Key equity benchmarks continued trading lower in the afternoon trade. At 13:37 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 320.71 points or 0.86% at 37,131.13. The Nifty 50 index was down 83.35 points or 0.75% at 10,959.90.
The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was down 0.75%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.92%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, shares 647 rose and 1,448 shares fell. A total of 130 shares were unchanged.
Bharti Infratel (up 2.59%), Vedanta (up 2.49%), JSW Steel (up 2.07%), Eicher Motors (up 1.87%), and ONGC (up 0.78%) advanced.
Yes Bank (down 4.87%), State Bank of India (down 2.81%), HDFC (down 2.42%) and ICICI Bank (down 2.40%) and Mahindra & Mahindra (down 2.40%) declined.
Nestle India rose 1.72%. Indiabulls Housing Finance lost 4.89%. Nestle India will replace Indiabulls Housing Finance in the Nifty 50 index from 27 September 2019.
More From This Section
Lakshmi Vilas Bank was locked in at 5% lower-circuit to Rs 38.75 after Parthasarathi Mukherjee, managing director & CEO, resigned from office citing personal reasons with effect from 31 August 2019.
Piramal Enterprises was down 1.69%. The firm said it deferred the issue of privately placed non-convertible debentures (NCDs) aggregating up to Rs 3,000 crore to a future date. Previously, the company had decided to issue NCDs on 23 August 2019.
Pharmaceutical and biotechnology major Wockhardt declined 2.58% after India Ratings downgraded the rating on company's bank facilities, citing refinancing risks, risk in R&D expenses and regulatory overhang. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 242.50 in intraday today.
Coal India advanced 1.48% to Rs 187.95 after the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) under automatic route for sale of coal, for coal mining activities including associated processing infrastructure with an aim to attract international players to create an efficient and competitive coal market.
Hero MotoCorp fell 0.01%. The company announced that it has extended title sponsorship of Caribbean Premier League for three years. Combining broadcast and digital viewership over 200 million fans watched the 2018 season of Caribbean Premier League.
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries rose 4.05% to Rs 429.45 after the media reported that the market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), cleared the drug major of charges of irregularities emerged. According to media reports, a preliminary enquiry by the SEBI has found no merit in allegation of violation of securities laws, leveled by a whistleblower, against pharmaceutical major Sun Pharmaceutical Industries.
The enquiry followed allegations made by a whistleblower in a 150-page complaint to Sebi accusing Sun Pharmaceutical Industries of committing corporate governance and tax-related offences and securities market-related violations.
Sebi had sought detailed answer on alleged fund diversion of Rs 42,000 crore, through the company's key distributor and subsidiary, Aditya Medisales (AML). It also sought clarification on the company's 2004 fund raising through foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCB). The investigation team is of the view that the matter does not require further probe, reports added.
Granules India was down 2.10%. The firm announced its intention to divest its entire 50% equity shareholding in Granules OmniChem (GOC) by selling its stake to its joint venture partner.
Infosys was up 0.56%. According to media reports, the IT major has strengthened its collaboration with Microsoft to offer new solutions for clients and accelerate digital transformation.
Overseas, European markets were trading higher as soft inflation data boosted hopes that the European Central Bank will inject stimulus into the economy next month.
The German state of Saxony reported CPI (consumer price index) inflation at +1.4% year-on-year, falling further below the ECB target, while Spain's August HCPI (harmonized consumer price index) came in at +0.4%, down from +0.6% on the year in July. The ECB indicated that stimulus could be forthcoming if inflation continues to languish well below its target of almost 2%.
Meanwhile, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced plans to suspend parliament until 14 October, less than three weeks before the Britain's scheduled exit from the European Union on 31 October. The move is seen as increasing the chances of a no-deal Brexit that economists estimate could deal a significant blow to economic growth in the U.K and Europe.
Asian stocks were trading lower on Thursday as investors continued to watch the yield curve in U.S. Treasurys, which inverted further overnight.
US stocks climbed on Wednesday on gains in energy and financial shares. Meanwhile, the White House is scheduled to impose the first stage of U.S. tariffs on $300 billion worth of Chinese imported goods on Sunday, when China is set to respond with tariffs on U.S. products also.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News