Sensex snaps 3-day gaining streak to end 190 pts lower, Nifty at 9,912

All that happened in today's trade

The benchmark indices snapped three-session long gaining spree on Monday, in line with Asian markets, as North Korea’s latest nuclear test prompted investors to seek refuge in safe havens such as gold.

North Korea on Sunday conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test, which it said was of an advanced hydrogen bomb for a long-range missile, marking a dramatic escalation of the regime’s stand-off with the United States and its allies.

3:59 PM

Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services 

 

The North Korean impasse did curtail risk appetite, especially with markets looking for cues to further the uptrend. Markets will however take positive cues from the cabinet reshuffle done over the weekend. It holds the potential for economic reforms reaching ground level, with less than two years before general elections.

3:42 PM

Sectoral trend

All but two sectors settled trade in red.  

Source: NSE

3:39 PM

Sensex heatmap at close

Source: BSE

3:37 PM

Broader markets

 

The BSE Midcap and the BSE Smallcap indice shed 0.7% each. 

3:36 PM

Markets at close

The Sensex was trading at 31,702, down 190 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,912, down 61 points. 

3:26 PM

Nifty regains some lost ground, trades above 9,900

Top five Nifty losers 

Source: NSE

3:24 PM

Oil prices fall

 

Benchmark global oil prices fell on Monday after a powerful North Korean nuclear test triggered a shift away from crude markets to assets perceived to be safer, such as gold.

 

Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were down 68 cents, or 1.3% at $52.07 a barrel.

3:19 PM

Asian markets

 

Sunday’s test, and reports from Seoul that Pyongyang was making preparations for another missile launch, sparked another warning from Washington and drove South Korea’s stock market more than 1% lower. Japan’s Nikkei lost almost 1%. 

 

Driven by the Korean losses, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.75%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was down 0.7%, while China's Shanghai Composite bucked the trend to gain 0.3% at close. 

3:15 PM

Europe trades lower

 

European markets were trading lower as North Korea's latest nuclear test prompted investors to rush to safe-haven assets. The pan-European STOXX 600 index and euro zone blue chips both fell more than 0.5% on opening before recovering some poise, while the UK’s FTSE slipped 0.2%. 

3:12 PM

Commodities enter super boom cycle

 

Global commodity markets, especially for resource commodities, have entered a super boom cycle, with no signs of breaks anytime soon. This means that Indian industries would have to bear with high raw material prices; users should prepare to pay more even as, in some cases, the impact is felt with some lag. READ FULL REPORT

 

3:08 PM

Volatility index 

 

India VIX snapped three-session long losing streak to clock its biggest yearly gain. The index added over 13% to 13.9550.  

Source: NSE

3:04 PM

Markets check

At 3:00 pm, the Sensex was trading at 31,689, down 203 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,905, down 69 points. 

2:49 PM

SC stays Jaypee insolvency proceedings

 

The Supreme Court has stayed the National Company Law Tribunal's (NCLT's) order initiating insolvency proceedings against Noida-based Jaypee Infratech. The decision comes as a relief to over 30,000 homebuyers whose position became ambiguous after the August 9 NCLT order as their status was unclear under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy code. READ MORE

2:29 PM

Gold jumps to 10-month high 

 

Gold prices hit their highest in nearly 10 months on Monday after North Korea's latest and most powerful nuclear test drove investors towards safe-haven assets. CLICK HERE FOR FULL REPORT

1:53 PM

Buzzing stock

 

Infosys promoters, including iconic co-founders N R Narayana Murthy and Nandan Nilekani, have offered to sell as many as 1.77 crore shares -- worth up to Rs 2,038 crore -- in the company's Rs 13,000 crore buyback offer. 

 

The stock slipped nearly 3% to Rs 893 in intraday trade.