Sensex, Nifty end marginally lower in volatile trade; metal stocks drag

Benchmark indices closed Monday's session with marginal cuts, dragged down by metal stocks, amid weak global cues and rise in oil price.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex settled 72 points, or 0.18 per cent, lower at 39,123, with ONGC, Tata Steel, Vedanta, Bajaj-Auto, and Tech Mahindra among the biggest losers.  The broader Nifty50 dipped 24 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 11,700. Market breadth remained in favour of declines with NSE advance decline ratio at 2:3.

Only two out of the 11 Nifty sectoral indices ended the day in the green, with Nifty Metal, down 1.3 per cent, and Nifty Realty, down 1 per cent, taking the deepest cuts.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap slipped 46 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 14,578, while the S&P BSE SmallCap index slipped 21 points, or 0.15 per cent, to 14,063.

BUZZING STOCKS

Piramal Enterprises rose 5 per cent to Rs 1,986 on the BSE in early morning trade after a Business Standard report said that Japanese conglomerate SoftBank was in final stages of talks with Piramal group to invest $1 billion. The stock ended the session 3 per cent higher at Rs 1,945.60. READ MORE

Shares of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals hit a 52-week low of Rs 467, down 7 per cent on the BSE in the early morning trade on Monday after the US health regulator USFDA cited deficiencies in the Drug Master File pertaining to one of the active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and in manufacturing facilities. The stock settled at Rs 460.60, down 7.92 per cent. READ MORE

Emami's stock price hit an over four-and-half year low of Rs 270, slipping 7 per cent on the BSE, after huge block deals before ending the day 7.6 per cent lower at Rs 267.30. READ MORE