Snapping three day gaining streak, the Indian benchmark indices ended lower on Thursday, tracking weak cues from Asian peers. While BSE Sensex closed 598.57 points or 1.16 per cent lower at 50,846, NSE Nifty settled at 15,080.75, down by 164.85 points or by 1.08 per cent. Bucking the trend, the BSE MIDCAP and SMLCAP ended higher by 0.48 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively. The market breadth, indicating the overall strength of the market, was positive. Out of 3,475 shares traded on BSE, 1,740 advanced, 1,509 declined and 226 remained unchanged. Among the individual stocks, shares of HDFC, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank were among top losers. On the sectoral front, metal and bankex index were among top losers as investors resorted to profit booking, while power and consumer durables were among top gainers.
Also read: Top losers today: Five stocks fall upto 3%; HDFC, L&T, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, HDFC Bank
Commenting on market performance, S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities, says, "Markets opened weak on muted global cues and drifted lower during the afternoon even as we saw heightened investor interest in PSU stocks on hopes of privatisation and asset monetisation. In the broader market Sugar stocks registered smart gains for the second day in a row."
"Index opened a with a gap down on weak global cues though we saw some bounce but again in the second half we witnessed profit booking and index closed a day at 15080 with loss of one percent and formed a bearish candle on the daily chart. Going forwards index has one good support at 15k mark if managed to hold above that then some pullback otherwise more profit booking can be seen, on the higher side 15150-15200 zone will be stiff hurdle," says Rohit Singre, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities.
On Wednesday, the Indian benchmark indices ended higher for the third consecutive session, with BSE Sensex closing at 51,444.65, up by 1,147.76 points or by 2.28% and the NSE Nifty settling 329.6 points or 2.21% higher at 15,258. The market rally was fueled by firm global cues as well as gains in index heavyweights such as Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. All the sectoral indices ended in green, barring auto index, with metal and bankex stock emerging as top gainers, rising 3.23% and 2.75%, respectively.
Also read: Stock in news: Bharti Airtel, Adani Power, Bajaj Electricals, Welspun, HDFC and others
Here's a look at highlights of the market action on BSE and NSE today.
3:30 PM: Sensex, Nifty end lower on weak global cues
The BSE Sensex ended at 50,846.08, down by 598.57 points or by 1.16%, and the NSE Nifty was at 15,080.75, down by 164.85 points or by 1.08%. During the day's trade, Sensex and Nifty touched intraday low of 50539.92 and 14980.2, respectively.
2:00 PM: Tata Power shares hit 52-week high
Shares of Tata Power extended rally for the fourth straight session on Thursday and surged 5 per cent in intra-day to hit 52-week high of Rs 111. The company on Wednesday announced that TP Saurya Limited, the wholly owned subsidiary of The Tata Power Company, has signed a Power Purchase Agreement with Tata Steel (TSL) to develop a 15 MW solar project at Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.
2:00 PM: Vivimed Labs shares rise 7%
Shares of Vivimed Labs were trading 7.34 per cent higher at Rs 17.55 after the company announced that its FDF manufacturing facility located in Jeedimetla, near Hyderabad inspected in August 2017 by the Ukraine Ministry of Health, has been approved and accredited with GMP Certification effective September 2017 and same has been renewed upto February 4, 2022.
Commenting on the development, Ramesh Krishnamurthy, CEO of Vivimed Labs Ltd said, "Successful renewal of PICS GMP Certification enables Vivimed to scale up its branded product distribution in CIS Countries. Export thrust is key contributor to the growth strategy of Vivimed."
1:45 PM: IRCTC share price rises 7% to hit all-time high
IRCTC shares jumped nearly 7 per cent to hit all-time high of Rs 2,014.60 on the BSE amid spurt in volume trade. The catering and e-ticketing arm of Indian Railways has breached its previous high of Rs 1,995, touched on February 25, 2020.
1:20 PM: TCS shares gain on pact with Vodafone Netherlands
Shares of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) rose 0.5 per cent to Rs 3,081 on BSE after IT major said it has expanded its strategic partnership with VodafoneZiggo B.V. Netherlands to help the latter speed up its fixed fiber network roll out, enabling superior connectivity for subscribers and faster launch of new services. The financial details of the deals were not disclosed.
1:05 PM: Expert view on real estate sector
Vikas Garg, Deputy MD, MRG World says, "People's trust in real estate has improved as a result of a slew of government actions, lower EMIs, and a better understanding of real estate as a must-have commodity. The budget's emphasis on infrastructure will benefit the segment indirectly, as better infrastructure will aid projects that extend beyond city limits. The government has already set aside funds to invest in infrastructure to improve transportation quality. Multimodal infrastructure development, such as highways, rail, and metro, raises living standards and increases the demand for residential, industrial, retail, and warehousing real estate."
12: 50 pm: Top Nifty gainers are Adani Ports, Wipro, SBI Life and Tech Mahindra rising up to 3.27%.
12: 40 pm: Nifty is trading 70 points lower at 15,179 and Sensex falls 254 points to 51,190 in afternoon trade.
12:15 pm: MTAR Technologies IPO grey market premium rises
MTAR Technologies initial public offer's (IPO) grey market premium is trading at a strong Rs 450 per share today. This implies a listing price of Rs 1,025 compared to the IPO issue price of Rs 575 per share. MTAR Technologies' IPO is being held in a price band of Rs 574-Rs 575 per share. The GMP, which stood at Rs 200 on February 25 has more than doubled in six sessions. The surge in GMP of the IPO can be attributed to the rally in market this week. In the last three sessions, Sensex has rallied 2,347 points and Nifty gained 715 points.
11:45 AM: Equitas SFB shares jump over 14%
Shares Equitas Small Finance Bank (SFB) surged 14% to Rs 56.50 on Thursday, on the back of heavy volumes. This was the highest level touched by the stock since its listing on November 2, 2020. The stock has rallied 71 per cent against the issue price of Rs 33 per share.
11:20 AM: Sensex, Nifty stay under stress
Snapping three sessions gaining streak, the Indian benchmark indices opened lower on Thursday, tracking weak cues from global peers and negative trading at Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange. The BSE Sensex was currently trading at 50841.22, down by 603.43 points or by 1.17% and the NSE Nifty was at 15081.85, down by 163.75 points or by 1.07%.
11:15 AM: Yield on Govt 10-yr benchmark bond surges 11-month high
The yield on Govt 10-year benchmark bond rises to 6.26%, which is the highest level since April 20, 2020. While there are several season for rise in bond yields, rising inflation expectations are the simplest reason for the yield ascent. There is fear in the market that inflation could come roaring back with improving global growth outlook.
10:55 AM: Top gainers in morning session today
The top gainers of the BSE Sensex pack were Oil And Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (Rs. 114.75,+0.70%), Titan Company Ltd. (Rs. 1482.45,+0.55%), Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (Rs. 855.65,+0.40%), Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. (Rs. 4518.00,+0.38%), UltraTech Cement Ltd. (Rs. 6514.55,+0.23%), among others.
10:50 AM: Top losers in morning session today
The top losers of the BSE Sensex pack were Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (Rs. 2577.45,-2.84%), HDFC Bank Ltd. (Rs. 1544.75,-2.63%), Axis Bank Ltd. (Rs. 734.30,-2.57%), Larsen & Toubro Ltd. (Rs. 1465.00,-2.12%), ICICI Bank Ltd. (Rs. 618.80,-2.07%), among others.
10:45 AM: Axis Bank share price falls over 2%
Shares of Axis Bank fell over 2 per cent in opening deals on Thursday, in line with BSE benchmark Sensex which was down 600 points. Axis Bank has entered into partnership with WhatsApp to offer basic banking services to its customers.
10:15 AM: Bitcoin rally continues, rises 5% to $50,942.58
Bitcoin, the world's post popular cryptocurrency, jumped 5% to close at $50,942.58 on Wednesday. The digital currency has risen 83.7% from the year's low of $27,734 on January 4.
10:10 AM: Gold price slips below Rs 45,000, Silver at Rs 67,900 a kg
Gold continued to trade lower in Indian markets on Thursday, tracking subdued cues from international spot prices. Silver was also down nearly 1%. April gold contracts were trading lower by 0.36% at Rs 44,788 for 10 grams. May silver futures were also down 0.75% at Rs 67,490 a kilogram at 9:20 AM.
10:05 AM: Rupee opens 13 paise higher against dollar
Rupee opened 13 paise higher at 73.23, from its previous close against the US dollar. In the last trading session, the Indian currency had gained 65 paise to close at 72.72 against greenbacks. USDINR had gained as far as the intraday high of 72.71 and fell to an intraday low of 73.26. The dollar index which compares the strength of the dollar against 6 major currencies fell 0.12% and closed at 90.67. Brent crude future rose 1.69% to trade at $63.76/barrel.
According to analyst at Geojit research, USDINR near futures are at 73.1125 with the next support seen at 72.8483 and next resistance seen at 73.4783 ahead of market opening today.
9:55 AM: Petrol, Diesel prices unchanged for fifth day
The oil companies have kept Petrol and diesel prices unchanged for the fifth consecutive day. Petrol prices were last hiked on February 27, by 24 paise per litre in national capital of Delhi to an all-time high of Rs 91.17. In some parts of the country, such as Rajasthan, petrol prices have crossed Rs 100 mark.
9:50 AM: Experts view on market
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, says, "Bond yields are now exerting a major influence on stock prices, globally. After spiking to 1.6% on 25th Feb, the US 10-year yield fell to 1.4% and yesterday it has again risen to 1.48% impacting equity markets. In India, this has been a 'Buy on dips' market and it is likely to remain so till a major correction pulls it down. This will happen only when FIIs turn sellers on a sustained basis. Currently, mid-small-caps appear strong since money is moving into this segment on valuation comfort."
9:45 AM: Adani Port rises over 2% on acquisition of Gangavaram Port from Warburg Pincus
Shares of Adani Port gained over 2% after the Adani Group company acquired 31.5% stake held by Windy Lakeside Investment Limited (an affiliate of Warburg Pincus) in Gangavaram Port Limited (GPL). The deal is valued at Rs1,954 crore subject to certain regulatory approvals.
9:40 AM: Trends in FII investments
The FIIs stood as net buyer in equity, while it turned net loser in debt on March 3. Gross equity purchased stood at Rs. 9,395.34 Crore, while the gross sold stood at Rs. 6745.99 Crore. Asa result, the net investment of equity was Rs 2649.35 Crore.
Meanwhile, gross debt purchased stood at Rs. 382.78 Crore and gross debt sold stood at Rs. 2,052.99 Crore, resulting in fund outflows of Rs 1,670.21 crore.
9:30 AM: Sensex down 565 points, Nifty holds 15k levels
The BSE SENSEX was at 50,879.58, down by 565.07 points or by 1.1%, and the NSE Nifty was at 15,087.95 down by -157.65 points or by -1.03 %. The broader market was mixed, with BSE MIDCAP was down by 0.16%, while SMLCAP was up 0.32%.
The top losers of the BSE Sensex pack were Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (Rs. 2586.85,-2.49%), Bajaj Finserv Ltd. (Rs. 10135.25,-2.42%), HDFC Bank Ltd. (Rs. 1551.00,-2.23%), Axis Bank Ltd. (Rs. 738.70,-1.98%), Bajaj Finance Ltd. (Rs. 5438.10,-1.93%), among others.
9:15 AM: Sensex, Nifty opens sharply lower
The Indian benchmark indices opened lower on Thursday, tracking weak cues from global peers and negative trading at Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange. Sensex opens 700 points or 1.37 per cent lower at 50,753.84, and NSE Nifty belled 200 points or 1.32 per cent down at 15,044.
8:56 AM: SGX Nifty trades in red
The SGX Nifty was trading 290 points or 1.90 per cent lower at 15,009.50, indicating a negative start for the Sensex and Nifty.
8:45 AM: Global markets
Asian stocks were trading lower on rising bond yields and negative closing at Wall Street in overnight trade.
8:30 AM: Stocks in focus
Shares of Bharti Airtel, Adani Power, Bajaj Electricals, Welspun, HDFC, Ircon International, Mahindra Logistics and others will be in focus in Thursday's trading session.