Stock Market LIVE Updates: All sectors barring Pharma & Health fall; Sensex 800 pts lower at 79,400

Markets Today LIVE: Benchmark Indian equity indices BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 were trading significantly lower on Thursday, tracking the decline on Wall Street following the US Fed's hawkish commentary

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Share Market Today: Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) net sold Indian equities worth Rs 1,316.81 crore on December 18, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought shares worth Rs 4,084.08 crore on Wednesday. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Stock Market LIVE Updates, Thursday, December 19, 2024: Benchmark Indian equity indices BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 were trading lower on Thursday, tracking the decline on Wall Street following the US Fed's hawkish commentary.

At 10 AM, the BSE Sensex was 804.72 points, or 1 per cent lower at 79,377.48, and the Nifty 50 was at 23,956.30, down 242.55 points, or 1 per cent.

While the US Federal Reserve cuts its benchmark funds target rate range by a widely expected 25 bps to a range of 4.25 per cent and 4.5 per cent, its hawkish commentary about a slower pace of policy easing in 2025 that spurred a significant fall in Wall Street's benchmark indices is likely to continue pressuring Indian markets.

Moreover, the continued selling of Indian equities by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in favour of more attractive markets, is also likely to add to the downward pressure.

However, India's primary market is lined up to see heightened action today, with five mainline IPOs, including DAM Capital Advisors IPO, Transrail Lighting IPO, Concord Enviro Systems IPO, Sanathan Textiles IPO, and Mamata Machinery IPO, opening for subscription today, along with New Malayalam Steel IPO opening in the SME section.

Shares of Inventurus Knowledge Solutions IPO (mainline) and Yash Highvoltage IPO (SME) will list on the bourses, while subscription for NACDAC Infrastructure IPO (SME) will close today and Identical Brains Studios IPO (SME) will enter its second day of subscription.

The Federal Reserve adjusted a key part of its rate control toolkit on Wednesday, lowering the rate it offers on its reverse repo facility by more than it cut the federal funds rate. The Fed said that the reverse repo rate will now stand at 4.25 per cent from its prior level of 4.55 per cent, marking a 30 basis point easing, while it lowered the federal funds target rate range by a quarter percentage point to between 4.25 per cent and 4.5 per cent. READ MORE

Elsewhere, concerned that aggressive fiscal consolidation could hinder growth momentum while private capital expenditure remains sluggish, the Indian government is expected to set the fiscal deficit target at 4.4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) for FY26 in the upcoming Budget. READ MORE

That apart, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Wednesday approved tighter regulations for listing of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), broadened the scope of price-sensitive information, and overhauled regulations governing investment bankers. READ MORE

In the secondary markets, the performance of banking and information technology (IT) stocks has had a significant impact on the composition of diversified mutual fund (MF) portfolios. Over the past two months, these sectors have become increasingly dominant, now constituting nearly 30 per cent of the total allocation in many diversified MF portfolios. READ MORE

On Wednesday, benchmark equity indices declined for the third consecutive day amid continued selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). The Sensex fell 502 points, or 0.6 per cent, to end at 80,182, while the Nifty 50 fell 137 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 24,199.FPIs on Wednesday sold shares worth Rs 1,317 crore, extending their three-day selling to Rs 8,000 crore.

Broader markets also mirrored the benchmarks, with Nifty Midcap100 and Nifty Smallcap100 indices ending lower by 0.64 per cent and 0.87 per cent, respectively. Sectoral indices ended broadly in the red, barring IT, Pharma, and Healthcare indices. Banking stocks were the top laggards among sectors, as Bank Nifty, PSU Bank, and Private Bank indices ended lower by up to 1.92 per cent. Among others, the Nifty Financial Services index, Media, and Consumer Durables ended down by up to 2.24 per cent.

Markets in the Asia-Pacific region fell on Thursday morning, tracking broad declines on Wall Street. Investors in Asia are looking ahead to an interest rate decision by the Bank of Japan after its two-day policy meeting. The central bank is expected to leave its target rate unchanged at 0.25 per cent. Meanwhile, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 dropped 0.93 per cent while the Topix lost 0.49 per cent.

In South Korea, the Kospi declined 1.81 per cent and the Kosdaq index was down by 2.13 per cent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 1.4 per cent lower.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was behind by 1.34 per cent and mainland China's CSI 300 was lower by 1.14 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite was behind by 1 per cent.

Wall Street closed sharply lower on Wednesday, with the Dow falling over 1,100 points after the US Federal Reserve delivered a rate cut as expected but signaled it will ease the pace of further cuts in the coming year.

For the Dow it was its tenth consecutive daily loss, marking its longest losing streak since 1974 and its biggest daily percentage decline since early August. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 also logged their largest one-day drops in months. Benchmark Treasury yields moved higher on the news, and the dollar gained.

As expected, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) cut the Fed funds target rate by 25 basis points at the conclusion of its final policy meeting of 2024.

But the central bank also reduced the number of projected rate cuts in the coming year. The policymakers now expect two interest rate cuts by the end of 2025, down from four in September, and set up the likelihood of a pause in January.

In his subsequent press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell offered assurances that the economy is strong, inflation has come closer to the 2 per cent goal, and monetary policy is well-positioned to deal with risks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1,123.03 points, or 2.58 per cent, to 42,326.87, the S&P 500 fell 178.57 points, or 2.95 per cent, to 5,872.03 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 716.37 points, or 3.56 per cent, to 19,392.69.

Earlier, European shares closed modestly higher, buoyed by technology stocks and French automaker Renault, but gains were held in check ahead of the Fed's rate decision.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe fell 8.93 points, or 1.03 per cent, to 855.09.

The STOXX 600 index rose 0.15 per cent, while Europe's broad FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 2.56 points, or 0.13 per cent.

Emerging market stocks fell 0.39 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 1,092.81. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan closed lower by 0.05 per cent, to 579.42, while Japan's Nikkei fell 282.97 points, or 0.72 per cent, to 39,081.71.

Yields for 10-year US Treasuries gained after the Fed flagged the slower pace of easing.

The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes rose 11.3 basis points to 4.498 per cent, from 4.385 per cent late on Tuesday.

The 30-year bond yield rose 7.3 basis points to 4.6525 per cent from 4.579 per cent late on Tuesday.

The 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations for the Federal Reserve, rose 10.5 basis points to 4.346 per cent, from 4.241 per cent late on Tuesday.

The dollar extended its gains against a basket of world currencies as investors digested the Fed's revised outlook. The dollar index rose 1.09 per cent to 108.09.

Bitcoin accelerated its losses after Powell said the Fed has no desire to hold the cryptocurrency amid debate over whether the incoming Trump administration might build a bitcoin reserve. Bitcoin fell 5.17 per cent to $100,916.00. Ethereum declined 6.14 per cent to $3,692.50.

Oil prices settled higher in the wake of the Fed's decision. US crude rose 0.71 per cent to settle at $70.58 per barrel, while Brent settled at $73.39 per barrel, up 0.27 per cent on the day.

Gold fell in opposition to the greenback. Spot gold fell 1.94 per cent to $2,594.24 an ounce. U.S. gold futures fell 2.05 per cent to $2,590.20 an ounce. (With inputs from Reuters.)

10:10 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Inventurus Knowledge Solutions shares listing at 43% premium on bourses

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Shares of Inventurus Knowledge Solutions made a strong D-Street debut on Thursday, December 19, 2024, in an otherwise weak market. Inventurus Knowledge Solutions shares listed at Rs 1856 apiece on the BSE, reflecting a premium of 39.65 per cent over the IPO allotment price of Rs 1329.

On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), Inventurus Knowledge Solutions shares listed at Rs 1,900, reflecting a slightly higher premium of 42.96 per cent per share against the issue price. READ MORE

10:07 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Mamata Machinery IPO opens today: GMP up 82%; Should you subscribe?

Stock Market LIVE Updates: he initial public offering (IPO) of manufacturing solutions provider Mamata Machinery is set to open for public subscription today, Thursday, December 19, 2024. At the upper end, the company seeks to raise Rs 179.39 crore from the public offering. The Mamata Machinery IPO comprises an entire offer for sale, with promoters offloading up to 73,82,340 equity shares with a face value of Rs 10 apiece.

Mamata Machinery has announced that it has already raised Rs 53.56 crore from anchor investors in a bidding concluded on December 18, 2024. READ MORE

10:03 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: 10 AM market update - Sensex, Nifty trade lower

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Benchmark Indian equity indices BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 were trading lower on Thursday, tracking the decline on Wall Street following the US Fed's hawkish commentary.

At 10 AM, the BSE Sensex was 804.72 points, or 1 per cent lower at 79,377.48, and the Nifty 50 was at 23,956.30, down 242.55 points, or 1 per cent.

9:51 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Sensex sinks 1,150pts, Nifty dips below 23,900: What's behind market crash?

Stock Market LIVE Updates: The key benchmarks – Sensex, Nifty faced another bear attack on Thursday, with the BSE Sensex crashing 930 points or 1.44 per cent to its intraday low of 80,818, while the NSE’s Nifty50 plunging 328 points or 1.35 per cent at 23,870 in intraday trade.

The drop in the Indian stock market came amid a similar downturn in the US as well Asian markets after the US Federal Reserve delivered its third consecutive rate cut but signaled a slowdown in future reductions, leaving investors jittery. READ MORE

9:42 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Robert Sockin of Citi on US Fed's actions

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Robert Sockin of Citi, says we're looking for rates to continue to move down in India and other emerging markets.

This is a global central bank rate cutting cycle, with a few exceptions.

The key to focus on is that with a few more Fed rate cuts to come, there's a potential to stay higher for longer depending on economic growth, and inflation.

And if the Fed stays higher for longer, it is going to be challenging for all the other central banks to ease policy as much as we expect in our base case.

Right now, we've rate cuts broadly coming in most major regions, but the extent depends on domestic factors, apart from how much they are able and willing to deviate from the Fed.

In the past, we've seen, if the Fed stays high for longer, other central banks tend to rething the extent to which they're able to cut rates.

9:33 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Robert Sockin of Citi on US Fed's actions

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Robert Sockin of Citi, says we've a very positive backdrop in the US; earnings growth is continued to be very strong throughout the cycle. Our equity strategiest's base case is that you'll get a significant leg-up from here to somewhere in the mid-6,000 range.

The backdrop from equities is positive, but the potential risks from Trump 2.0 on the tariff front not only tend to have negative effects on the economy, but also on specific companies.

9:32 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Gold, Silver slide up to 2% on MCX

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Gold trades below Rs 79,000/10 gm, Silver at Rs 88,300 per 1 kg

9:29 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Silver Spot up 0.4% at $29.47/Oz

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Silver Spot up 0.4% at $29.47/Oz

9:28 AM

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Robert Sockin of Citi on US Fed's actions, on CNBC TV18

Stock Market LIVE Updates: Robert Sockin of Citi, says what we saw from Fed Chair Powell today was a bit more caution on the outlook for inflation due to stronger inflation in recent prints.

Underneath the surface, its more about anticipation of upside inflation risks from the second Trump administration in the coming year.

The good news, is the US economy continues to be very resilient; growing very robustly; soft landing looks on track.

9:24 AM