Markets end down on weak global cues

Markets ended over 1% down on Monday, amid weak global cues, on selling pressure in index heavyweight Reliance Industries along with bank and software shares.

The 30-share Sensex provisionally ended down 203 points or 1.2% at 17,263 and the 50-share Nifty provisionally ended down 64 points or 1.2 % at 5,254.

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(Updated at 14:21 hrs)

Benchmark share indices were over 1% down in late noon trade, amid weak European cues, on the back of selling pressure in index heavyweight Reliance Industries along with banking and software shares.

The 30-share Sensex was down 191 points or 1.1% at 17,275 and the Nifty dropped 65 points or 1.2% to 5,253.

In the global markets, key European share indices such as the CAC-40, DAX and FTSE-100 were down 0.2%-0.6% each.
Asian markets were trading mixed. The Nikkei and Shanghai Composite were marginally up while the Hang Seng was down nearly 1%.

Among Sensex shares, index heavyweight Reliance Industries was down 2.6% on concerns of falling natural gas output from its KG-D6 field.

Software majors witnessed selling pressure with analysts citing rising worries about softer-than-expected fiscal Q4 earnings and uncertainty about corporate IT budgets in the year starting April. TCS is the top Sensex loser, down over 4% at Rs 1,118 while Infosys was down 1.4% at Rs 2,826.

In the banking segment, ICICI Bank, SBI, HDFC Bank and HDFC were all down over 1.5% each after hopes of rate cut by the central bank remaind elusive.

Capital goods shares were also among the top losers with majors such as BHEL and L&T down 4% and 2%, respectively.

However, FMCG majors continue to witness buying with ITC being the top Sensex gainer after the hike in excise on cigarettes was on expected lines. Hindustan Unilever was also up 0.7%.

Among other shares, Parekh Aluminex was up 5% at Rs 322 on announcing acquisition of a USA based company American Foils Inc, which would strengthen the presence of the company in US continent. However, no financial details of the acquisition were provided.

The broader markets are trading with a negative bias. The BSE mid-cap index is down 1.3% and the small-cap index was down 1.2%.

The overall breadth is negative as 1,856 stocks are declining while 857 are advancing.