of 30 September 2021 from 44.1 million on 30 September 2020. Consolidated liquidity surplus stood at approximately Rs 16,500 crore as of 30 September 2021.

Assets under management (AUM) grew 21.74% and stood at approximately Rs 166,900 crore as of 30 September 2021 as compared to Rs 137,090 crore as of 30 September 2020. Deposit book stood at approximately Rs 28,700 crore as of 30 September 2021 as compared to Rs 21,669 crore as of 30 September 2020.

Economy:

Rating agency Moody's Investors Service has upgraded India's sovereign rating outlook to 'stable' from 'negative' citing an ebbing of the risks from COVID-19 and the negative feedback between the real economy and financial system.

While it retained India's rating at Baa3, reflecting the lowest investment grade rating, Moody's said it expects real GDP to surpass pre-pandemic levels of 2019-20 this year itself, as the ongoing economic recovery is picking up steam with activity upticks broadening across sectors. It expects 2021-22 to record 9.3% growth in GDP, followed by 7.9% next year.

Global markets:

US Dow Jones index futures were down 258 points, indicating a weak opening in the US stocks today.

European shares declined at opening bell while Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday. Mainland Chinese markets remain closed on Wednesday for the holidays.

In US, the major averages rebounded on Tuesday following a technology-centered market rout in the previous session.

In Washington, lawmakers are still trying to agree to raise or suspend the U.S. borrowing limit and avert a dangerous first-ever default on the national debt. The Treasury Department warned last week that lawmakers must address the debt ceiling before October 18 when officials estimate the U.S. will exhaust emergency efforts to honor its bond payments.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Tuesday she believes the economy would fall into a recession if Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling before a default on the U.S. debt.

Investors are readying for the closely watched jobs report, which will be released on Friday.

The US trade deficit increased to a record $73.3 billion in August as a small gain in exports was swamped by a much larger increase in imports. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the monthly trade deficit increased 4.2% in August, rising to an all-time high, surpassing the previous record of $73.2 billion set in June.

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