Barometers trade near flat line; metals shine

Equity indices pared most of the losses and traded near the flat line in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty hovered around the crucial 14,500 mark. Gains were capped as rising COVID-19 cases continue to weigh on investors' sentiment.

At 14:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 39 points or 0.08% at 48,504.49. The Nifty 50 index fell 4.8 points or 0.03% at 14,500.

The broader market saw selling pressure. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.49% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was down 0.21%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1083 shares rose and 1737 shares fell. A total of 158 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 138,056,297 with 2,971,539 deaths.

India reported 14,71,877 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 173,123 deaths while 124,29,564 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

India on Wednesday reported 2,00,739 new COVID-19 cases and 1,038 deaths in last 24 hours, according to data from the Union Health Ministry.

The total COVID19 vaccinations have crossed the 11.43 crore mark with more than 31.39 lakh vaccine doses were administered till 8 pm yesterday. A total of 69,974 COVID Vaccination Centres (CVCs) were operational, marking a rise of an average of 24,000 operational Vaccination Centres ( 45,000 CVCs on an average are functional on any given day). Workplace vaccinations have also enabled a high turnout of beneficiaries.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee fell to 75.0575 compared with its previous closing of 75.0550.

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.048% as compared to its previous close of 6.011%.

MCX Gold futures for 4 June 2021 settlement rose 0.5% to Rs 46,840.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, fell 0.06 to 91.610.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2021 settlement fell 53 cents to $66.05 a barrel. The contract surged 4.57% to settle at $66.58 in the previous trading session.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Metal index rose 1.54% to 4,404.60, rising for second trading day. The index has rallied nearly 5% in two trading sessions.

Vedanta (up 3.44%), National Aluminium Company (up 3.4%), Steel Authority of India (up 2.87%), Tata Steel (up 2.62%), NMDC (up 2.21%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 1.6%) and Hindalco Industries (up 1.39%) were top gainers in metal space.

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