Sensex briefly gives up 26,000 level

Key benchmark indices dropped and hit fresh intraday low in mid-afternoon trade after European stocks edged lower in early trade there. At 14:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 72.93 points or 0.28% at 26,006.55. The 50-unit Nifty 50 index's decline was lower than the Sensex's fall in percentage terms. The Nifty was currently down 15.15 points or 0.19% at 7,913.80. The Sensex was currently trading above the 26,000 mark after briefly falling below that mark in mid-afternoon trade.

The Sensex lost 81.61 points or 0.31% at the day's low of 25,997.87 in mid-afternoon trade. The index rose 50.72 points or 0.19% at the day's high of 26,130.20 at the onset of the trading session. The Nifty lost 23.20 points or 0.29% at the day's low of 7,905.75 in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty hit its highest level in four weeks when it rose 15.80 points or 0.19% at the day's high of 7,944.75 at the onset of the trading session, its highest level since 2 December 2015.

In overseas markets, European stocks edged lower in early trade there. Asian stocks were mixed. US stocks climbed sharply higher yesterday, 29 December 2015, as a rebound in oil prices helped reinvigorate bullish sentiment.

Closer home, the market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was positive. On BSE, 1,324 shares rose and 1,212 shares fell. A total of 267 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently up 0.23%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 0.09%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

Shares of public sector banks declined. Punjab National Bank (down 1.79%), Bank of Baroda (down 0.57%), State Bank of India (SBI) (down 0.92%), Canara Bank (down 1.29%), and Bank of India (down 0.86%) edged lower. Union Bank of India rose 0.03%.

Shares of private sector banks were mixed. HDFC Bank (down 0.23%), Axis Bank (down 0.17%), and ICICI Bank (down 0.83%) declined. Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.18%), Yes Bank (up 0.31%), and IndusInd Bank (up 0.75%) edged higher.

Pharma stocks were mixed. Aurobindo Pharma (down 1.23%), Lupin (down 0.24%), Wockhardt (down 0.8%), Divi's Laboratories (down 0.55%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 0.06%) and Cadila Healthcare (down 0.06%) declined. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 0.06%) and Cipla (up 0.59%) gained.

Dr Reddy's Laboratories gained 1.46% after the company announced the relaunch of its Esomeprazole Magnesium Delayed-Release Capsules, a therapeutic equivalent generic version of Nexium Delayed Release capsules in the US market. Nexium is a registered trademark of Astrazeneca AB Corporation. The re-launch is due to a change in the capsule color. The company made the announcement during market hours today, 30 December 2015.

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