Key benchmark indices were hovering in a narrow range in negative terrain in mid-morning trade. At 11:16 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 228.16 points or 0.72% at 31,567.30. The Nifty 50 index was down 61.45 points or 0.62% at 9,842.70. Sharp selling in index heavyweight and IT major Infosys put pressure on the key benchmarks.
The Sensex fell 294.62 points, or 0.93% at the day's low of 31,500.84 in morning trade, its lowest level since 16 August 2017. The index fell 65.58 points, or 0.21% at the day's high of 31,729.88 in early trade. The Nifty fell 87.85 points, or 0.89% at the day's low of 9,816.30 in morning trade, its lowest level since 16 August 2017. The index fell 38.20 points, or 0.39% at the day's high of 9,865.95 in early trade.
Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was down 0.02%. The BSE Small-Cap index was down 0.48%. The decline in both these indices was lower than the Sensex's decline in percentage terms.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On BSE, 1,328 shares fell and 747 shares rose. A total of 104 shares were unchanged.
IT major Infosys tumbled 6.91% to Rs 950.55. Vishal Sikka has resigned as managing director and chief executive officer of Infosys. The board has accepted his resignation with immediate effect, the IT major said in a statement issued during trading hours today, 18 August 2017. Infosys said U.B. Pravin Rao, its chief operating officer, has been named as interim managing director and chief executive.
Dr Sikka cited personal attacks as one of the reasons for his surprise resignation in a letter to Infosys board members. In his notice of resignation to the board, Dr Sikka reiterated his belief in the great potential of Infosys, but cited among his reasons for leaving a continuous stream of distractions and disruptions over the recent months and quarters, increasingly personal and negative as of late, as preventing management's ability to accelerate the company's transformation, Infosys said in a statement.
More From This Section
The board understands and acknowledges Dr Sikka's reasons for resignation, and regrets his decision. In particular, the board is profoundly distressed by the unfounded personal attacks on the members of our management team that were made in the anonymous letters and have surfaced in recent months, Infosys added.
Pharmaceutical shares tumbled. Cadila Healthcare (down 2.29%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (down 2.24%), Wockhardt (down 2.18%), Strides Shasun (down 1.22%), Lupin (down 1.19%), Piramal Enterprises (down 0.99%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 0.9%), Divi's Laboratories (down 0.85%), Cipla (down 0.74%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 0.73%), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (down 0.69%), Alkem Laboratories (down 0.23%) and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (down 0.07%), edged lower. IPCA Laboratories was up 0.06%.
Cement shares were in demand. UltraTech Cement (up 1.51%), Ambuja Cements (up 1.02%) and ACC (up 0.93%), edged higher.
Grasim Industries was up 0.93%. Grasim has exposure to cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.
Raymond jumped 6.15% to Rs 791.65 after the company announced the acquisition of 50% Ansell's stake in a joint venture entity known as JK Ansell Company for 100% ownership. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 17 August 2017.
Raymond said that, with the transaction, the sexual wellness and personal care business will continue to remain in JK Ansell which will become wholly owned subsidiary of JK Investo Trade (India) (JKIT), a Raymond Group company. As per the proposed deal, JKIT sells its stake in the non-core gloves business to Pacific Dunlop Holdings (Singapore), a Ansell Group Company. The acquisition will pave the way for Raymond to further scale up the FMCG business and unlock the immense potential of brand Kamasutra globally. Raymond had announced the formation of its FMCG group last year, offering premium products for personal and home care categories.
Overseas, most Asian stocks edged lower on growing doubts about US President Donald Trump's ability to fulfil his economic agenda.
Confidence was shaken further after a van mowed through crowds of tourists in Barcelona on Thursday, 17 August 2017, killing at least 13 people and injuring more than 100 in an attack authorities were treating as terrorism. Spanish police said they had killed four attackers in a shootout south of the city overnight.
US stocks tumbled overnight as the broader market appeared to be fretting about a number of bearish factors, including a record-setting market that has been viewed as too rich and due for a pullback, concerns about the health of the economy and the Federal Reserve's comfort in normalizing interest rates amid levels of inflation that have run below their 2% target, considered indicative of a normally functioning economy.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 274 points, or 1.2%, lower at 21,750, as the broader stock market faced its biggest selloff since last week's North Korea-fueled jitters. The S&P 500 index meanwhile, ended down 1.5% at 2,430 and the Nasdaq Composite Index shed 1.9% at 6,221.
Concerns have grown over Trump's ability to push through his economic goals such as tax cuts and infrastructure spending following the exodus of executives from two prominent business councils in reaction to his response to clashes last weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Trump on Thursday, 17 August 2017, again decried the removal of pro-slavery Civil War Confederacy monuments, which have fuelled US racial tensions, stoking worries that some of his key policy staffers and aides may quit.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News