Key benchmark indices continued to trade with weakness in afternoon trade. At 13:21 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 139.30 points or 0.42% at 32,730.42. The Nifty 50 index was down 45.80 points or 0.45% at 10,081.95. Auto stocks declined. IT stocks saw mixed trend. Today's slide was led by index heavyweights HDFC Bank and L&T. However, gains in Reliance Industries cushioned steep slide on the bourses.
Key indices were trading lower after hitting fresh intraday low in early trade. The Sensex hit a six-week low and the Nifty hit its lowest intraday level in almost 8 weeks in morning trade.
The Sensex fell 38.81 points, or 0.12% at the day's high of 32,830.91 at the onset of trading session. The index fell 187.20 points, or 0.57% at the day's low of 32,682.52 in early trade, its lowest level since 24 October 2017. The Nifty fell 8.55 points, or 0.08% at the day's high of 10,119.20 at the onset of trading session. The index fell 58.65 points, or 0.58% at the day's low of 10,069.10 in early trade, its lowest level since 12 October 2017.
Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was down 0.17%. The decline in this index was lower than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms. The BSE Small-Cap index was down 0.58%. The decline in this index was higher than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On BSE, 1,670 shares fell and 846 shares rose. A total of 135 shares were unchanged.
Auto stocks declined. Tata Motors (down 1.36%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 0.09%), Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) (down 0.37%), Eicher Motors (down 2.5%), Ashok Leyland (down 2.28%), Escorts (down 1.22%), Bajaj Auto (down 1.15%), Hero MotoCorp (down 2.33%) and TVS Motor Company (down 0.01%) edged lower.
IT stocks saw mixed trend. Wipro (down 1.97%), HCL Technologies (down 0.57%), Tech Mahindra (down 1.62%), MindTree (down 1.93%) and MphasiS (down 0.84%) declined. TCS (up 0.43%), Infosys (up 0.2%), Oracle Financial Services Software (up 0.81%) and Hexaware Technologies (up 2.87%) rose.
L&T Technology Services lost 1.34% to Rs 1,090, with the stock sliding on profit booking after recent rally. Shares of L&T Technology Services had rallied 21.14% in the preceding seven trading sessions to settle at Rs 1,104.80 yesterday, 4 December 2017, from its closing of Rs 912 on 23 November 2017.
On the macro front, data released today, 5 December 2017, showed that the Nikkei India services Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, dipped into negative territory in November. The seasonally adjusted business activity index stood at 48.5 in November, off from 51.7 in October. A reading above 50 indicates economic expansion, while a reading below 50 points toward contraction.
Overseas, most Asian shares were trading lower as technology shares mirrored a sell-off in US tech companies.
Activity in China's service sector expanded at a faster pace in November, a private gauge showed Tuesday, the latest indication of strength in the sector following official data released last week. The Caixin China services purchasing managers' index rose to 51.9 in November from 51.2 in October, Caixin Media Co. and research firm Markit said. A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity while a level below that points to a contraction.
In US, the Dow closed at a record as investors cheered the weekend passage of the Senate version of a sweeping overhaul of the US tax code. However, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq finished lower as large-capitalization technology stocks took a beating. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%. The S&P 500 shed 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 1.1%.
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