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Benchmark share indices ended lower amid profit taking in rate sensitive shares in late trades while oil shares weakened further after global crude oil prices fell to near six-year lows.
The 30-share Sensex ended down 159 points at 27,425 and the 50-share Nifty closed down 24 points at 8,299.
In the broader market, both the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices performed marginally better than the front-liners with losses of 0.3% each. Market breadth in BSE ended negative with 1,539 declines against 1,384 advances.
Data released on Monday showed that after contracting 4.2% in October, industrial production increased at a five-month high of 3.8 per cent in November. Another set of data showed Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation rose to 5% in December from 4.38% in the previous month, primarily due to a rise in food prices.
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors were net buyers in Indian equities worth Rs 245 crore on Monday, as per provisional stock exchange data.
Oil prices continued their rout on Tuesday with Brent crude and US WTI both falling to their lowest in almost six years, as a persistent global supply glut offset data showing record high imports by key consumer China, Reuters said in a report.
Analysts at Goldman Sachs have cut their average forecast for Brent in 2015 to $50.40 a barrel from $83.75.
Buzzing Stocks
10 of the 12 sectoral indices of BSE ended in red. BSE FMCG index, up 0.7% was the lead gainer followed by BSE Healthcare index, up 0.1%. BSE Realty and Oil & Gas indices, down 1.9% and 1% were the top losers.
Financials came under pressure during the late trading hours in today’s session. Trimming early gains Axis Bank ended with gains of over 0.2%, SBI ended down 0.7%, mortgage lender HDFC declined 0.9%, ICICI Bank ended down 1.5% and HDFC Bank ended down 0.9%
Rate-sensitive stocks are expected to perform well in near future as hopes of a rate-cut by RBI during its next policy review meeting in February were strengthened after CPI data for the month of December came largely in-line with market expectations.
Auto shares also declined during late noon trade with the exception of M&M which gained around 1.2%. Maruti Suzuki ended flat after paring early gains. According to media reports, in this fiscal year Maruti Suzuki is aiming for a 20% growth in exports of its vehicles, focussing particularly on the non-European markets like Africa, Latin America and the Middle East where sales are already increasing.
Cipla gained around 0.6% on media reports that it may re-start supplying anti-HIV drugs to the National Aids Control Organisation (Naco) in the next two months.
Further fall in crude prices brought pressure on oil shares. ONGC declined more than 2% while RIL closed down 0.7%.
Paring gains Sesa Sterlite ended down 1.2%. In its clarification to BSE on media reports which suggested possible merger of Cairn India and Hindustan Zinc with Sesa Sterlite, the company has said that at this point of time there is no definite proposal for any merger and no such event or negotiations have taken place.
NTPC declined around 1%. Media reports suggest that NTPC will invite tenders this month for the construction of a $1.2 billion, joint venture power project to be built in Bangladesh.
Profit-booking has dragged stocks like Infosys which declined around 0.7% and HUL which lost over 1.6%.
Shares of cement majors such as UltraTech Cement, Grasim Industries, ACC and Ambuja Cement ended higher between 1-4% on in otherwise an subdued market.
Global Market
Japan's Nikkei share average fell on Tuesday as weak U.S. stocks and falling oil prices dampened risk appetite, but a pause in the yen's strength helped the market trim earlier losses. The Nikkei ended 0.6% lower. Chinese markets gained after trade data of China for the month of December showed that exports rose 9.7% from a year earlier in dollar-denominated terms while imports dropped for a second month in a row by 2.4%. That left the country with a trade surplus of $49.6 billion for the month, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Tuesday. Hang Seng index gained 0.7% and Shanghai Composite index ended up 0.2%.
European markets have gained after opening on a cautious note. CAC 40 and DAX indices have gained 0.7% each while FTSE 100 index has gained 0.5%.
