Sensex, Nifty settle at over 1-week low

Trading for the week ended on a subdued note as the key benchmark indices logged modest losses weighed by selling pressure in index pivotals ITC, HDFC and Reliance Industries. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, lost 187.76 points or 0.53% to settle at 34,915.38. The Nifty 50 index fell 61.40 points or 0.57% to settle at 10,618.25. The Sensex and the Nifty, both, settled at over 1-week low.

The Sensex settled below the psychological 35,000 mark after falling below that level in morning trade. Stocks hovered in negative zone throughout the day's trading session. The market sentiment was hit by data showing that foreign funds and domestic institutional investors turning net sellers of Indian stocks yesterday, 3 May 2018. The trading activity showed that the foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 148.42 crore yesterday, 3 May 2018, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 578.92 crore yesterday, 3 May 2018, as per provisional data.

 

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, lost 187.76 points or 0.53% to settle at 34,915.38, its lowest closing level since 26 April 2018. The Sensex hit high of 35,206.55 and low of 34,847.61 during the day.

The Nifty 50 index fell 61.40 points or 0.57% to settle at 10,618.25, its lowest closing level since 26 April 2018. The Nifty hit high of 10,700.45 and low of 10,601.60 during the day.

The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.35%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.25%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was negative. On the BSE, 1,580 shares fell and 1,115 shares rose. A total of 130 shares were unchanged.

Among sectoral indices on BSE, the S&P BSE Telecom index (down 1.24%), the S&P BSE Auto index (down 1.1%), the S&P BSE Healthcare index (down 1.05%), the S&P BSE Metal index (down 1.05%), the S&P BSE FMCG index (down 0.83%), the S&P BSE Energy index (down 0.81%), the S&P BSE Power index (down 0.81%), the S&P BSE Basic Materials index (down 0.8%) and the S&P BSE Consumer Discretionary Goods & Services index (down 0.66%) underperformed the Sensex.

The S&P BSE Capital Goods index (down 0.45%), the S&P BSE Teck index (down 0.45%), the S&P BSE IT index (down 0.4%), the S&P BSE Realty index (down 0.25%), the S&P BSE Oil & Gas index (down 0.19%), the S&P BSE Industrials index (down 0.16%), the S&P BSE Finance index (down 0.15%), the S&P BSE Utilities index (down 0.13%), the S&P BSE Bankex (down 0.06%) and the S&P BSE Consumer Durables index (up 1.19%) outperformed the Sensex.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (down 2.95%), Yes Bank (down 2.43%), Axis Bank (down 2.27%), Coal India (down 2.05%) and Bharti Airtel (down 1.93%) edged lower from the Sensex pack.

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (up 2.87%), Hindustan Unilever (up 0.9%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.8%) edged higher from the Sensex pack.

Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC lost 2.37% to Rs 277.50.

Index heavyweight and housing finance major HDFC dropped 0.93% to Rs 1,905.05.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries fell 0.9% to Rs 953.90.

Ambuja Cements lost 1.46%. On a consolidated basis, the company's net profit after tax rose 30% to Rs 514 crore on 12% increase in net sales to Rs 6314 crore in Q1 March 2018 over Q1 March 2017. The result was announced during market hours today, 4 May 2018.

In its outlook, Ambuja Cements said that the company expects the economy to grow strongly in 2018 on the back of higher demand spurred by the government's focus on infrastructure development (roads, highways, irrigation projects and railways), housing and increased rural spends. Additionally, the government's efforts towards creating jobs through spending on rural and labour intensive infrastructure, will support economic growth.

Vedanta fell 1.55%. On a consolidated basis, Vedanta's net profit rose 34.29% to Rs 5675 crore on 22.74% increase in net sales to Rs 27630 crore in Q4 March 2018 over Q4 March 2017. The result was announced after trading hours yesterday, 3 May 2018.

Auto stocks saw mixed trend. Eicher Motors (down 2.04%), Maruti Suzuki India (down 0.88%), Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) (down 1.03%), Bajaj Auto (down 2.42%) and TVS Motor Company (down 3.39%) fell. Escorts (up 0.21%) and Ashok Leyland (up 0.34%) gained.

Hero MotoCorp rose 0.07% after the company said its total vehicles sales rose 16.50% to 6.94 lakh units in April 2018 over April 2017. With the forecast of a normal monsoon this year and a strong pipeline of new products coming up, Hero MotoCorp is confident of sustaining its growth momentum in the coming months. The announcement was made after trading hours yesterday, 3 May 2018.

Tata Motors (TML) rose 0.24%. TML announced after trading hours yesterday, 3 May 2018, that its board approved the sale of its defense business to group entity Tata Advanced Systems (TASL). This will not include the pure civilian vehicles which will continue to be with TML. TML will receive an upfront consideration of Rs 100 crore, adjusted for capex incurred and changes in working capital in the intervening period until closure date, and a deferred consideration of 3% of the revenue generated from identified specialized defence projects for upto 15 years from FY 2020 subject to a maximum of Rs 1750 crore.

Castrol India fell 5.38% after net profit rose 1.6% to Rs 181.80 crore on 5.1% increase in net sales to Rs 927.10 crore in Q1 March 2018 over Q1 March 2017. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 3 May 2018.

In its outlook, Castrol India said that with the continued increase in crude oil price and depreciation of the Indian rupee there is likelihood of further volatility in the cost of goods.

The company added that it continues to remain optimistic about the Indian lubricant market and is confident about continuing to deliver robust business performance aligned to its long term strategy. This is underpinned by continued investments in technology and brands, aggressive expansion of distribution network, innovative marketing programmes and delivery of premium customer experience across multiple touch points.

J Kumar Infraprojects rose 0.93% after the company said it received letter of acceptance from Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation and MMRDA for construction projects worth Rs 445 crore. Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 125.02 points, or 0.36% to 34,978.12.

J Kumar Infraprojects said it received Letter of Acceptance (LoA) from Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (Pune Metro Rail Project) for construction of underground shafts for tunneling of Agricultural College and Swargate Metro Station and Multi Model Integration at Sargate metro Station and R&R facilities for an amount of Rs 222.33 crore. Further, the company received LoA for improvement of Chheda Nagar Junction, Ghatkopar (East) on Eastern Express highway from Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) for an amount of Rs 223.85 crore.

Thirumalai Chemicals fell 0.16%. Consolidated net profit rose 107.96% to Rs 39.70 crore on 7.87% increase in net sales to Rs 330.71 crore in Q4 March 2018 over Q4 March 2017. The board of Thirumalai Chemicals also recommended a 10-for-1 stock split. The announcement was made after trading hours yesterday, 3 May 2018.

Further, the board also approved the sale of its shareholding in its wholly-owned subsidiary, TAL Manufacturing Solutions (TAL) to TASL at an enterprise value of Rs 625 crore. As a condition precedent, Tata Motors will acquire the non-aerospace business from TAL at a value of Rs 10 lakh. This is in line with Tata Motor's plan to drive Turnaround 2.0, take necessary steps to further its defense business by leveraging the scale and strengths of the unified aerospace and defense entity at the group level, while monetizing its non-core assets to reduce net-debt.

On the macro front, India's service sector continued to improve in April, with business activity rising at a faster pace, supported by new order growth, data released today, 4 May 2018 showed. Inflationary price pressures continued to ease further, with input and output charge inflation registering below their respective historical averages. The seasonally adjusted Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index rose to 51.4 in April from 50.3 in March.

Overseas, European shares were trading higher while Asian stocks fell as investors monitored trade talks between the US and China. Investors are also awaiting US jobs for April and wage growth data due later in the day. The Nikkei in Japan remained closed for a holiday.

Activity in China's service sector expanded at a faster pace in April, a private gauge showed Friday, a reading in line with official data last month. The Caixin China services purchasing managers' index rose to 52.9 in April from 52.3 in March, Caixin Media Co. and research firm Markit said. A reading above 50 indicates an expansion in activity from the previous month while a level below that points to a contraction.

US stock benchmarks ended off their lows yesterday, 3 May 2018 and the Dow ended higher in choppy trade. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 5.17 points, or less than 0.1%, to 23,930.15. The S&P 500 index declined 5.94 points, or 0.2%, to 2,629.75. The Nasdaq Composite Index closed 12.75 points, or 0.2%, lower at 7,088.15.

On the economic data front, the Markit services purchasing managers index for April came in at 54.6, compared with 54 in March. The Institute for Supply Management's nonmanufacturing index fell more than expected in April, dropping to 56.8, while factory orders rose 1.6% in the month.

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