After opening in the red, the markets continue to trade on a weak note in the morning deals. The Sensex has shed 96 points to 17,442 and the 50-share Nifty is down 30 points at 5,296 levels.
Most of the sectors are facing the heat of the selling pressure. The metal stocks are amongst the worst hit. The BSE metal index is the top sectoral loser, down 1.5% or 163 points at 10,959. realty, IT, power, capital goods, consumer durables, oil & gas, PSU and bankex indices are also trading weaker by 0.6-1.4% each. On the other hand, FMCG and auto indices are trading on a flat note.
Among the individual stocks, India Cements is trading higher by 2.5% at Rs 88.25 after the promoters of the company acquired over 2% stake through an open market transaction from the foreign investor, ASPDIN Limited. The deal is valued at Rs 65 crore.
Marico Limited is trading higher by almost 3% at Rs 188, also its lifetime high, after the company said that the foreign investor - First State Investment Management - has acquired almost two million shares via an open market deal.
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(Updated at 9.20 AM)
Markets have opened on a flat note tracking the developments in the global markets. The Sensex has advanced 7 points to open at 17,546 and the 50-share Nifty has opened at 5,325, down 3 points.
Post the market hours yesterday, China cut its benchmark lending rates by 31 basis points to 6 per cent. On the other hand, the quarter-point cut in the ECB's main refinancing rate to 0.75 per cent, was in-line with market expectations.
Overnight, the US stocks edged down on Thursday as economic stimulus measures by major central banks failed to excite investors before a US jobs report expected to show tepid growth. The Dow Jones ended lower by 47 points, or 0.36%, at 12,897 and the S&P 500 Index was down 6 points, or 0.47%, at 1,367.
Asian markets are trading on a lacklustre note, pressured by overnight fall in the global shares as sentiment remained cautious despite new stimulus steps taken by three major central banks, with focus now pinned to the US jobs data due later in the day. Shaghai Composite, Nikkei and Hang Seng are trading lower by 0.3-0.5% each.
Back home, Jindal Steel is the top loser among the Sensex stocks. The stock has opened lower by 2.3% at Rs 459. Wipro, Maruti Suzuki, Sterlite Industries, ONGC, Infosys, Sun Pharma, Tata Power, ICICI Bank, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, TCS and Hindalco have also opened lower by 0.4-1% each.
On the other hand, Coal India, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, HDFC, Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Hero MotoCorp and ITC are among the notable gainers in the opening deals.
IT, metal and power stocks are the worst hit in the opening deals. The BSE IT index is the top sectoral loser, down 0.6% or 38 points at 5,662. Metal, teck, power, oil & gas, bankex, capital goods, realty and healthcare indices have also opened marginally lower in trades today. At the same time, consumer durables, FMCG, auto and PSU indices have opened on a flat note.
The broader markets have opened on a flat note The BSE mid-cap index is up 0.2% or 10 points at 6,359 and the small-cap index has opened higher by 25 points at 6,861.
The overall breadth is positive as 800 stocks are advancing while 530 are declining.
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