Key equity benchmarks ended with modest losses on Wednesday. The S&P BSE Sensex, slipped 171.43 points or 0.45% at 38,193.92. The Nifty 50 index lost 39.35 points or 0.35% at 11,278.
In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.28% and the BSE Small-Cap index lost 0.94%.
Sellers outpaced buyers. On the BSE, 823 shares rose and 1867 shares fell. A total of 144 shares were unchanged.
Investors turned cautious after External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar was quoted by the media as saying that the current India-China border situation was "very serious". In a fresh sign of escalation, India and China reportedly accused each other of firing into the air on the border of western Himalayas.
The overnight selloff on Wall Street exacerbated the selling in domestic shares. Growing Sino-US tensions have contributed, to some extent, to the recent fall witnessed in the US markets. As per reports, US President Donald Trump launched a fresh broadside against China, promising a "decoupling" of the US economy from the Chinese one if he is re-elected in November.
COVID-19 Update:
Also Read
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 2,75,79,437 with 8,97,614 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. India reported 8,97,394 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 73,890 deaths while 33,98,844 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Numbers to Watch:
The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper fell to 5.985% as compared with 6.056% at close in the previous trading session.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 73.55, compared with its close of 73.60 during the previous trading session.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for November 2020 settlement rose 52 cents at $40.30 a barrel. The contract fell 6.75% or $2.88 to settle at 39.78 in the previous trading sessions on Tuesday.
Foreign Markets:
The Dow Jones Futures 30 were trading 153 points higher, indicating a strong start in US market today.
European stocks advanced while Asian stocks ended lower on Wednesday. Chinese inflation data for August released Wednesday showed the producer price index declined 2% in August from a year earlier, according to China's National Bureau of Statistics. The consumer price index in August rose 2.4% as compared with a year ago.
US stocks closed lower for a third straight session on Tuesday as heavyweight technology names extended their sell-off. Among U.S. technology names, electric-car maker Tesla plunged 21.1% to suffer its biggest daily percentage drop after it was excluded from a group of companies being added to the S&P 500.
Apple dropped 6.7% to lead tech lower. Facebook and Amazon were both down more than 4%. Microsoft fell 6.7%. Netflix closed 1.8% lower and Alphabet lost 3.6%. Zoom Video fell by 5.1%.
Buzzing Domestic Segment:
The Nifty Pharma index rose 1.90% to 11,304.10 on value buying. The index declined 3.64% in the past three sessions.
Ipca Laboratories, Cipla, Lupin, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, Aurobindo Pharma, Divi's Laboratories and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries rose by 1.4% to 4.75%.
AstraZeneca Pharma India declined 3.34% after the UK-based parent AstraZeneca PLC voluntarily paused a randomized clinical trial of its coronavirus vaccine after a volunteer developed an unexplained illness. AstraZeneca PLC, which is developing the drug alongside the University of Oxford, is a frontrunner in the global race for a COVID-19 vaccine. As of 30 June 2020, UK-based AstraZeneca Pharma holds 75% stake in AstraZeneca Pharma India.
Cadila Healthcare rose 1.81%. The drug major received tentative approval from the US drug regulator to market Empagliflozin and Linagliptin tablets in the strengths of 10 mg/5 mg and 25 mg/5 mg. This medication contains a combination of Empagliflozin and Linagliptin. The drug is used together with diet and exercise to improve blood sugar control in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories rose 1.87%. The drug major on Wednesday (9 September) announced the launch of Remdesivir, under a brand name Redyx in India. Further, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories also announced the launch of over-the-counter Diclofenac Sodium Topical Gel 1%, the store brand version of Voltaren Arthritis Pain in the US market. The solution is used for the temporary relief of arthritis pain in upper and lower body areas.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Reliance Industries (RIL) gained 2.57% to Rs 2161.25 after the company said Silver Lake will invest Rs 7,500 crore in Reliance Retail Ventures (RRVL) at an equity value of Rs 4.21 lakh crore. Silver Lake's investment will translate into a 1.75% equity stake in RRVL on a fully diluted basis. RRVL operates a retail business serving close to 640 million footfalls across its approximately 12,000 stores nationwide.
HDFC Asset Management Company fell 2.16% while Nippon Life India Asset Management slipped 1.30%.
According to data from Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI), August marked the fifth straight month of fall in inflows in the equity mutual funds. Net outflows from equity mutual funds stood at Rs 3,999.62 crore, compared to outflows of Rs 2,480.35 crore in July. Almost all the equity fund mutual fund categories saw redemptions. Equity mutual funds saw a total inflow of Rs 14,558.20 crore and outflow of Rs 18,557.82 crore. While the debt mutual fund schemes witnessed net outflow of Rs 3,907.53 crore, hybrid funds saw net ouflows of Rs 4,819.45 crore in August 2020.
JSW Steel rose 2.01% after the company said that its crude steel production rose 5% to 13.17 lakh tonnes in August 2020 from 12.53 lakh tonnes in August 2019. Sequentially, the crude steel production increased 6% in August from 12.46 lakh tonnes in July 2020.
While the company's production of flat rolled products jumped 15% to 9.80 lakh tonnes, the production of long rolled products declined by 20% to 2.32 lakh tonnes in August 2020 over August 2019. "The average capacity utilisation during the month of August 2020 was 88%, the steel maker said.
Spencers Retail rose 2.03%. On a consolidated basis, the company reported a net loss stood at Rs 54.63 crore in Q1 June 2020 as compared with net loss of Rs 2.46 crore in Q1 June 2019. Net sales slipped 8.9% to Rs 547.07 crore in Q1 FY21 over Rs 600.76 crore in Q1 FY20. The gross margin for the quarter stood at Rs 112 crore. The EBITDA loss was at Rs 4 crore.
Natures Basket reported standalone turnover of Rs 108 crore and gross margin of 26.2% for the quarter ended 30 June 2020. Shashwat Goenka, the sector head of Spencer's Retail, has said: "I am delighted to share that Natures Basket has reported positive EBITDA within 1 year of acquisition due to successful integration efforts and has witnessed significant growth despite the challenging conditions by winning the trust of customers."
IRCTC fell 2.09%. As per media reports, the government is planning to sell 15-20% of its stake in the company via offer for sale (OFS). The Department of Disinvestment has invited bids for the appointment of merchant bankers and selling brokers, as per a news report.
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