The key equity indices declined further in mid morning trade. The Nifty slipped below the 16,200 mark. Pharma shares extended losses for the second consecutive session.
At 11:21 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 361.6 points or 0.66% to 54,193.06. The Nifty 50 index lost 111.30 points or 0.68% to 16,168.80.
Selling was broad based. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 2.12% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 3.17%.
Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 364 shares rose and 2659 shares fell. A total of 102 shares were unchanged.
Small and mid-cap counters continued to see selling pressure after the BSE on Monday said it was capping the rise in share price of stocks exclusively listed on its platform. BSE said that the move to cap the rise in share price was part of additional surveillance measures. BSE said its new cap on price rise will be in addition to the existing measures and circuit filers. The exchange has spelled out several such caps with regard to stocks that attract circuit filters between 2% and 20%.
COVID-19 Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 203,980,078 with 4,314,007 global deaths.
India reported 386,351 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 429,179 deaths, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
India reported 38,353 new cases in last 24 hours. India has administered 51.90 crore vaccine doses so far under nationwide vaccination drive. India's active caseload currently 3,86,351, which is lowest in 140 days. Active cases constitute 1.21% of total cases, lowest since Mar 2020. Current recovery rate is 97.45%.
Politics:
The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed the Constitution (127th) Amendment Bill to restore the states' power to make their own OBC lists. The bill was passed in Lok Sabha with 385 members voting in support and no opposition to it. The opposition parties decided to "cooperate" with the government in passing the bill and suspend their protest in the House. It was moved by social justice and empowerment minister Virendra Kumar, who termed it as historic legislation that 671 castes in the country would benefit from it.
Economy:
The Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance has released 5th monthly installment of Post Devolution Revenue Deficit (PDRD) Grant of Rs 9,871 crore to the States on 9th August, 2021. With the release of this installment, a total amount of Rs 49,355 crore has been released to eligible States as Post Devolution Revenue Deficit Grant (PDRD) in the current financial year.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Pharma index fell 2.10% to 14,198.40, extending losses for second day. The index has declined by 2.32% in two sessions.
Torrent Pharma (down 3.19%), Biocon (down 2.88%), Cadila Healthcare (down 2.71%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 2.22%), Sun Pharma (down 1.92%), Divi's Labs (down 1.49%), Dr. Reddy's Labs (down 1.37%), Cipla (down 1.12%) declined while Alkem Laboratories (up 0.48%) edged higher.
Lupin slumped 6.17% to Rs 1,050. The company's consolidated net profit increased by more than 5x to Rs 542.46 crore in Q1 FY22 from Rs 106.90 crore in Q1 FY21. Net sales during the quarter rose by 22.2% YoY to Rs 4,237.39 crore. As compared with Q4 FY21, the company's net profit and net sales have risen by 17.8% and 12.7%, respectively.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Trent slumped 7.98% at Rs 871.50. The company posted a standalone net loss of Rs 83.76 crore in Q1 FY22 compared with net loss of Rs 139.46 crore in Q1 FY21. Net sales jumped 240% to Rs 327.29 crore in Q1 FY22 as against Rs 96.33 crore in Q1 FY21.
Siemens advanced 3.67% to Rs 2135.05. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 138.90 crore in Q3 June 2021 as against a net loss of Rs 1.90 crore in Q3 June 2020. Net sales increased by 147.2% YoY to Rs 2,880.90 crore during the quarter.
Global Markets:
Most Asian stocks were trading higher on Wednesday following their U.S. peers higher as investors assessed the ability of the economy to sustain less stimulus and rising virus outbreaks.
Singapore's trade and industry ministry said Wednesday that the economy grew 14.7% in the second quarter compared to a year ago, better than official advance estimates of a 14.3% expansion. The country also expects its economy to grow between 6% and 7% in 2021, an upgrade from past projections of 4% to 6%.
In US, the blue-chip Dow and the benchmark S&P 500 rose to record highs on Tuesday, buoyed by gains in economically sensitive value stocks after the Senate passed a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package.
The US Senate on Tuesday passed a $1 trillion infrastructure package that is a top priority for US President Joe Biden, a bipartisan victory for the White House that could provide the nation's biggest investment in decades in roads, bridges, airports and waterways.
The vote was 69-30 in the 100-seat chamber, with 19 Republicans voting yes. Immediately after that vote concluded, Senators began voting on a follow-up $3.5 trillion spending package that Democrats plan to pass without Republican votes.
Investors now await the consumer price index and producer price index data, both of which measure inflation and are scheduled to come out Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
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