Market Wrap Podcast, May 11: Here's all that happened in the markets today

Markets remained in a firm bear grip on Tuesday as Dalal Street investors participated in-line with global peers. Asian stocks tumbled as investors feared that soaring commodity prices that have sent the cost of raw materials from copper to iron ore and lumber to record heights are the latest indicator that inflation may not be as transitory as some policymakers seem convinced.

Consequently, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 1.6 per cent in afternoon trade, its largest drop since late March while Japan's Nikkei slid 3.16 per cent. The Hang Seng tech index, meanwhile, fell 3 per cent.

In Europe, the pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 1.9 per cent while the main bourses in Frankfurt, Paris and London all lost close to 2 per cent.

Furthermore, Dow e-mini futures were down 0.49 per cent, S&P 500 e-minis were down 0.75 per cent, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 1.27 per cent, all indicating at another weak session on Wall Street later today.

That apart, on the coronavirus front, the World Health Organization said the coronavirus variant first identified in India last year was being classified as a variant of global concern, with some preliminary studies showing that it spreads more easily.

Against this backdrop, the frontline S&P BSE Sensex shedded 341 points, or 0.69 per cent, to end the session at 49,162 levels. During the day, the index traded within a range of 49,304 and 48,988 levels.

Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 3 per cent) was the biggest index loser today, trailed by HDFC, Tech Mahindra, HUL, Bajaj Finserv, Titan Company, and Bajaj Finance. On the contrary, NTPC, ONGC, PowerGrid, Sun Pharma, UltraTech Cement, and SBI were the top gainers, up between 1 per cent and 5 per cent.

On the NSE, the Nifty50 index held the 14,850-mark today and settled at 14,851 levels, down 92 points or 0.61 per cent. The index breadth remained neck and neck with 28 stocks in the red against 22 stocks in the green. JSW Steel, Hindalco, Wipro, and Divis Labs were the additional losers on the Nifty index while Coal India, Indian Oil Corporation, BPCL, and UPL were the additional gainers.

The broader markets, however, remained resilient to the market fall and ended higher today. The S&P BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices gained 0.60 per cent and 0.80 per cent, respectively.

Sectorally, the trend remained largely negative. The Nifty PSU Bank, Auto, and Realty indices were the only gainers, up 1 per cent, 0.22 per cent, and 0.29 per cent, respectively. On the downside, the Nifty Financial Services index slipped 1.3 per cent, followed by the Nifty Metal index, down 0.9 per cent.

Buzzing stocks

>> Shares of Alkyl Amines Chemicals zoomed 10 per cent and hit a new high of Rs 3,640 on the BSE in intra-day trade on Tuesday after the stock turned ex-split today. The company has split the equity share of face value Rs 5 into Rs 2.

>> Shares of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) surged 14 per cent to Rs 75.15, hitting a 21-month high on the BSE in an otherwise weak market on Tuesday, on the back of heavy volumes. A combined 551 million equity shares changed hands on the NSE and BSE today.

The stock of the state-owned heavy electrical equipment company hit its highest level since July 2019. In the past eight trading days, the stock has rallied 59 per cent from a level of Rs 47.20 hit on April 29.

>> Shares of Tata Motors differential voting right, or DVR, hit a 33-month high of Rs 151, as they rallied 6 per cent on the BSE in Tuesday's intra-day trade on the back of heavy volumes amid expectations of inclusion in the MSCI Smallcap index. The stock quoted at its highest level since July 30, 2018. In the past two weeks, shares of Tata Motors DVR have outperformed the index by surging 20 per cent, as against a 1.8 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex.