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Markets have turned weak in post noon trades as weakness in pharma and FMCG shares have dragged the markets lower. However, the gains in Reliance Industries and Infosys have limited the losses across the board.
At 2:10 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 198 points at 24,575 and the Nifty50 was down 59 points at 7,477.
The rupee surrendered its initial gains and was trading down by 14 paise to 67.45 against the US dollar-hitting a fresh 28 month low- in noon deals on bouts of dollar demand from importers.
Oil prices were trading slightly lower in Asian trade but continued to hover near their 12-year lows with US crude and Brent crude trading just above $30.60 a barrel.
KEY STOCKS
Reliance Industries has strengthened by 2.5% ahead of its earnings next week. Brokerages expect the company to report robust earnings on the back of higher gross refining margins.
Infosys has extended its gains in today’s trade post its strong December quarter numbers that beat the Street’s expectations. The stock has firmed up by 2%
Maruti Suzuki has gained by 1.2% after it announced
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) today launched its compact sports utility vehicle KUV100 starting at Rs 4.42 lakh (ex-showroom, Pune), pitting it directly against Maruti Suzuki Swift and Hyundai Grand i10 on the price front. The stock, however, has dropped by 0.4% owing to the weakness in markets.
Oil & Gas shares came under pressure after international crude prices in Asia resumed their downfall. ONGC, GAIL (India) has slipped between 1-3% each.
According to media reports, RBI wants banks to clean up their balance sheets and provide for 150 bad accounts by March 2016. ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, PNB, SBI, and Bank of Baroda are all down between 0.5-2.3% each. However HDFC twins have gained by 0.3% each in an otherwise weak market.
Among other shares, Idea Cellular gained after the telecom major launched 4G services in Chhatisgarh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. The stock was up over 1%.
Cadila Healthcare was up nearly 1% after approval from Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB). Cadila Healthcare can now raise up to Rs 5,000 crore of fresh equity from foreign investors through qualified institutional placement route.
Public sector lender IDBI Bank has increased the size of equity share offering to Institutional Investors to Rs 3,771 crore from original size Rs 2,800 crore in line with the government's approval. The stock has dropped 2.5%
Wind turbine maker Suzlon Group on Friday said it has received an additional credit facility of Rs 2,300 crore above the existing working capital lines to meet its requirements for execution of projects. The stock has gained 1.2%
