Key indices pare losses; breadth positive

Key benchmark indices sharply pared losses in early afternoon trade. At 12:17 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 17.65 points or 0.07% at 25,846.82. The Nifty 50 index was down 7.20 points or 0.09% at 7,830.35.

The BSE Sensex fell 78.68 points, or 0.30% at the day's low of 25,785.79 in mid-morning trade. The Nifty 50 fell 24.45 points, or 0.31% at the day's low of 7,813.10 in morning trade. The BSE Sensex rose 25.89 points, or 0.10% at the day's high of 25,890.36 in early trade. The Nifty 50 index rose 5.85 points, or 0.07% at the day's high of 7,843.40 in early trade.

The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. On BSE, 1,308 shares rose and 1,022 shares fell. A total of 165 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.29%. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.40%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

In overseas markets, Asian shares were mixed today, 18 November 2015, as investors remain cautious over the latest global geopolitical developments in the wake of Paris terror attacks. US stocks gave up earlier gains to end almost flat yesterday, 17 November 2015, as falling oil prices overshadowed strong earnings from giant retailers Wal-Mart Stores and Home Depot Inc. The evacuation of a soccer stadium in Germany also rekindled terror fears, unnerving investors.

Metal shares edged lower. Hindustan Zinc (down 3.12%), Hindalco Industries (down 1.49%), Vedanta (down 1.14%), Hindustan Copper (down 1.09%), Tata Steel (down 1.09%), Bhushan Steel (down 1.07%), Jindal Steel & Power (down 0.98%), Steel Authority of India (down 0.33%), NMDC (down 0.16%) and JSW Steel (down 0.08%), edged lower. National Aluminium Company was up 0.96%.

Most IT stocks declined. Infosys (down 2.51%), Hexaware Technologies (down 2.4%), HCL Technologies (down 1.49%), TCS (down 1.09%), MindTree (down 0.58%), Wipro (down 0.17%) and Oracle Financial Services Software (down 0.1%), edged lower. CMC (up 0.03%), Persistent Systems (up 0.31%), MphasiS (up 1.02%) and Tech Mahindra (up 1.11%), edged higher.

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