Market wrap: Sensex sheds 656 pts, Nifty below 18K amid weak global cues

Top headlines
 
·        Sensex sheds 656 points, Nifty ends below 18K amid weak global cues
·        Bajaj Finance hits new high on Q3 results; falls on profit-booking later
·        Paytm hits new low; declines 26% in three weeks
·        Sterlite Tech tanks 7% on disappointing Q3 numbers
·        AGS Transact Technologies IPO subscribed 85% on day 1
 
The benchmark indices on Wednesday ended with deep cuts as they extended losses for a second day amid weak global cues and rising bond yields. The 10-year US Treasury yield hit 1.9% today, its highest level since December 2019. Meanwhile, the UK saw its inflation rate soaring to a 30-year high of 5.4% in December.
 
Given this, the frontline BSE Sensex plunged 656 points, or 1.08%, to close at 60,099 after hitting an intra-day low of 59,949. The NSE Nifty50 ended below the 18,000 mark, at 17,943, down 170 points or 0.9 per cent.
 
Among the laggards, Infosys, ICICI Bank, HDFC and TCS together accounted for almost 60% of the loss for the Sensex. Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank, and Nestle were the other major draggers.
 
The broader indices, however, outperformed the benchmarks, with the BSE MidCap index ending 0.34% lower and the BSE SmallCap rising marginally by 0.03%.
 
Sectorally, barring auto, metals and energy, all other Nifty indices closed in the red, led by IT which was 2% lower. FMCG and financials were the other major losers, down 1% each.
 
The Nifty PSB index, on the other hand, was the top gainer, up 2% after reports said the government had cut FY22 recapitalisation amount for public banks to Rs 15,000 crore due to lower demand.
 
That apart, among stocks, the shares of Bajaj Finance hit a record high of Rs 8,043 on the BSE after the NBFC reported a strong 85% year-on-year jump in consolidated profit after tax in Q3, beating Street estimates. However, the stock later fell on profit booking and closed 2.3% lower.
 
On the flip side, the stock of Paytm parent One97 Communications, hit a new low, which was less than 10 per cent away from touching Macquarie's downgraded target price of Rs 900 apiece. The stock has slipped 26% in the past three weeks and at present it is 54% below its issue price.
 
Further, Sterlite Technologies also tanked 7.5% after a disappointing set of December quarter numbers. The company posted net loss of Rs 137.1 crore, as against a profit of Rs 86.6 crore a year earlier. Its revenues stood at Rs 1,356 crore, up 3.1% from last year.
 
In the primary market, the IPO of AGS Transact Technologies was subscribed 85% as of 4:00 pm on the first day of its subscription. The retail investor and the non-institutional investors portions were subscribed 1.3 times and 1 time, respectively, whereas the qualified Institutional buyer portion was not subscribed at all.
 
Lastly, companies like Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finserv and Biocon will announce their Q3 results on Thursday. These will all be keenly watched.