Key benchmark indices hovered near the flat line in a small range in mid-morning trade. At 11:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 8.57 points or 0.02% at 38,251.38. The Nifty 50 index was up 10.05 points or 0.09% at 11,546.95. Most cement stocks declined. Telecom stocks saw mixed trend.
Domestic stocks drifted lower in early trade on negative Asian stocks. Key benchmark indices cut almost entire intraday losses in morning trade.
The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.59%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.22%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1277 shares rose and 1034 shares fell. A total of 151 shares were unchanged.
Most cement stocks declined. Ambuja Cements (down 1.1%), ACC (down 0.92%), and Shree Cement (down 1.34%) fell. UltraTech Cement (up 1.51%) rose.
Grasim Industries was off 0.18%. Grasim has exposure to the cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.
Telecom stocks saw mixed trend. Bharti Airtel (up 1.52%), Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (up 0.02%) and Reliance Communications (up 0.29%) rose. Idea Cellular (down 0.21%) and MTNL (down 0.3%) fell.
Shares of Bharti Infratel rose 2.46%. Bharti Infratel is a provider of tower and related infrastructure and is a unit of Bharti Airtel.
Overseas, most Asian stocks were trading lower amid ongoing concerns about global trade and emerging markets. US stocks fell yesterday, 6 September 2018 amid renewed selling in technology shares as the Trump administration eyed escalating the trade war and concerns mounted over flagging demand for computer chips.
As per reports, turmoil in Argentina and Turkey, as their currencies continue to sink on deteriorating confidence, is dragging on the global market as investors fear a spillover effect on other healthier emerging markets and beyond.
On the trade front, the US and Canada continued high-stakes negotiations in the effort to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement, which President Donald Trump said he is prepared to move forward with even without Canada's participation.
On the data front, the Institute for Supply Management's August read on the services sector rose to 58.5% from 55.7% in the previous month, while the final IHS Markit reading on the services purchasing managers index fell to 54.8 in August from 56 in July.
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