Key benchmarks decline further

Selling pressure intensified as key benchmark indices declined further and hit fresh intraday low in mid-morning trade. At 11:16 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 144.65 points or 0.49% at 29,276.75. The Nifty 50 index was currently down 49.70 points or 0.55% at 9,058.30. Weakness in other Asian indices put pressure on domestic shares.

The Sensex fell 173.84 points, or 0.59% at the day's low of 29,247.56 in mid-morning trade, its lowest level since 23 March 2017. The index fell 0.70 points at the day's high of 29,420.70 in early trade. The Nifty fell 60.05 points, or 0.66% at the day's low of 9,047.95 in mid-morning trade, its lowest level since 23 March 2017. The index fell 13.15 points, or 0.14% at the day's high of 9,094.85 in early trade.

Overseas, Asian stocks declined as investors continued to worry about the Trump's administration's inability to push through its policy initiatives. US stocks ended lower on Friday, 24 March 2017, as House Republicans withdrew the American Health Care Act after determining that they did not have enough votes to pass the bill. The withdrawal is a major setback for President Donald Trump who had made the repeal and the replacement of the existing Affordable Care Act one of his main campaign pledges.

Back home, among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was currently down 0.02%. The decline in this index was lower than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 0.13%, outperforming the Sensex.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. On BSE, 1,185 shares fell and 1,122 shares rose. A total of 184 shares were unchanged.

Reliance Industries (RIL) lost 2.15% to Rs 1,258.50 after the markets regulator Sebi has directed the company to disgorge Rs 447.27 crore in the matter relating to trading of shares in Reliance Petroleum.

The markets regulator Securities and Exchanges Board of India (Sebi) directed Reliance Industries (RIL) to disgorge Rs 447.27 crore in the matter relating to trading of shares in Reliance Petroleum (RPL) by RIL in November 2007. Sebi also barred RIL from the futures and options (F&O) segment for a year and asked it to settle all existing open positions. It will also have to pay 12% per annum on the disgorgement amount of Rs 447.27 crore since 29 November 2007 onwards. RIL has been asked to pay up within 45 days of the order.

Meanwhile, RIL after market hours on Friday, 24 March 2017, said that the trades in RPL shares which were examined by Sebi were genuine and bona fide transactions. These were carried out keeping the best interest of the company and its shareholders, in view, it added. RIL said that Sebi appears to have misconstrued the true nature of the transactions and imposed unjustifiable sanctions.

RIL said it is in the process of consulting its legal advisors. It proposes to prefer an appeal and challenge the order in Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT). RIL said it remains confident of fully justifying the veracity of the transactions and vindicating its stand. RIL said that it has full confidence in the judicial process and it proposes to vigorously exercise all options available to it to challenge the untenable findings in the order.

Metal shares declined. Steel Authority of India (down 2.25%), Tata Steel (down 2.2%), Jindal Steel & Power (down 2.09%), Hindalco Industries (down 1.88%), JSW Steel (down 1.53%), NMDC (down 1.02%), Bhushan Steel (down 0.94%), Vedanta (down 0.82%), Hindustan Copper (down 0.15%) and National Aluminium Company (down 0.07%), edged lower. Hindustan Zinc was up 0.56%.

Cement shares edged lower. Ambuja Cements (down 0.89%), UltraTech Cement (down 0.55%) and ACC (down 0.01%), edged lower.

Grasim Industries was down 0.52%. Grasim has exposure to cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.

On the economic front, the government is likely to table supplementary goods and services tax (GST) legislations in Parliament today, 27 March 2017. Central GST (C-GST), integrated GST (I-GST), Union Territory GST (UT-GST) and the compensation law are likely to be introduced in the Lok Sabha today, 27 March 2017, and could be taken up for discussion as early as 28 March 2017, media reports suggested.

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