Nifty settles below 19k, Sensex falls 284 points; Adani Enterprises down 3%; Blue Star up 8%

Domestic equity markets extended their weakness for the second straight session and settled lower on Wednesday. The monetary policy outcome by the US Federal Reserve kept the traders on tenterhooks, who are expecting high interest rates for a longer period. Weakness in metals, IT and auto counters weighed on the market during the day.

For the day, BSE Sensex dropped 283.60 points, or 0.44 per cent, to end at 63,591.33. NSE's Nifty tumbled 90.45 points, or 0.47 per cent to end the session at 18,989.15. However, broader markets performed in line with the headline peers as BSE midcap and smallcap indices settled in red. Fear gauge India VIX jumped about 2 per cent to 12.05-levels.

Investors continued to trade with caution and trimmed their equity exposure as markets extended fall for the second straight session amid selling in metal, power, auto and banking stocks while gains in telecom stocks curbed losses. FIIs offloading shares in the domestic market continues to hurt sentiment, said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research) at Mehta Equities.

"Investors sentiment was also primarily clouded by lingering concerns about corporate India’s Q2 earnings which as of now is uninspiring. Technically, upside in Nifty could be seen only above the biggest hurdle at 19,289 mark, while support is placed at 18,823 mark," he said.

On a sectoral front, the Nifty realty index gained about two per cent, while the media index gained about a per cent. The PSU Bank, pharma and healthcare indices ended in green. Among the losers, the Nifty metal index dropped more than a per cent, while the IT and auto indices shed half a per cent to a per cent for the day.

In the Nifty50 pack, Adani Entertainment dropped more than 3 per cent, while Coal India, Tata Steel, SBI Life Insurance Company and Adani Ports dropped more than 2 per cent each. Asian Paints, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Consultancy Services and JSW Steel were other key laggards.

On the other hand, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries gained about 3 per cent after strong Q2 performance. Bharat Petroleum gained more than 2 per cent for the day. HDFC Life Insurance Company and Hindalco Industries added about a per cent each. Tata Consumer Products and ITC were other key gainers.

"The domestic indices were responding to the global signals ahead of the Fed's monetary policy decision later in the day, while the global market was also assimilating to the mixed bag of US corporate earnings reports, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

"Markets anticipate a status quo in the Fed policy, however sustenance of the high rate for a prolonged period is the issue. Ease in demand, as reflected by October PMI data, led to more caution in India. However, good H1 gross tax collection and in-line expectation monthly volume demand by the auto sector, resulted in a minimal negative effect," he asid.

A total of 3,783 shares were traded on BSE on Wednesday, of which 2,003 settled with cuts. 1,641 stocks ended the session with gains while 139 shares remained unchanged. During the day, 220 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 185 shares tested the lower circuit levels for the day.

In the broader markets, Thangamayil Jewellery hit a lower circuit of 10 per cent, while Savita Oil Technologies dropped 9 per cent. Jindal Steel & Power was down 8 per cent at the close, while Natco Pharma, Electronics Mart India and CARE Ratings shed 7 per cent each. DCM Shriram and Shiva Cement ended 6 per cent lower each for the day.

Among the gainers, Jubilant Industries gained about 13 per cent, while Greenlam Industries and GFL surged 11 per cent each for the day. SEPC and Cressanda Solutions rose 10 per cent each. Blue Star was up 8 per cent, while Vodafone Idea, Apollo Micro Systems and Geojit Financial Services ended 7 per cent up each.

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