Sensex drops 110 points; RIL, IT stocks weigh

Closing bell:

Equity benchmark Sensex ended 110 points lower after a choppy session on Friday, dragged by losses in index majors Reliance Industries, Infosys and TCS despite a positive trend in global markets.

The 30-share BSE index closed 110.02 points or 0.25 per cent lower at 44,149.72.

The broader NSE Nifty slipped 18.05 points or 0.14 per cent to 12,968.95.

PowerGrid was the top laggard in the Sensex pack, shedding over 2 per cent, followed by HCL Tech, ONGC, M&M, Axis Bank, TCS, Reliance Industries and Infosys.

On the other hand, Asian Paints, Titan, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Auto were among the gainers.

Domestic market swung between gains and losses in a narrow range. While most of the Asian markets recovered in green after witnessing tepid opening, Indian broader indices remained choppy throughout the day, said Binod Modi, Head- Strategy at Reliance Securities.

“However, strong buying remained visible in midcap and small-cap stocks as investors find midcaps more attractive now due to wider valuations gap compared to large caps,” he added.

As current valuations look to be reasonably stretched and the street is factoring a robust earnings growth, the sustainability of rebound in key economic indicators will be crucial for the market in the near term, he said.

Market Upate at 11.20 am

After opening lower today, the key indices steadily fell further on lack of large buying support amid moderate selling in late morning trading session.

At 11.20 am, the Sensex was being quoted at 44,127.04, down by 132.70 points from its previous close. Similarly, the Nifty was down 23.95 points to 12,963.05.

Top gainers include Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Eicher Motor,  Sun Pharma and Britannia shares and the losers were HDFC Life, PowerGrid,  Hindalco, HDFC and TCS.

Update at 9.55 am

Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty opened on a tepid note on Friday, tracking subdued cues from global markets.

At 9.55 am, the 30-share BSE index was trading 56.32 points or 0.06 per cent higher at 44,203.42.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty slipped 7.90 points or (- 0.06 per cent) to 12,979.60.

NTPC was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 2 per cent, followed by Bajaj Auto, Maruti, Tech Mahindra, L&T, Asian Paints and Bajaj Finance.

On the other hand, PowerGrid, Reliance Industries and TCS were among the laggards.

In the previous session, Sensex ended 431.64 points or 0.98 per cent higher at 44,259.74, and Nifty surged 128.60 points or 1 per cent to 12,987.

Foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 2,027.31 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to provisional exchange data.

Domestic markets do not appear to be inspiring at the moment as most of Asian markets are trading in red, said Binod Modi, Head- Strategy at Reliance Securities.

“Continued buying in BFSIs has been driving markets with robust FPIs flow for November so far. Going ahead, considering better prospects of earnings rebound in banks and favourable valuations, further buying in banking and financials cannot be ruled out,” he noted.

US markets were closed on Thursday due to Thanksgiving holiday. However, European stocks witnessed pressure as rising COVID-19 cases across Europe and extension of partial lockdown in Germany until December dented investor sentiment.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul were trading with losses in mid-session deals, while Tokyo was in the positive territory.

Meanwhile, Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.02 per cent higher at $47.80 per barrel.

COMMENT NOW