MARKET WRAP: Indices end near day's low, Sensex down 181 pts; BPCL dips 3%

All that happened in the markets today.

Domestic markets, which remained subdued for better part of the day on the back of weak investment sentiment in a holiday-truncated week, witnessed sharp fall in the last trading hour on Tuesday. The steep fall followed reports that the government might miss its divestment target for fiscal year 2019-20. 

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex declined 181.4 points, or 0.44 per cent, to close at 41,461.26 level, dragged by heavyweights like Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, TCS, and Larsen and Toubro. At close, Indusnd Bank, ONGC, and PowerGrid closed as top gainers, while HCL Tech, RIL, and HDFC Bank were the top losers. The Sensex slipped 219 points in the intra-day trade today to hit a low of 41,423.07.

On the NSE, the Nifty50 ended at 12,213.40-mark, down 49.35 points or 0.40 per cent

Shares of state-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) tanked up to 4.2 per cent to Rs 471.75 on the BSE in the intra-day deals after media reports said that the government was wary of fixing a timeline for the proposed divestment as it belived the "investors needed at least six to eight weeks to do the due diligence of Expression of Interest (EoI)". The BSE PSU index was 0.12 per cent lower at close, with Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), BPCL, HPCL, Concor, and GAIL settling in the red.

The broader market, however, settled near the flatline. The S&P BSE mid-cap index closed 0.07 per cent lower at 14,812.70, while the S&P BSE small-cap index ended at 13,382.97-mark up 0.01 per cent.

GLOBAL CUES

Asian shares edged lower and US stock futures darted in and out of losses on Tuesday, as the holiday lull offset optimism that a U.S.-China trade deal will boost exports and corporate earnings.

While MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan, and South Korean shares fell 0.14 per cent and 0.54 per cent, respectively, Japan’s Nikkei and Australian shares nudged 0.04 per cent and 0.13 per cent higher.

MARKET HOLIDAY

Domestic markets will remain shut on Wednesday on account of Christmas.

(With inputs from Reuters)

3:55 PM

Market Closing Comment :: Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services

Lack of fresh triggers seems to have held markets to trade flat. We may see lacklustre trading sessions due to holiday mood and December month F&O expiry due this week. Investors to stay focused on budget as hopes are alive that government will consider options to push consumption and investments

3:55 PM

Market Closing Comment :: Gaurav Bissa, AVP Derivatives & Technicals at LKP Securities.

Index closed a day at 12,212-mark, down 51 points, after a choppy day on Tuesday and formed a bearish candle on daily chart. Overall, index has formed a narrow range of 100 points (12,200-12,300)and it is trading in the same since 4-5 sessions hinting we may not see a clear trend unless index will give either side breakout. We expect December series can see expiry in between the same range of 12,200-12,300 zone.

3:44 PM

Sectoral trends at NSE at close

3:43 PM

Sensex heatmap at close

3:43 PM

Closing Bell

>> The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex declined 181.4 points, or 0.44 per cent, to close at 41,461.26 level, dragged by heavyweights like Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, TCS, and Larsen and Toubro.

>> On the NSE, the Nifty50 ended at 12,213.40-mark, down 49.35 points or 0.40 per cent

3:26 PM

NEWS ALERT | Cabinet approves IBC Amendment Ordinance: CNBC TV18

3:09 PM

NEWS ALERT | THDC, NEEPCO acquisition to be complete this fiscal: sources to CNBC TV18

>> FY20 divestment target 'ambitious' 

3:06 PM

NEWS ALERT | Govt stake sale in BPCL can't be tied to a date: sources to CNBC TV18

>> Investors need minimum 6-8 weeks for due diligence 

>> Selected bidder will have to make a open offer

3:06 PM

NEWS ALERT | Govt stake sale in BPCL can't be tied to a date: sources to CNBC TV18

>> Investors need minimum 6-8 weeks for due diligence 

>> Selected bidder will have to make a open offer

2:47 PM

Contribution to S&P BSE Sensex's loss today

2:38 PM

NEWS ALERT | Heineken mulls an open offer to raise stake in United Breweries: sources to CNBC TV18

>> Heineken could launch open offer for 10-15% stake

>> Cos seeks to strengthen control by holding over 51%

>> Heineken already largest shareholder with 46.7% stake

>> Heineken may look at higher Board position post offer 

>> Vijay Mallya, other promoters hold 11% stake

2:37 PM

Heatmap: S&P BSE Sensex

2:36 PM

MARKET UPDATE:: Sensex falls 100 pts

2:32 PM

Asian Markets check

Asian shares and U.S. stock futures darted in and out of losses on Tuesday, as the holiday lull offset optimism that a U.S.-China trade deal will boost exports and corporate earnings. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.01 per cent. Australian shares were unchanged, while Japan’s Nikkei stock index edged 0.02 per cent lower.

2:19 PM

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