Key barometers trimmed losses after hitting fresh intraday low in mid-morning trade. At 11:22 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 41.13 points or 0.11% at 37,544.38. The Nifty 50 index was down 22.55 points or 0.20% at 11,355.20. Sentiment was fragile as US-China trade tensions took a renewed toll on investor appetite for risky assets.
Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was down 0.36%. The BSE Small-Cap index was down 0.46%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, turned negative from positive. On BSE, 931 shares rose and 1277 shares fell. A total of 157 shares were unchanged.
Cement shares declined. ACC (down 1.28%), UltraTech Cement (down 1.24%) and Ambuja Cements (down 0.78%), edged lower.
Grasim Industries was down 0.16%. Grasim has exposure to cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.
Most oil stocks declined. Among public sector oil marketing companies, Indian Oil Corporation (down 1.25%), BPCL (down 1.03%) and HPCL (down 0.29%), edged lower.
Among oil exploration and production firms, Reliance Industries (up 0.2%) and ONGC (up 0.73%), edged higher. Oil India was down 0.63%.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 72.51, compared with its close of 72.495 during the previous trading session.
In the global commodities markets, Brent for November 2018 settlement was down 49 cents at $77.56 a barrel. The contract had fallen 4 cents, or 0.05% to settle at $78.05 a barrel during the previous trading session.
Overseas, most Asia markets declined on Tuesday following an escalation in trade tensions between the United States and China. US stocks closed lower Monday, with the S&P 500 and the Dow snapping multi-day win streaks.
President Donald Trump will impose 10% tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports, and those duties will rise to 25% at the end of the year, according to a Monday announcement. The White House removed about 300 goods from a previously proposed list of affected products, including smart watches, some chemicals and other products such as bicycle helmets and high chairs. Beijing has already warned that it will retaliate against the measures.
The US has already levied tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese products. Beijing responded with measures targeting $50 billion on American goods, raising fears about damage to the US farm industry. Earlier this month, reports suggested that the US was seeking to restart trade talks with China.
Meanwhile in the US, the New York Fed's Empire State index fell 7 points to 19 in September.
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