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Markets commence the week on a soft note

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SI Reporter Mumbai
Last Updated : Mar 05 2013 | 8:43 PM IST

The Indian markets started the week in the negative even though the key benchmark indices opened higher on the back of positive Asian cues.

However the markets could not sustain the upbeat mood and swung between positive and negative zone in afternoon trade. Finally at the close the Sensex settled in the red, closing down 34 points at 18,232 which is down 148 points from the day's high while the Nifty ended on a flat note at 5,473.On the other hand, the broader markets had a good start where the midcap index added 0.8% and the smallcap index had a 0.5% gain outperforming the Sensex which was down marginally, by 0.2%.

Earlier the day, the BSE Sensex firmed up by nearly 100 points in the early part of the session due to the gains in index heavyweight Reliance Industries, Infosys and Larsen & Toubro coupled with companies declaring their Q4 numbers today like ONGC, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Indian Oil Corporation, BPCL and National Aluminium Company moving higher in the morning trades. Thereafter, the markets caved into selling pressure induced by profit-booking following the gains starting on Thursday, thus swinging nearly 180 points through the day. Shanu Goel, Sr.Research Analyst, Bonanza Portfolio says, "Nifty is likely to consolidate within 5300-5550 range and the market sentiments are likely to be affected by the GDP announcement tomorrow".

Among the sectoral indices, Health Care and Consumer Durables lead the gains, up 2% each followed by Realty and Bankex which rose for the third straight day. On the other hand, Auto index closed in the negative losing 1.5% which was the major dragger through the day. Oil & Gas, Metal and FMCG are some other indices that closed in the negative.

Among the auto scrips, the draggers were Mahindra & Mahindra which reported their Q4 results today. Even though the company reported a 6.3% rise in quarterly net profit, driven by strong volume growth, the forecast was disappointing due to higher raw material costs which are sure to weigh on margins. Apollo Tyres down 2%, Tata Motors and Exide Industries which shed nearly 1% each were the other notable losers.

On the macro front, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to raise policy rates when it undertakes mid-quarter monetary policy review on 16 June as the food prices have shot up mid May. Also, the Government unveiling Q4 March GDP data tomorrow may provide some cues regarding the policy stance of the centralbank.The Reserve Bank in its annual credit policy had pegged the growth for the current fiscal at 8%, down from 8.6% recorded during 2010-11.Meanwhile, the annual monsoon rains have already hit Kerala two days earlier than expected thus raising hopes of a better harvest season easing food inflation.

The top gainers among the Sensex-30 stocks for the day were Cipla(Rs 329) up 3.5% followed by Reliance Communications (Rs 87), DLF (Rs 231), HDFC (Rs 668) which added between 1-2%.

Apart from the auto scrips the major losers were Hindalco (Rs 193), ONGC (Rs 278), Jindal Steel (Rs 635) and Tata Motors(Rs 1078) down 1-2% followed by Tata Steel (Rs 580), Hero Honda (Rs 1842) and ITC(Rs 187) which lost 0.7-0.8%.

The market breadth was positive. Of the total 2901 stocks traded on the BSE, 1629 stocks advanced while 1150 declined.

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First Published: May 30 2011 | 3:51 PM IST

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