F&O expiry: Sensex slips 143 pts, Nifty ends at 11,633; pharma stocks gain

All that happened in markets today

Fears of coronavirus turning into a pandemic owing to rapid spread of the deadly virus outside China unnerved market participants on Thursday, thus causing benchmark indices to end in the red for the fifth consecutive session. Further, expiry of futures & options (F&O) contracts for February series, too, added volatility to the stocks. 

The S&P BSE Sensex lost another 143 points or 0.36 per cent to settle at 39,746, with ONGC (down over 2.5 per cent) being the top loser and Sun Pharma (up over 3.5 per cent) the biggest gainer. Of 30 stocks in the index, 20 ended in the negative territory and rest 10 in the green. NSE's Nifty index ended at 11,633 levels, down 45 points or 0.39 per cent. 

Market breadth was tilted in favour of declines as out of 2,589 companies traded on the BSE, 1,578 declined and 849 advanced while 162 remained unchanged.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index fell 0.65 per cent to close the session at 15,072 while the S&P BSE SmallCap index lost 120 points or 0.83 per cent to close at 14,209.

Among sectoral indices, barring Pharma and FMCG, all the other indices ended in the red with media and PSU Bank stocks taking the biggest knock. Nifty PSU Bank index dropped over 2 per cent to 2,049 levels. Nifty Pharma index gained over half a per cent to 7,885 levels while Nifty FMCG ended at 29,981, up 0.05 per cent. 

GLOBAL MARKETS

Stocks sunk deeper into the red on Thursday, oil prices fell and US Treasuries rallied into record territory as more signs of the global spread of the coronavirus heightened fears of a pandemic. E-mini futures for the S&P 500 were down 1.4 per cent and Europe appears set for a catch-up slump. EuroSTOXX 50 futures fell 2.7 per cent and FTSE futures skidded 2.3 per cent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.5 per cent and is down more than 4 per cent for the week.

In commodities, oil, sensitive to global growth given the vast energy consumption in a many countries, fell more than 1 per cent to its cheapest in over a year.

(With inputs from Reuters) 

3:58 PM

MARKET COMMENT | Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

Domestic and global equity market got impacted by weak expiry of monthly F&O and selling in the global market due to the spread of new coronavirus cases in some parts of the world. Till last wee,  the market was of the view that coronavirus is going to have only a minimum impact on global economy as situation in China was being contained. But an increase in the number of new cases is changing the view and there are fears of some slowdown in the economy.

3:44 PM

SECTOR WATCH | Pharma and FMCG indices end in the green

3:43 PM

MARKET AT CLOSE | Top losers and gainers on the S&P BSE Sensex

3:35 PM

CLOSING BELL

The S&P BSE Sensex ended 143 points or 0.36 per cent lower at 39,746 while NSE's Nifty50 ended at 11,633, down 45 points or 0.39 per cent.

3:13 PM

BUZZING STOCK | Mishra Dhatu surges 20%

3:11 PM

IndusInd Bank hits fresh 3-year low after clarification on new CEO

Shares of IndusInd Bank have slipped 3 per cent to Rs 1,102 on the BSE on Thursday after the private sector said that the speculation around the name of Rajiv Sabharwal of Tata Capital as a contender for the bank’s top position is completely untrue. READ MORE 

3:00 PM

MARKET CHECK:: Sensex down 100 pts now

2:55 PM

BROKERAGE RADAR | HDFC Securities on Cipla

Cipla received warning letter at Goa plant from the US FDA. The plant was classified as OAI (Official action Indicated) in Jan 20, and as such we did not factor any product approvals in our estimates. As per the company, no limited launches are impacted and the guidance of one niche launch per quarter remains on track. Goa plant accounts for 2.5% of FY19 revenues (single sourced products) and ~6% of revenues (including products with alternate source). The resolution timeline remains uncertain and will be based on Cipla’s response to US FDA (mid March), completion of remediation activities and a successful re-inspection.

2:50 PM

BUZZING STOCK | Sumitomo Chemical jumps 9%

2:45 PM

NEWS ALERT | NLC India to pay Rs 7.06/sh as interim dividend: CNBC TV18

2:38 PM

India Ratings lowers domestic steel sector outlook for FY21 to negative

High iron ore premiums for new mine owners (both captive and merchant) could alter input costs for steel mills, it said.

 

The slowing economic activity as reflected in Ind-Ra’s GDP estimates of 5 per cent and 5.5 per cent for FY20 and FY21, respectively, would continue to affect demand growth in the sector and any significant pick-up is unlikely. READ MORE

2:19 PM

Shree Cement overtakes ACC to commission world's largest kiln in UAE

ACC said one of its lines in its Wadi II plant has the company’s largest kiln with a capacity of 12,500 tpd. Sources suggested that ACC's Wadi-II plant so long had held the distinction of being the largest cement kiln globally which now has been overtaken by Shree Cement, albeit in the UAE. READ MORE

2:07 PM

Index Contributors at this hour

2:04 PM

BSE500 stocks that hit 52-week low today

COMPANY	PRICE(rs)	52 WK LOW	CHG(%)
ALLAHABAD BANK	13.00	12.90	-4.06
ANDHRA BANK	14.70	14.50	-0.34
B H E L	32.65	32.10	-1.80
BALMER LAWRIE	104.55	102.65	-1.37
BANDHAN BANK	395.90	387.50	0.42

1:55 PM

Merger of public sector banks on schedule, says Nirmala Sitharaman

“There are no uncertainties about bank mergers. I am also conscious about the extra work related to core banking… I have asked bankers to do (it). But on merger, we are going as per the schedule. There are no uncertainties and I am on course. There needn’t be any speculation,” Sitharaman said during a press briefing on Wednesday. READ MORE