Market turns range bound; Nifty hovers below 18,200

The key equity barometers traded in a narrow range with modest losses in the afternoon trade. The Nifty hovered below the 18,200 level after hitting the day's high of 18,296.40 in the early trade. PSU bank, bank and FMCG stocks advanced while healthcare, pharma and realty shares declined.

At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 80.51 points or 0.13% to 61,104.64. The Nifty 50 index shed 26 points or 0.14% to 18,176.80.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 0.19% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 0.08%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,848 shares rose and 1,586 shares fell. A total of 147 shares were unchanged.

Investors kept a close eye on the results of the U.S. midterm elections. Traders also continued to look ahead to Thursday's report on US consumer price inflation. The inflation data would give clues about how much the U.S. Federal Reserve's rapid interest rate hikes are helping in cooling down the economy.

Gainers & Losers:

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (up 3.52%), Coal India (up 3.31%), ITC (up 1.33%), Indusind Bank (up 0.98%) and Hero MotoCorp (up 0.94%) were the top Nifty gainers.

Hindalco Industries (down 4.50%), Divi's Laboratories (down 3.76%), Power Grid Corporation of India (down 3.29%), Grasim Industries (down 2.10%) and NTPC (down 1.76%) were the top Nifty losers.

Earnings Impact:

Coal India added 3.31% after the company's consolidated net profit zoomed to Rs 6,043.99 crore in Q2 FY23 from Rs 2,932.73 crore in Q2 FY22. Net sales during the quarter increased by 29% YoY to Rs 27,538.59 crore.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) shed 0.39%. BPCL reported a standalone net loss of Rs 304.17 crore in Q2 FY23 as against a net profit of Rs 2,840.73 crore in Q2 FY22. Net revenue from operations rose by 50% to Rs 1,14,807.59 crore in the second quarter from Rs 76,390.39 crore in the same period last year.

One 97 Communications rose 0.01%. On a consolidated basis, One 97 Communications (Paytm)'s revenue surged 76.2% to Rs 1914 crore in Q2 September 2022 over Q2 September 2021. Paytm's said its consolidated loss widened to Rs 571.10 crore in Q1 June 2022 from net loss of Rs 472.90 crore a year ago.

Jubilant FoodWorks slipped 6.90%. The QSR chain operator's standalone net profit declined 1.94% to Rs 119.17 crore despite of 16.9% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 1,286.77 crore in Q2 FY23 over Q2 FY22.

PB Fintech rose 0.67% after the company reported consolidated net loss of Rs 186.64 crore in Q2 September 2022, lower than net loss of Rs 204.44 crore in Q2 September 2021. On a consolidated basis, revenue from operations surged 105.1% year on year to Rs 573.47 crore in Q2 September 2022.

Godrej Consumer Products' fell 2.11% after the FMCG company's consolidated net profit declined 25.1% to Rs 358.86 crore despite of 7% rise in net sales to Rs 3,364.45 crore in Q2 FY23 over Q2 FY22. Consolidated EBITDA declined by 15% YoY while consolidated EBITDA margins decreased by 450 bps 17.1% in the second quarter.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks traded mixed on Wednesday as investors awaited the results of the United States midterm elections. Results of the U.S. midterm elections will decide whether the Democrats lose or retain congressional control halfway through President Joe Biden's term, with investors reportedly expecting Republican gains.

China's producer price index fell 1.3% in October on an annualized basis after rising 0.9% in September. China's consumer price index rose 2.1% in October compared to a year ago, easing after climbing 2.8% in September.

Wall Street ended higher on Tuesday during voting in midterm elections that will determine control of the US Congress, with investors betting on a political stalemate that could prevent major policy changes.

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