MARKET WRAP: Sensex gains 170 pts; Nifty50 index ends at 11,870

The headlines first -

>> Market ends Thursday's session in the green; Sensex gains 170 pts; 

>> Aurobindo Pharma hits 5-year low on USFDA observations for Hyderabad plant; 

>> Moody's cuts India's economic growth forecast to 5.6% for 2019; & 

>> WPI inflation eases to 0.16% in October due to subdued non-food prices

News in detail - 

Benchmark indices ended Thursday's volatile session in the positive territory amid buying in select blue-chip counters such as ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Infosys, HDFC, and TCS (Tata Consultancy Services). Investor sentiment was largely subdued after retail inflation in October breached RBI's medium-term target of 4 per cent for the first time in 15 months. That apart, worries over telecom players, too, kept investors cautious. However, last hour buying lifted the market higher.  

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 170 points or 0.42 per cent to end at 40,286 with ICICI Bank (up around 3 per cent) being the top gainer and Vedanta (down around 3 per cent) the biggest loser. During the day, the index witnessed a swing of around 322 points.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index added 20 points or 0.14 per cent end at 14,680 while the S&P BSE SmallCap index ended at 13,344, down 0.01 per cent. 

On the NSE, the broader Nifty50 index ended at 11,870, up 30 points or 0.25 per cent. 

Sectorally, metal stocks cracked the most with the Nifty Metal index closing around 2 per cent lower at 2,508 levels. On the flip side, financial services stocks rallied the most. Nifty Bank gained over 0.7 per cent to settle at 30,764 levels.  

Volatility index India VIX slipped around 6 per cent to 15.50 levels.

In other market statistics, market breadth was in favour of declines as out of 2,682 companies traded on the BSE, 1,507 advanced and 1,004 declined while 171 remained unchanged. As many as 54 securities hit their 52-week high on the BSE while 154 hit their one-year low. 

Stocks that made news today - 

Shares of Aurobindo Pharma hit an over five-year low of Rs 393, down 9 per cent on the BSE on Thursday after the company received a Form 483 from US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) with 14 observations for its Hyderabad facility. The stock of drug company was trading at its lowest level since September 2014. The stock ended at Rs 395.55 apiece on the BSE, down nearly 9 per cent. 

ICICI Bank hit a new lifetime high of Rs 499.90 while Vedanta slipped 3 per cent to Rs 144 post Q2 results announcement. 

Shares of telecom services providers Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel plunged up to 22 per cent on report that the government has directed the telcos to clear their adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues in 3 months.