Sensex, Nifty hit day's low; breadth negative

After a weak start, the key equity indices declined further and hit the day's low in morning trade. Autos, IT and PSU banks were under pressure. The Nifty slipped below the 14,900 mark. Rising treasury yields and the possibility of another lockdown in Maharashtra weighed on the investors sentiment.

At 10:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 361.46 points or 0.71% to 50,528.30. The Nifty 50 index lost 107.80 points or 0.72% to 14,873.95.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.27% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.22%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1065 shares rose and 1431 shares fell. A total of 168 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 111,343,040 with 2,465,882 deaths. India reported 150,055 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 156,385 deaths while 106,67,741 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Amid a spurt in Covid-19 cases, Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday held a televised conference to address the Covid-19 situation in the state. "If the (COVID-19) situation deteriorates, then we have to impose lockdown. Those who want lockdown can roam around without mask while those who don't want it must wear mask and follow all the rules," he said.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Auto index fell 1.05% to 10,429.30. The index has declined 5% in three sessions while the benchmark Nifty 50 index has shed 2.1% during the same period.

TVS Motor Company (down 2.92%), Bharat Forge (down 2.84%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 1.98%), Maruti Suzuki (down 1.68%), Eicher Motors (down 1.54%), Bajaj Auto (down 1.18%), Tata Motors (down 0.98%) and Hero MotoCorp (down 0.95%) declined while Ashok Leyland (up 0.36%) bucked the trend.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone rose 0.69% to Rs 657 after the company said that it had incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary company Aqua Desilting and it would carry out the business of dredging / desiltation and sale / disposal of such desilted material from sea, river, dams, other water bodies etc.

Jagran Prakashan soared 12.79% to Rs 55.10 after the company said its board will consider a share buyback on 2 March 2021.

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