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Key benchmark indices extended losses in noon deals pulled down by losses in financial heavyweights among other frontline stocks. Also, weakness in the Asian market weighed down on the sentiment too.
Investors' profit-taking on Thursday brought Asian markets off three-week highs notched a day earlier on the back of reassuring comments from the Federal Reserve's new chairwoman, Janet Yellen, over the prospects for U.S. growth. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.4 percent after having gained 4.5 percent in the previous five sessions. Japan's Nikkei fell 1.0 percent after 4.6 percent rise in the past three days.
At 11:22am, the 30-share Sensex of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) was quoting at 20,324.38 down 124.11, or 0.61% and the 50-unit National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty was off almost 0.6% or 42 points at 6,042 levels.
Broader markets are down too; BSE mid-caps and small-cap indices are down between 0.3-0.5% on Thursday.
Market experts suggest that bearish trades are likely to continue for now given the rout after recent global cues led a sell-off in emerging markets.
"Until Nifty does not close above 6091, bears are expected to be stronger than bulls in this month, whereas on charts index has strong support between 6030-6050 zone," said technical analyst Ravi Nathani of nsetoday.com.
After a positive start which was buoyed by optimistic macro-economic data, released a day earlier post-market hours, benchmark indices pared all its gains later pulled by heavyweights such as ONGC,, HDFC twins, Coal India, Cipla and Reliance among other heavyweights. On Wednesday, consumer Price Index-based inflation (CPI), a widely tracked rate after a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) panel recommended targeting it, has declined for a second month in a row. The rate of price rise fell to a two-year low of 8.79 per cent in January from 9.87 per cent in the previous month. The inflation had reached a record 11.16 per cent in November and was blamed for the Congress’ rout in the recent assembly elections.
TCS, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, Sesa Sterlite, M&M and DLF are the top Sensex gainers at this hour.
Tata Motors is trading higher by 1.2% at Rs 381, in otherwise weak market, after Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), its British-based arm, recorded a strong retail sales growth of 12.1% year-on-year (yoy) in January 2014 to 39,106 units. JLR had reported retail sales of 34,877 units in the same month last year
Coal India is down 2.4% at Rs 263.40 after reporting its Q3 results a day earlier. Lower e-auction realisation and an increase in production cost, had an impact on the performance of state-run Coal India Ltd (CIL) which on Wednesday reported an 11.4 per cent drop in consolidated net profit at Rs 3,894 crore for the financial year's third quarter (October-December) versus Rs 4,395 crore in the corresponding period last year.
Cipla is down 6% at Rs 387.20 after it reported a drop in net profit. Though its consolidated revenues were up 22 per cent year-on-year to Rs 2,581 crore in the financial year’s third quarter (October-December), on the back of a strong exports performance, higher costs dented profitability, leading to a 16.5 per cent fall in net profit to Rs 284 crore for India’s third largest drug maker, Cipla. Domestic revenue grew 12.6 per cent to Rs 1,044 crore on account of growth in respiratory, anti-infectives and cardiology segments.
Shares of railway related stocks such as Titagarh Wagons, Texmaco Rail and Engineering, Kalindee Rail, Kernex Microsystems and Hind Rectifiers are trading lower by up to 7%, extending their previous day’s fall, as no major announcements was made by the Railway Minister, Mallikarjun Kharge in his interim budget..
Among the results to be announced today, ONGC, United Spirits, Sun Pharma, Hindalco and Britannia Industries will see action.
ONGC is down 1.6% at Rs 277.95 ahead of its Q3 earnings results while Sun Pharma is up 1.06% at Rs 617.50
