 "Nifty hovers near 8,550; IT, FMCG shares crack")
Benchmark indices remain under pressure amid losses in information technology, select auto and index heavyweight shares while rebound in select banks and pharmaceuticals helped trim some of the losses.
At 12:57PM, the 30-share Sensex was down 224 points at 28,218 and the 50-share Nifty was down 59 points at 8,546.
Investors are also keeping an eye on the Parliament's second leg of the budget session that began today. Proceedings are being keenly watched for passage of key proposals, especially the Land Acquisition Bill.
"In the second session, the Land Bill, a constitutional amendment bill on a goods and services tax, the Black Money Bill and the Real Estate Regulator Bill, among others, are expected to be considered. With opposition parties taking a very hard stance, the Land Acquisition Bill is likely to face very stiff opposition in the Rajya Sabha, where the government does not have a majority. We expect the other bills to sail through," said Sonal Varma, Aman Mohunta and Neha Saraf of Nomura in a report.
On the macro-economic front, sustained drop in exports led to a widening in India's trade deficit in the month of March - highest in four months at $11.79 billion.
In the broader market, both the BSE Midcap index, down 0.8% and Smallcap index, down 1% have underperformed the front-liners. Market breadth in BSE is negative with 1,596 declines against 954 advances.
Buzzing Stocks
Nine out of the 12 sectoral indices of BSE are in red. BSE FMCG index down 1.8% is the top loser followed by BSE IT index, down 1.7%. BSE Consumer Durables index up 0.9% is the top gainer followed by BSE Healthcare index, up 0.7%.
Select bank shares are gaining in today’s session. SBI and HDFC Bank have gained around 0.4% each while ICICI Bank has gained nearly 2%. Tata Steel, up 2% and Sun Pharma, up 2.4% are other major gainers.
IT stocks remain under pressure following lower-than-expected revenue figures posted by TCS in the fourth quarter. Subdued also on account of caution ahead of quarterly results, Infosys and Wirpo have shed 2.6% and 0.9% each.
RIL has shed around 2.4%. According to media reports, RIL plans to restart its entire 1,400 retail fuel pump outlets in fiscal year ending March 2016. RIL has posted a record net income of Rs 6,381 crore in the March quarter, driven by robust refining margins.
ONGC has lost over 1%. According to media reports, ONGC has agreed to take over a part of abandoned assests of western offshore of Tapti gas field from its Joint Venture partners which includes Reliance Industries.
FMCG majors ITC and HUL have shed 1.6% and 2.6% each. Unseasonal rains that have damaged crops in parts of the country has further supressed rural demand leading to concerns over the extent to which the revenues of FMCG companies, among others, stand to get eroded.
NTPC is down 1.1%. NTPC has signed a MoU with the Odisha government for setting up of an ITI (Industrial Training Institute) at an investment of Rs 7.72 crore in Ganjam district.
BHEL is down 0.7%. BHEL has successfully commissioned a 250 MW coal-based thermal power plant in Gujarat, according to the company's release to BSE.
At 12:57PM, the 30-share Sensex was down 224 points at 28,218 and the 50-share Nifty was down 59 points at 8,546.
Investors are also keeping an eye on the Parliament's second leg of the budget session that began today. Proceedings are being keenly watched for passage of key proposals, especially the Land Acquisition Bill.
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During the first leg, which ended on 20 March, the government successfully passed the Coal Bill, the Mining Bill and the Insurance Bills; however, it was unable to pass the Land Acquisition Bill through the Rajya Sabha (upper house) and had to reintroduce the ordinance in early April.
"In the second session, the Land Bill, a constitutional amendment bill on a goods and services tax, the Black Money Bill and the Real Estate Regulator Bill, among others, are expected to be considered. With opposition parties taking a very hard stance, the Land Acquisition Bill is likely to face very stiff opposition in the Rajya Sabha, where the government does not have a majority. We expect the other bills to sail through," said Sonal Varma, Aman Mohunta and Neha Saraf of Nomura in a report.
On the macro-economic front, sustained drop in exports led to a widening in India's trade deficit in the month of March - highest in four months at $11.79 billion.
In the broader market, both the BSE Midcap index, down 0.8% and Smallcap index, down 1% have underperformed the front-liners. Market breadth in BSE is negative with 1,596 declines against 954 advances.
Buzzing Stocks
Nine out of the 12 sectoral indices of BSE are in red. BSE FMCG index down 1.8% is the top loser followed by BSE IT index, down 1.7%. BSE Consumer Durables index up 0.9% is the top gainer followed by BSE Healthcare index, up 0.7%.
Select bank shares are gaining in today’s session. SBI and HDFC Bank have gained around 0.4% each while ICICI Bank has gained nearly 2%. Tata Steel, up 2% and Sun Pharma, up 2.4% are other major gainers.
IT stocks remain under pressure following lower-than-expected revenue figures posted by TCS in the fourth quarter. Subdued also on account of caution ahead of quarterly results, Infosys and Wirpo have shed 2.6% and 0.9% each.
RIL has shed around 2.4%. According to media reports, RIL plans to restart its entire 1,400 retail fuel pump outlets in fiscal year ending March 2016. RIL has posted a record net income of Rs 6,381 crore in the March quarter, driven by robust refining margins.
ONGC has lost over 1%. According to media reports, ONGC has agreed to take over a part of abandoned assests of western offshore of Tapti gas field from its Joint Venture partners which includes Reliance Industries.
FMCG majors ITC and HUL have shed 1.6% and 2.6% each. Unseasonal rains that have damaged crops in parts of the country has further supressed rural demand leading to concerns over the extent to which the revenues of FMCG companies, among others, stand to get eroded.
NTPC is down 1.1%. NTPC has signed a MoU with the Odisha government for setting up of an ITI (Industrial Training Institute) at an investment of Rs 7.72 crore in Ganjam district.
BHEL is down 0.7%. BHEL has successfully commissioned a 250 MW coal-based thermal power plant in Gujarat, according to the company's release to BSE.