 "Nifty opens below 7,900; Sensex down nearly 100 points")
Markets have turned weak with Sensex set to snap the six day winning streak as investors book profits at higher and attractive levels. Also, disappointing global cues have further dampened sentiments.
At 14:35 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 86 points at 25,794 and the Nifty50 was down 24 points at 7,888.
Top five losers in the Sensex pack include HDFC, HUL, BHEL, Sun Pharma, ITC down between 1.4%-2.3%.
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(updated at 13:43 pm)
Benchmark indices continue to trade flat with Sensex and Nifty swinging between negative and positive zone.(updated at 13:43 pm)
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At 13:43 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 56 points at 25,824 and the Nifty50 was down 9 points at 7,903. Broader markets are outperforming the benchmark indices- BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up 0.2%-0.3%.
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Top gainers from the Sensex pack are NTPC, ONGC, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki and Bajaj Auto, all surging between 1.5%-2%.
On the losing side, HDFC, Asian Paints, HUL, Sun Pharma and BHEL are down 1%-2%.
Among other shares, Bharti Infratel has opened 2% higher at Rs 380 after declining 6% in past two trading sessions on the BSE after the company announced that shares buyback, dividend payment plan.
Dishman Pharmaceuticals & Chemicals was trading higher by 4% to Rs 356 on the BSE after the company fixed May 03, 2016 as the record date for entitlement of bonus shares to shareholders in the ratio of 1:1.
Shalimar Paints has soared 13% to Rs 158, also its 52-week high on the BSE, on back of heavy volumes. The trading volumes on the counter nearly doubled with a combined 694,767 shares changed hands on the BSE and NSE till 11:58 am.
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Updated at 10:30 am
Markets recovered from their early lows after gains in auto, oil and gas stocks helped offset most of the losses in select index heavyweights.
At 10:30am, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 13 points at 25,868 and the Nifty50 was down 7 points at 7,905.
In the broader market, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices were up 0.2% each. Market breadth improved with 1021 gainers and 843 losers on the BSE.
In the auto pack, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto and Maruti Suzuki were up 1%-2% each contributing the most to the Sensex gains.
Reliance Industries was trading firm ahead of its fourth quarter earnings later today. ONGC was up 1% while Cairn India was down 0.5% ahead of its fourth quarter earnings today.
Among other shares, TIL has turned volatile gaining more than 20% in intra-day trade after the company on Thursday said it plans to sell its profit-making Caterpillar dealership business — spread over India, Nepal and Singapore — to Goodearth Minetech Private Limited (GPML) of Delhi for a net consideration of Rs 350 crore.
Dishman Pharmaceuticals & Chemicals was trading higher by 4% to Rs 356 on the BSE after the company fixed May 03, 2016 as the record date for entitlement of bonus shares to shareholders in the ratio of 1:1.
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(Updated at 9:35am)
Markets opened marginally lower on Friday, amid weak global cues, with IT majors leading the decline.
At 9:35am, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 81 points at 25,799 and the Nifty50 was down 25 points at 7,887.
"Yesterday’s bearish bias is expected to linger on today, but volatility to emerge as the dominant theme, if prices were to push above 7924. Direct fall below 7885 could, on the other hand, give momentum to bearish swings, but may not lead to major falls," Geojit BNP Paribas said in a technical note.
Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank and Cairn India were trading flat ahead of their fourth quarter earnings later today.
In the broader market, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap were trading flat. Market breadth was neutral with 572 losers and 558 gainers on the BSE.
Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in equities worth Rs 805 crore on Thursday, as per provisional stock exchange data.
Tata Steel was the top Sensex gainer up 2% amid reports that Britain could take an equity stake of up to 25 per cent in the steel major's steel assets in the UK.
BHEL was down 1.7% amid profit taking after gains in the previous few sessions.
Among other shares, IndusInd Bank was up 1% after the private sector lender reported a 25% rise in net profit to Rs 620 crore in the January-March quarter; it was Rs 495 crore in the same quarter a year before. The rise was on the back of higher net interest and other income.
Steel companies were trading flat with positive bias after select steel companies have sought anti-dumping duties (ADDs) on cold rolled steel products. JSW Steel and Steel Authority of India were trading higher with positive bias. Vedanta and Hindalco are also trading firm amid reports that they have sought imposition of safeguard duty on import of unwrought aluminium. Investigations have begun on both.
On the global end, Asian equities are having a muted trading session tracking losses in the US equities after weak earnings from US. blue chip companies snapped the four day rally. Japan’s Nikkei, Singapore’s Straits Times and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng have dropped between 0.2%-1%. US Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 have lost over 0.5% each.
Meanwhile, oil prices also fell 3% on Thursday after scaling five-month high, pausing from a two-day rally as producers from Russia to Saudi Arabia and Iran to Libya hinted at more output, and on growing US crude stocks.
