The domestic equity barometers ended with deep cuts on Wednesday. The Nifty settled above the 16,600 mark after hitting the day's low at 16,478.65 in early afternoon trade. Banks, financials and auto shares were under pressure. Metals and oil & gas stocks bucked the weak market trend.
The S&P BSE Sensex tumbled 778.38 points or 1.38% to 55,468.90. The Nifty 50 index lost 187.95 points or 1.12% to 16,605.95.
Sentiment was dented by negative Asian cues, India's disappointing Q3 GDP growth and soaring oil prices, led by escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories (down 5.14%), Asian Paints (down 4.53%), ICICI Bank (down 3.74%), HDFC (down 3.7%) and HDFC Bank (down 3.66%) were major drags.
In the broader market, the BSE Mid-Cap index slipped 0.17% and the BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.12%.
The market breadth was almost even. On the BSE, 1,692 shares rose and 1,652 shares fell. A total of 114 shares were unchanged.
More From This Section
Economy:
India's manufacturing sector saw an expansion in output and new orders in February as per the IHS Markit Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) which rose to 54.9 for the month of February 2022, from 54 in January 2022. A reading of 50 on the PMI indicates no change in activity levels.
India's GDP growth slowed down to 5.4% in October-December 2021 from 8.5% in the previous quarter, data released on February 28 by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed. The statistics ministry also said India's GDP will likely grow by 8.9% in FY22, down from its first advance estimate of 9.2%, released in early January 2022.
The gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue collected in the month of February 2022 is Rs 1,33,026 crore of which CGST is Rs 24,435 crore, SGST is Rs 30,779 crore, IGST is Rs 67,471crore (including Rs 33,837 crore collected on import of goods) and cess is Rs 10,340 crore (including Rs 638 crore collected on import of goods). The revenues for the month of February 2022 are 18% higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year and 26% higher than the GST revenues in February 2020.
Numbers to Watch:
The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.816% as compared with 6.770% at close in the previous trading session.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 75.77, compared with its close of 75.3350 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 5 April 2022 settlement fell 0.54% to Rs 51,537.
The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, rose 0.22% to 97.62.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2022 settlement rose $5.83 at $110.80 a barrel. The contract rose $7, or 7.15% to settle at $104.97 a barrel in the previous trading session. Sanctions on Russian banks following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine hampered trade finance for crude shipments and some traders opted to avoid Russian supplies in an already tight market.
Foreign Markets:
The Dow Jones index futures were up 155 points, indicating a strong opening in the US stocks today.
European shares rose across the board on Wednesday as commodity-linked stocks surged along with a jump in oil and metal prices as the Ukraine crisis fans fears about supply shortages.
Most Asian stocks declined as Russia continues its assault on Ukraine.
Investors are also gearing up to hear from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell in his semiannual hearing at House Committee on Financial Services, which begins on Wednesday. Investors will be watching closely for his comments on potential rate hikes, as market expectations for hikes this year has eased slightly since Russia's invasion.
February Auto sales:
Maruti Suzuki India slumped 6%. The car major said its total production rose 0.90% to 1,69,692 units in February 2022 compared with 1,68,180 units in February 2021. The company recorded total sales of 1,64,056 units in February 2022, down 0.25% as against 1,64,469 units sold in February 2021.
Tata Motors fell 1.44%. The company's sales in the domestic & international market for February 2022 stood at 77,733 vehicles as compared to 61,258 units during February 2021, recording a growth of 26.89%.
Ashok Leyland declined 0.76%. The Hinduja Group company's sales grew 7% to 14,657 units in February 2022 from 13,703 units sold in February 2021.
Eicher Motors slipped 2.94%. VE Commercial Vehicles (VECV), Eicher's unlisted subsidiary, sold 5,856 units of commercial vehicles in February 2022, registering a rise of 7.3% year on year from 5,457 units in February 2021.
Eicher Motors' total motorcycles (Royal Enfield) sales dropped 15% to 59,160 units in February 2022 as against 69,659 units sold in the same period last year.
Escorts added 0.88%. The company's total tractor sales declined by 45.6% YoY to 6,114 units in February 2022 from 11,230 units sold in February 2021.
Hero MotoCorp tumbled 4.29%. The two-wheeler major sold 3,58,254 units of motorcycles and scooters in February 2022, which is lower by 29.12% compared with 5,05,467 units sold in February 2021.
Bajaj Auto slumped 4.46%. The two-wheeler maker's total vehicle sales declined 16% to 3,16,020 units in February 2022 over February 2021.
TVS Motor Company fell 3.24%. The company's monthly sales stood at 2,81,714 units in February 2022 as against sales of 2,97,747 units in the month of February 2021, registering a sales de-growth of 5.38% Y-o-Y (year-on-year).
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) declined 1.85%. M&M's overall auto sales jumped 89% year on year in the month of February 2022 to 54,455 vehicles as compared to February 2021.
M&M's Farm Equipment Sector (FES) sold 20,437 tractors in February 2022, down by 27% compared with 28,146 tractors sold in February 2021.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Shares of dairy stocks gained after Amul and Prag Milk hike prices by Rs 2 a litre citing rising costs. Heritage Foods (up 2.72%), Dodla Dairy (up 3.18%), Hatsun Agro Products (up 2.07%) and Umang Dairies (up 1.45%) advanced.
Coal India jumped 9.61%. The state-run coal major's offtake stood at 57.4 million tonnes (MT) in February 2022, growing 12% as compared with 51.3 MT recorded in the same month last year. The company's coal production rose 3.9% to 64.3 million tonnes (MT) in February 2022 from 61.9 MT in February 2021.
NMDC jumped 5.59%. The PSU miner's iron ore production jumped 11.66% YoY to 4.31 MT in February 2022The company's iron ore sales aggregated to 3.97 MT in February 2022 as against 3.25 MT in February 2021, rising 22.15%.
Varun Beverages added 2.97% after the company announced that its board approved the proposal to enter into an agreement to manufacture 'Kurkure Puffcorn' for PepsiCo India Holdings.
Quint Digital Media hit an upper circuit limit of 20% at Rs 483.40 after the company said it will divest minority stake in its digital business news platform to Adani Media Ventures.
Panacea Biotec hit an upper circuit limit of 5% at Rs 198.50. The company and its wholly-owned subsidiary Panacea Biotec Pharma (PBPL) have entered into definitive agreements for sale of pharmaceutical formulations brands of PBPL for India and Nepal, to Mankind Pharma.
Brightcom Group hit a lower circuit limit of 5% at Rs 113.10. The company said the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) ordered a forensic audit of books of accounts of the company on 16 September 2021.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News