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Benchmark indices have extended losses weighed down by selling pressure in metal, IT and oil shares.
Market players have turned cautious ahead of the Supreme Court's decision on coal blocks allocations later today.
By 10:20, the Sensex was lower by 65 points at 27,255 mark and the Nifty dipped by 27 points at 8,148 levels.
Among broader markets, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices have slipped by over 0.2%. The market breadth in BSE remains turns absolutely neutral.
Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 1,162.98 crore on Monday, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
The rupee is weaker at 60.44/45 versus its Monday's close of 60.29/30. Dollar trades at 14-month highs against a basket of major currencies early on Tuesday.
GLOBAL MARKETS
The U.S. dollar was holding broad-based gains in Asia on Tuesday in a boon for shares of Japanese exporters but a burden for oil, gold and stocks in the energy majors.
As the dollar finally broke to a six-year peak on the yen and a one-year top on the euro, Brent oil sank to 16-month lows while gold carved out a three-month trough.
A falling yen tends to be viewed as positive for Japanese exporters and corporate profits, and helped lift the Topix 0.2 percent to 1,301. That was within a whisker of this year's peak at 1,308.08 and a break there would put it on ground last trod in July 2008.
SECTORS & STOCKS
BSE Realty index has slumped by over 1% followed by counters like Capital Goods, IT, Metal and Oil & Gas, all falling down by nearly 1% each. Apart from Auto and FMCG, all the major BSE sectoral indices are trading in negative zone.
The main losers on the Sensex are Sesa Sterlite, Infosys, Hindalco, L&T, ONGC, ICICI Bank, Tata Steel and BHEL.
Metal stocks such as Hindalco and Jindal Steel & Power are down 1-2% ahead of the Supreme Court's decision on coal block allocations later today.
Earlier on September 1, the Centre had requested the Supreme Court not to cancel the permits for 46 coal blocks that were functioning or were about to start production.
In the metal pack, Hindalco is down 1%, Jindal Steel & Power has slipped 2%, Sesa Sterlite has dipped 1.6% and Tata Steel was down 0.8%. In the power segment, Adani Power is down 1.6%, Reliance Power has lost 0.5%, NTPC is down 0.1% while Tata Power is up 0.4%.
On the gaining side, Drug maker Cipla has gained nearly 1% on the BSE after the company on Monday announced commercial collaboration with UK-based S&D Pharma in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Other notable gainers are Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, Coal India, HUL, ITC and Tata Power.
Among other shares, Thomas Cook climbs over 2% to Rs 148 on the BSE after Sterling Holiday Resorts India Ltd became a subsidiary of Thomas Cook India Group in the back of the former's equity shares being bought in an off-market transaction by Thomas Cook Insurance Services (TCISIL).
Shares of Apollo Tyres were up over 3% at Rs 217 on reports that Hungary has secured approval of the European Union to award grant for building a plant there.
Punj Lloyd has gained another 8.6% to Rs 44 levels on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in trade on Tuesday after rallying nearly 10% a day earlier after securing an order worth Rs 3,515 crore from PRPC Refinery and Cracker, a subsidiary under the Petroleum National Berhad (PETRONAS) group, Malaysia’s national emergency group.
