Key benchmark indices hovered with modest losses in early afternoon trade. At 12:16 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 142.60 points or 0.43% at 33,313.19. The Nifty 50 index declined 50.30 points or 0.49% at 10,271.95.
Indices started the session on a shaky note and languished in negative zone so far after extending intraday slide in mid-morning trade. The stock market dropped on profit booking after previous three sessions of gains. Also, lack of proper direction in Asian trading dented investor sentiment.
The Sensex lost 153.30 points, or 0.45%, at the day's low of 33,302.49 in early afternoon trade, its lowest level since 8 December 2017. The index rose 2.62 points at the day's high of 33,458.41 in early trade. The Nifty lost 57.85 points, or 0.56%, at the day's low of 10,264.40 in early afternoon trade, its lowest level since 8 December 2017. The index rose 3.85 points, or 0.03%, at the day's high of 10,326.10 in early trade.
Among secondary indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.39%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.01%. Both the indices outperformed the Sensex.
The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. On the BSE, 1,388 shares declined and 1,060 shares rose. A total of 118 shares were unchanged.
Auto stocks were mixed. Ashok Leyland (down 2.03%), Eicher Motors (down 1.65%), Bajaj Auto (down 0.85%) and Hero MotoCorp (down 0.84%) dropped. TVS Motor Company (up 1.11%), Tata Motors (up 0.6%), Escorts (up 0.55%), Mahindra & Mahindra (up 0.46%) and Maruti Suzuki India (up 0.31%) gained.
Capital goods stocks also witnessed a mixed trend. Havells India (up 1.82%), ABB India (up 0.6%), Bhel (up 0.6%) and Thermax (up 0.07%) edged higher. Siemens (down 2.51%), Bharat Electronics (down 0.46%), Suzlon Energy (down 0.14%) and BEML (down 0.14%) declined.
L&T was down 0.89% at Rs 1,210.55. Morgan Stanley France SAS sold 23.93 lakh shares of the company to Societe Generale at Rs 1,222.25 per share in a block deal on the BSE yesterday, 11 December 2017.
Alembic Pharmaceuticals rose 1.21% at Rs 524.05 after the company said that it has received US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) approval for its abbreviated new drug application (ANDA) Darifenacin Extended-Release Tablets, 7.5 mg and 15 mg. The approved ANDA is therapeutically equivalent to the reference listed drug product (RLD) Enablex Extended-Release Tablets 7.5 mg and 15 mg, of Allergan Pharmaceuticals. The announcement was made during market hours today, 12 December 2017.
Darifenacin Extended-Release Tablets are indicated for the treatment of overactive bladder with symptoms of urge urinary incontinence, urgency and frequency. The drug has an estimated market size in US of $64 million for twelve months ended December 2016, according to IMS.
On macro front, the government will announce industrial production data for October today, 12 December 2017. India's industrial production increased by 3.8% year-on-year in September, following an upwardly revised 4.5% gain in the previous month.
The government will announce today, 12 December 2017, inflation data based on consumer price index (CPI) for November. Consumer prices increased 3.58% year-on-year in October, above 3.28% in September.
Overseas, Asian stocks were mixed. US equities closed higher yesterday, 11 December 2017, reversing earlier weakness following a terror incident near New York City's Times Square. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 notched record closing highs.
The US Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) starts its two-day meeting on interest rates later in global day today, 12 December 2017. The US Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision tomorrow, 13 December 2017. The Federal Reserve left the target range for its federal funds rate unchanged at 1% to 1.25% during its November 2017 meeting as widely expected.
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