Negative market breadth

Key benchmark indices continued range bound trading in afternoon trade. At 13:17 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 49.96 points or 0.15% at 34,402.75. The Nifty 50 index was down 0.20 points at 10,623.40.

Continuous foreign fund inflows and bets by investors amid optimism over Q3 FY 2018 earnings and upcoming budget helped the key indices to hit record highs in early trade amid initial volatility. Indices hovered with small gains till mid-morning trade.

Among secondary indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.40%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.03%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.

The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, turned negative from positive. On the BSE, 1,534 shares fell and 1,292 shares rose. A total of 116 shares were unchanged.

Most pharmaceutical shares declined. Wockhardt (down 2.97%), Cadila Healthcare (down 1.49%), Divi's Laboratories (down 1.31%), GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (down 1.06%), Piramal Enterprises (down 1.01%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 0.94%), IPCA Laboratories (down 0.63%), Alkem Laboratories (down 0.32%) and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (down 0.04%), edged lower. Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 0.02%), Cipla (up 0.09%), Strides Shasun (up 0.32%), Lupin (up 0.34%) and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (up 0.49%), edged higher.

FMCG shares declined. Jyothy Laboratories (down 1.6%), Nestle India (down 1.16%), Britannia Industries (down 0.87%), Dabur India (down 0.72%), Tata Global Beverages (down 0.63%), Hindustan Unilever (down 0.41%), Godrej Consumer Products (down 0.39%), Colgate Palmolive (India) (down 0.12%), Marico (down 0.12%) and GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare (down 0.02%), edged lower. Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care (up 0.11%) and Bajaj Corp (up 1.82%), edged higher.

Overseas, Asian stocks were mixed as investors in the region digested earnings guidance from tech heavyweight Samsung Electronics and kept an eye on ongoing inter-Korea talks.

North and South Korea have begun high-level talks, the first between the countries in two years. North Korea will reportedly send athletes and cheerleaders to next month's Winter Olympics in South Korea, after the two countries held their first official talks for more than two years. The talks represent a cautious diplomatic breakthrough after months of rising tensions over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme. US President Donald Trump called the talks a "big start", adding that it would be a "great thing for all of humanity" if they resulted in a positive outcome.

In the US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite finished Monday's session at all-time highs as investors remained optimistic on the US economy.

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