Benchmarks hit day's low; Nifty near 13,800 mark

The equity barometers further extended losses and hit fresh intraday low in early afternoon trade. At 12:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 576.13 points or 1.22% at 46,833.80. The Nifty 50 index skid 166 points or 1.19% at 13,801.50.

The January 2021 F&O contracts will expire today, 28 January 2021. Global cues were weak as a rise in the volatility index (VIX) worried investors. Rising coronavirus cases and uneven distribution of vaccine rollouts also triggered selling pressure.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said that the U.S. economy was a long way from full recovery and still short of policy makers' inflation and job goals. The central banker made it clear that the U.S. central bank was nowhere near exiting massive support for the economy during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, as officials left their benchmark interest rate unchanged near zero.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.34% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 0.14%. The decline in both these indices was lower than the Sensex.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,416 shares rose and 1,245 shares fell. A total of 147 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, fell 0.78% to 24.20. The Nifty 28 January 2021 futures were trading at 13,826.15, at a premium of 24.65 points as compared with the spot at 13,801.50.

The Nifty option chain for 28 January 2021 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 70.80 lakh contracts at the 14,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 52.50 lakh contracts was seen at 13,800 strike price.

Coronavirus Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 10,08,66,032 with 21,74,129 deaths. India reported 1,73,740 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,53,847 deaths while 1,03,73,606 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

A total of 23,28,779 beneficiaries have so far been vaccinated for COVID-19 through 41,599 sessions held till the evening of 27 January 2021, the twelfth day of the immunisation drive, according to a provisional report of the Union Health Ministry.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Media index rose 0.98% to 1,686.10. The index snapped 4-day losing streak after falling 4.81% in the said sessions.

Inox Leisure (up 3.12%), PVR (up 2.64%), D B Corp (up 1.89%), Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) (up 0.93%) and Jagran Prakashan (up 0.62%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Astral Poly Technik jumped 3.83% after the company said its board will consider bonus issue on 3 February 2021.

United Spirits tumbled 7.48% after the company's standalone net profit declined 11.2% to Rs 230 crore on 3.6% fall in net sales to Rs 2,488.70 crore in Q3 December 2020 over Q3 December 2019. Profit before tax fell 11.5% year-on-year to Rs 304.10 crore in Q3 December 2020. Total tax expense fell 12.6% to Rs 74.20 crore in Q3 December 2020 over Q3 December 2019.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals rose 0.24%. The drug maker on Thursday announced that it has received final approval by the US drug regulator for amphetamine sulfate tablets. The drug is generic version of Evekeo tablets of Arbor Pharmaceuticals. According to IQVIA sales data for the 12-month period ending November 2020, the Evekeo Tablets, achieved annual sales of approximately $21.5 million.

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