Key benchmark indices slipped into the red after hovering near the flat line in positive terrain in mid-morning trade in a lackluster session of trade so far. Losses were small. At 11:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 5.10 points or 0.02% at 26,369.60. The Nifty 50 index was currently down 1.85 points or 0.02% at 8,102.50. Key indices witnessed a lackluster session today, 20 December 2016, amid mixed cues in Asian stocks and lack of economic triggers back home.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, turned negative from positive. On the BSE, 1214 shares fell and 944 shares rose. A total of 133 shares were unchanged.
The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently down 0.62%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently down 0.12%. The decline in both these indices was higher than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms.
Most capital goods stocks gained on renewed buying. Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) (up 0.37%), ABB India (up 0.05%), Bharat Electronics (up 0.66%), L&T (up 1.03%), and Siemens (up 1.02%) gained. Havells India (down 2.5%) and Thermax (down 0.9%) declined.
FMCG stocks were mixed. Nestle India (up 0.01%), Marico (up 0.76%), Jyothy Laboratories (up 0.71%), Dabur India (up 2.27%), GlaxoSmithkline Consumer Healthcare (up 0.24%), and Bajaj Corp (up 0.21%) gained. Tata Global Beverages (down 0.36%), Britannia Industries (down 0.14%), Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care (down 1.03%), Hindustan Unilever (HUL) (down 0.7%), Colgate Palmolive India (down 0.33%), and Godrej Consumer Products (down 0.01%) declined.
Wockhardt rose 1.46% after the company said that UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has confirmed the general compliance with the principles and guidelines of Good Manufacturing Practice of the company's manufacturing unit at L-1, Chikalthana, Aurangabad.
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In view of this, the approval status of the unit continues. Further, UK MHRA has considered the manufacturing unit suitable for risk based Inspection with reduced inspection frequency of 2 years from the existing inspection frequency of 1 year. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 19 December 2016.
HPL Electric & Power gained 1.84% after the company secured orders of over Rs 100 crore, including Rs 70 crore for Bhopal Smart City Lighting project and Rs 33 crore for energy meters from Southern Power Distribution. The announcement was made during market hours today, 20 December 2016.
Overseas, Asian stocks were mixed after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) kept monetary policy steady and offered a brighter view of the economy today, 20 December 2016.
The BOJ maintained the 0.1% interest it charges on a portion of excess reserves that financial institutions park with the central bank. It also left unchanged its 10-year government bond yield target of around zero percent. Japan's economy is projected to grow 1.5% in inflation-adjusted terms in the fiscal year starting in April, thanks to a gradual uptick in the global economy and a recent weakening of the yen against the dollar.
US stocks closed with modest gains yesterday, 19 December 2016, in low volume trade as traders bought some recently less-favored sectors, while some top postelection plays lagged. In economic news, the flash US Markit PMI services for December was 53.4, down slightly from 54.6 in November.
In her first speech after raising interest rates for only the second time this decade, Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen said the US has the strongest jobs market in nearly a decade, and there are indications wage growth is picking up. But Yellen also noted the economy is growing more slowly than in past recoveries and productivity growth has been disappointing. Yellen was speaking at a University of Baltimore commencement ceremony.
The Federal Reserve had raised rates for the second time in a decade last week and surprised by forecasting three rate hikes for 2017, more than the consensus two.
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