Markets fall after flat start; US data eyed

Broader markets gains nearly 0.5%, bucking the benchmark indices trend

Market dropped after opening on a flat note this Wednesday on back of selling pressure witnessed in fast moving consumer goods and consumer durable stocks.

At 9:35AM, the Bombay Stock Exchange's 30-share index Sensex fell 58 points at 18,932.81 while the National Stock Exchange's 50-share Nifty dropped 15 points at 5,733.

Global risk appetite remained cautious as investors awaited US ADP due later this session, followed by Thursday's latest weekly jobless claims. Meanwhile, Bank of Japan’s two-day policy meeting that started today will also gain limelight for any cues on stimulus.

Asian shares were mixed with Japan's Nikkei rose 2% to 12,239.63, China’s Shanghai Composite gained 0.1% to 2,213 while Strait Times gained 0.4% to 3,321 today.

Overnight, the S&P 500 closed at another record high, though it fell short of breaking above its all-time intraday high of 1,576.09. The Dow also ended at another record high after the U.S. government dropped plans to cut payments for private Medicare Advantage while factory orders data confirmed the economy is steadily improving.

Back home, the key sectoral gainers were power, real-estate, healthcare sectors gained while  FMCG, oil & gas and consumer durables sectors dropped on BSE.

The gainers on the Sensex were Tata Power, Cipla and BHEL up between 1-4% while laggards included counters such as Bharti Airtel dropping 2%, HUL fell 1.4%, ONGC was down 1% on BSE.

The broader markets were up with mid-caps and small-caps gaining 0.2-0.4% on BSE.

The market breadth was strong. Out of 1310 stocks traded, 813 stocks gained compared to 441 declined advances on BSE.