Key benchmark indices further extended intraday losses and hit fresh intraday low in mid-morning trade as weakness in Asian stocks weighed on sentiment. At 11:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex fell 141.13 points or 0.45% at 31,485.50. The Nifty 50 index declined 44.30 points or 0.45% at 9,828.30. The Sensex and the Nifty, both, hit their lowest level in four weeks.
Market opened with small gains and soon slipped into the red and hovered near the flat line in morning trade. Stocks extended losses in mid-morning trade.
The Sensex gained 66.96 points or 0.21% at the day's high of 31,693.59 in early trade. The index dropped 170.98 points or 0.54% at the day's low of 31,455.65 in mid-morning trade, its lowest level since 29 August 2017. The Nifty gained 12.85 points or 0.13% at the day's high of 9,885.45 in early trade. The index fell 59.60 points or 0.6% at the day's low of 9,813 in mid-morning trade, its lowest level since 29 August 2017.
The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.21%. The decline in the index was lower than the Sensex's fall in percentage terms. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.09%, outperforming the Sensex.
The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1,165 shares rose and 1,004 shares fell. A total of 121 shares were unchanged.
Cement stocks were mixed. ACC (up 0.17%) and Ambuja Cements (up 0.06%) gained. Shree Cement (down 2.43%) and UltraTech Cement (down 1.28%) declined.
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Grasim Industries dropped 0.49%. Grasim has exposure to the cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.
Realty stocks rose on bargain hunting after recent losses. DLF (up 1.2%), D B Realty (up 1.27%), Indiabulls Real Estate (up 4.31%), Unitech (up 1.79%), NBCC (up 0.12%), Housing Development & Infrastructure (HDIL) (up 0.09%), and Oberoi Realty (up 0.04%) edged higher. Sobha (down 0.37%) and Godrej Properties (down 1.6%) declined.
Maruti Suzuki India dropped 0.71%. WagonR, India's popular car from Maruti Suzuki has scaled the unique feat of 20 lakh sales in cumulative wholesales. Launched in 1999, WagonR continues to feature among the top five best selling cars in the country for the last over 10 years. The announcement was made during market hours today, 26 September 2017. With this achievement, WagonR becomes the third model in the country to enter the iconic league of cars like Maruti 800 and Alto, to cross the two-million cumulative sales mark.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set up a economic advisory council, the government said yesterday, 25 September 2017, as concerns grow about a slowdown in Asia's third largest economy. The new council, headed by Bibek Debroy, a member of Modi's federal think tank Niti Aayog, will address issues of macroeconomic importance and present its views to the prime minister.
Overseas, most Asian stocks dropped taking cues from weak close in US stocks overnight hurt by fresh threats from North Korea and weakness among key technology stocks. On Wall Street, a sharp selloff in technology stocks dragged down the Nasdaq Composite index by around 1% yesterday, 25 September 2017, with North Korea's latest warnings to Washington adding to the downbeat mood. North Korea's foreign minister said President Donald Trump had declared war on the country and that it reserves the right to take countermeasures, including shooting down US bombers even if they are not in its airspace.
Meanwhile, Developing Asia is on track to grow faster this year and next, the Asian Development Bank said, buoyed by a pick-up in world trade and China's expansion, but it flagged risks from tightening US monetary policy. Developing Asia is expected to grow by 5.9% and 5.8% in 2017 and 2018, respectively, the Manila-based lender said. India's growth was seen at 7% and 7.4% for this year and next, weaker than the July forecasts of 7.4% and 7.6%.
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