Markets pause record run, earnings cast a shadow

Stocks took a break after four back to back record-setting sessions as the benchmark Sensex today hit an all-time high, only to lose its way to end with a paltry loss.
The broader Nifty retreated after breaching the 9,900- mark for first time ever.
But on a weekly basis, both key indices Sensex and Nifty rose significantly by 660.12 points, or 2.10 per cent, and 220.55 points, or 2.28 per cent, respectively, mainly driven by the successful rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and CPI and WPI inflation staying soft, giving the RBI more headroom to snip policy rate at its policy meet next month.

This is the biggest weekly gain for the indices since mid-March.
The Sensex closed at 32,020.75, down 16.63 points, or 0.05 per cent. The index scaled 32,109.75 today to breach its previous all-time intra-day high of 32,091.52 hit yesterday.
The NSE Nifty index finished lower by 5.35 points, or 0.05 per cent, to close at 9,886.35. Intra-day, it went past the 9,900-mark to hit a fresh lifetime high of 9,913.30, crossing its previous record 9,897.25 yesterday.

The Nifty has rallied 225.90 points, or 2.33 per cent, in four straight days of gains.
Nervousness played on investors' minds following muted earnings by the country's largest software exporter TCS yesterday as they took profit in recent blue-chip gainers.

"The quarterly earnings growth may not match the current premium valuation due to a tepid start of the result season while investors giving more weight to the prevailing positive macros will help maintain a positive vibe in the market," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services Ltd.
Initial gains dried up following emergence of profit- booking at record levels.
Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 279.13 crore while foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold worth a net Rs 59.15 crore yesterday, provisional data showed.
Software services exporter Infosys fell 0.44 per cent even as the company today reported 1.3 per cent growth in consolidated net profit for the June quarter.

Tata Consultancy Services, the top software exporter, however, fell the most by 1.85 per cent after the company yesterday reported a 5.9 per cent decline in its net profit.
Wipro, Tata Motors, Coal India and Tata Steel were the big losers, declining by up to 1.97 per cent.
Globally, most Asian stocks ended higher and European shares were mixed in their early deals following another record closing in the US markets yesterday. Federal Reserve chief Janet Yellen had indicated a softer approach to raising US interest rates in her Congress testimony.
Back home, the BSE IT index suffered the most by falling 0.95 per cent, followed by technology, realty and capital goods.

The broader markets remained mixed.