Sensex down nearly 200 points; M&M and RIL dip 1.6%

Markets continue to trade weak on heavy selling by fund and retail investors. Index heavy weights Infosys, ITC and RIL are contributing nearly 100 points to the decline on the 30-share Index.  

 

At 2.30 PM, the 30-share Sensex is down 180 points at 27,085 and the 50-share Nifty has shed 51 points at 8,102.

 

The broader markets are outperforming the large counter parts, the BSE Mid-cap index is up 0.2% and Small-cap index is up 0.6%.

 

Market breadth is strong with 1,648 advances and 1,228 declines on the BSE.

 

Asian Markets:

 

Asian shares are trading lower barring Japan’s Nikkei on concerns tha the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates earlier than expected. Nikkei ended up 0.2% while Hang Seng lost 2%. Shanghai Composite is  down 0.4% and Straits Times is trading with marginal losses.

 

Rupee:

 

The Indian rupee is trading lower at Rs 61 against the US dollar compared to the previous close of Rs 60.60. The rupee weakened to its lowest in nearly a month on Wednesday tracking falls in emerging markets due to worries the US Federal Reserve would raise interest rates earlier than expected, although exporters' dollar sales capped broader falls.

 

Maenwhile, Overseas investors bought Indian shares worth 4.79 billion rupees ($79 million) on Tuesday, exchange data shows.

 

Sectors & Stocks:

 

On the sectoral front, Oil & Gas index is the biggest loser down nearly 1.5% followed by FMCG, Capital Goods, IT and Consumer Durables indices. Bankex is down 0.6%. However, Realty index is trading in the positive territory up 0.7%.

 

Shares of IT majors are trading down on profit taking while Tuesday's losses in technology shares on the Nasdaq also dampened sentiment. IT major Infosys is the biggest loser of this hour and has lost 1.8%. Following the tandem TC and Wipro have lost 0.6% each.

 

Oil and Gas stocks which gained in the recent trading sessions on decline in crude oil prices are trading lower today. RIL is down 1.6% and ONGC has dipped nearly 1%.

 

Cigarette maker ITC has lost 1.6% on media reports that the government may ban the sale of loose cigarettes among other measures. HUL is trading with marginal losses.

 

Among the Auto shares, Hero Motocorp, M&M and Tata Motors are trading lower between 0.5-2%. Maruti Suzuki is down 0.2%. 

 

Shares of SUV maker M&M are under pressure today after Kotak Institutional Equities downgraded the stock.

 

In the financial segment, SBI, HDFC twins and Axis Bank are trading lower between 1-1.7%. However, ICICI Bank is up 1% after the board announced stock split of equity share of face value Rs 10 each into five equity shares of face value Rs 2 each.

 

Shares of Coal India are trading lower by 1.5%. Centre wants Coal India to take over active mines if all blocks are cancelled or firms be allowed to continue production until these are re-auctioned.

 

In the Capital Goods space, L&T and BHEL have dipped 1.7% and 1% in the noon trades.

 

On the flip side, power and metal shares which were trading lower in the previous trading session have rebounded today. The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its final order on whether 218 illegal coal block allocations should be de allocated. Tata Power, Sesa Sterlite, Hindalco and Tata Steel have gained between 0.1-5%.

 

Bharti Airtel, Baja Auto, Cipla and GAIL are some of the prominent names in green.

 

Among other shares, shares of Biocon are up nearly 2% at Rs 511 after the company said it plans to acquire GE Capital's stake in its research arm Syngene.

 

Shares of Lanco Infratech are up nearly 6% at Rs 8.60 on reports that the company plans to sell some of its power assets with a view to reduce its debt burden.