Sensex down 100 points; Infy, Wipro dip over 1%

Markets continue to trade weak in the morning trades weighed by profit taking in Index heavyweights Infosys, HDFC twins and Pharma shares amid weak Asian cues.

 

At 10.12 AM, the 30-share Sensex is down 110 points at 26,981 and the 50-share Nifty has shed 41 points at 8,080.

 

In the broader markets, the BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap indices are outperforming the large counterparts and are up between 0.2-0.5%.

 

Market breadth is strong on the BSE with 1,253 advances and 917 declines.

 

Buzzing Stocks:

 

IT majors Infosys, Wipro and TCS are contributing nearly 50 points to the decline on the 30-share Sensex and are down between 0.5-1.5%.

 

Bharti Infratel has dipped over 4% to Rs 299 on National Stock Exchange on media reports that private equity fund Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Co. (KKR) is planning to sale its entire stake in telecom tower firm.

 

Suzlon Energy is locked in lower circuit for the second straight day, down 10% at Rs 18.35 on National Stock Exchange, after  fresh equity shares following the conversion of the company's foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) began to trade from Friday, September 19, 2014.

 

Hotel Leela Venture has dipped nearly 7% to Rs 22.05 in early morning deals on NSE on reports that the company  it has not been able to pay Rs 22.50 crore as the first installment for servicing a debt to state-owned life insurer LIC and is seeking more time for repayment.

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(updated at 9.40 AM)
Benchmark share indices have opened lower on Monday tracking weakness in Asian markets. However, markets are likely to remain volatile during the week ahead of the September F&O expiry on Thursday.

 

Meanwhile, investment trend by overseas investors, global cues, movement of rupee against the dollar and crude oil price would be keenly observed by the market participants.

 

Also, overseas investors sold Indian shares worth 653 million rupees on Friday

 

At 9.40 AM, the 30-share Sensex is down 127 points at 26,963 and the 50-share Nifty has shed 44 points at 8,077.

 

In the broader markets, the BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap indices are trading flat.

 

Market breadth is weak on the BSE with 423 advances and 494 declines.

Among Sensex stocks, Tata Motors, HUL, Sun Pharma, SBI, Coal India, Infosys, L&T, NTPC, M&M, Axis Bank, BHEL and ICICI Bank are down in early trades.

 

Global Markets:

 

Asian shares were trading lower on Monday as investors turned cautious ahead of key economic data from China. China's flash manufacturing PMI data is due for release on Tuesday. A reading below 50 would indicate signs of contraction in manufacturing.

 

Japanese shares witnessed profit taking and the benchmark Nikkei was down 0.8%. The Shanghai Composite was also down 0.8% while Hang Seng dropped 1.3%. Further, shares in Singapore were trading with marginal losses with the benchmark Straits Times down 0.2%.

 

US stocks ended mixed on Friday as gains in Alibaba following a strong debut were overshadowed by losses in tech shares such as Oracle and Yahoo. However,the Dow Jones ended tad higher to end the second straight session with gains.

 

The Dow Jones ended up 14 points at 17,279.74, the Nasdaq ended down 14 points at 4,579.79 and the broader S&P 500 ended down 1 point at 2,010.40.

Sectors & Stocks:

 

On the sectoral front, Healthcare index is the top loser down over 1% followed by IT, Power, Realty, Teck and Metal indices down bb etween 0.5-1%. Bankex has lost 0.7%. However, Bse Auto index is the trading flat with a positive bias.

 

In the capital goods segment, BHEL is down 2% and is the top loser of this hour. L&T has dipped 1%.

 

IT major Infosys which surged in the previous session after the company widened collaboration with Microsoft and Hitachi Data Systems has lost 1.5%. Wipro has dipped over 1% and TCS has declined 0.5%.

 

The power stocks are trading dim in the early trades. NTPC and Tata Power have lost over 1% on profit taking.

 

The metal stocks which surged recently after China's economic stimulus raised hopes of a boost in demand in the world's biggest consumer of metals are down today.  Sesa Sterlite, Tata Steel and Coal India have dipped between 0.5-1.5%.

 

Oil and Gas majors RIL and GAIL have declined between 0.5-1%.

Drug maker Sun Pahrma which surged recently after the company entered into a licensing agreement with Merck & Co Inc for investigational therapeutic antibody candidate, Tildrakizumab to be used for treatment of plaque psoriasis, a skin ailment has declined nearly 1.5% on profit taking. 

 

Cipla which surged in the previous session after it signed an agreement with American company Salix Pharmaceuticals, under which Cipla has granted Salix exclusive rights over certain patent applications in the 'Rifaximin Complexes' patents owned by Cipla is down 1.5%. Dr Reddy’s Lab has dipped 1.5%.

 

Axis Bank, HUL, SBI and ICICI Bank are some of the notable losers on the Sensex down nearly 1%.

 

On the flip side, some fresh buying is evident in the Auto space, Tata Motors, Hero Motocorp and Bajaj Auto have gained between 1-1.6%.

 

ONGC and Hindalco are some of the prominent names in green