13-month closing low; Nifty at 7717, Sensex tanks 243 points

3:30 pm Market closing: Last hour selling pressure dragged benchmark indices sharply. The market ended at 13-month closing low. The Sensex was down 242.88 points or 0.9 percent at 25453.56 and the Nifty slipped 68.85 points or 0.9 percent at 7717. About 1226 shares have advanced, 1398 shares declined, and 134 shares are unchanged.

TCS, Tata Steel, ITC, Reliance and Infosys were top gainers while BHEL, SBI, M&M, ONGC and NTPC were top losers in the Sensex.

3:10 pm Market slips again: The market is wobbly with no major support. The Nifty breached 7700 briefly.  The Nifty is down 80.35 points or 1 percent at 7705.50. The Sensex is down 287.22 points or 1 percent at 25409.22, and About 1127 shares have advanced, 1452 shares declined, and 118 shares are unchanged.

BHEL plunges 6 percent, SBI is down 4 percent while ONGC, HDFC and Coal India are other major laggards. Among the gainers are TCS, ITC, Lupin, Tata Steel and Reliance.

3:00 pm Market extends losses: Equity benchmarks extended losses in last hour of trade. The Sensex plunged 226.86 points or 0.88 percent to 25469.58 and the Nifty dropped 60.05 points or 0.77 percent to 7725.80.

About 1161 shares have advanced, 1395 shares declined, and 117 shares are unchanged on the BSE.

2:50 pm GDP growth 8%?: The Indian economy is still expected to grow around 8 percent in the fiscal year to March 2016, said the chief economic adviser at the finance ministry on Tuesday.

Arvind Subramanian's comments came days after economic growth slowed at a faster-than-expected pace to 7 percent in the quarter to June.

The slowdown has cast doubts on the government's growth estimate of 8-8.5 percent for the full fiscal year.

Subramanian also said inflation would be a challenge for Asia's third-largest economy going forward.

2:45 pm Market Update: The Sensex dropped 149.52 points or 0.58 percent to 25546.92 and the Nifty slipped 41.70 points or 0.54 percent to 7744.15.

About 1234 shares have advanced, 1292 shares declined, and 122 shares are unchanged on the BSE.

2:40 pm Buzzing: Shares of Majesco rallied 9 percent, in addition to 4.4 percent upside in previous session. Exchanges have shifted this stock to rolling segment (with effect from September 2) from trade-for-trade (T2T) segment.

What does it mean is that one can take delivery of shares. Therefore it allows fund houses or investors to buy shares if they wish. However, in T2T segment, each trade is considered in isolation and there is no netting of positions, which means one has to settle buy or sell trade on the same day.

Majesco, the insurance subsidiary of Mastek , offers an integrated portfolio of software and services to the insurance industry. With the help of Agile Technologies and Cover-All Technologies (acquired in the US and both integrated in FY16), the company is in entire cycle of insurance industry - property, casualty, life insurance and servicing.

Mastek demerged its insurance business last year. Pursuant to the scheme of demerger of insurance business, one share of Majesco issued for every 1 share held in Mastek.

2:25 pm Gold halts three-day rally: Snapping three-day rising streak, gold prices retreated by Rs 60 to Rs 27,000 at the bullion market today on weak global cues and easing demand from jewellers at prevailing levels. Silver too turned weak and fell by Rs 150 to Rs 35,000 per kg on reduced offtake by industrial units and coin makers.

Traders said besides fall in demand from jewellers and retailers at existing levels, a weak global trend as Asian stocks extended a global rout on concern over China's slowdown and its impact on the world economy, mainly led to decline in gold prices.

Globally, gold declined 0.2 percent to USD 1,138.35 an ounce and silver by 0.5 percent to USD 14.54 an ounce in Singapore.

2:00 pm Market Check: The market continued to consolidate with negative bias in afternoon trade. The Sensex fell 89.15 points to 25607.29 and the Nifty slipped 24.05 points to 7761.80, dragged by banking & financials, capital goods and select auto stocks.

The market breadth, too, turned negative as about 1317 shares have declined against 1195 shares advanced on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Retail inflows into equities could moderate following the recent slide, but valuations are still comforting, says Mahantesh Sabarad of SBICap Securities.

"We are today at perhaps 12 times FY17 earnings so it has been a cheap market in this entire down fall that we have seen and the downfall is attributable to the huge FII outflow," he says in an interview to CNBC-TV18.

Shares of HDFC, SBI, Axis Bank, M&M and BHEL topped the selling list on Sensex, down 3-4 percent while TCS, Infosys, ITC, Reliance Industries, Lupin and Tata Steel bucked the trend, up 1.4-2.7 percent.

1:55 pm Buzzing: Shares of Majesco rallied 10.5 percent intraday, in addition to 4.4 percent upside in previous session. Exchanges have shifted this stock to rolling segment (with effect from September 2) from trade-for-trade (T2T) segment.

What does it mean is that one can take delivery of shares. Therefore it allows fund houses or investors to buy shares if they wish. However, in T2T segment, each trade is considered in isolation and there is no netting of positions, which means one has to settle buy or sell trade on the same day.

Majesco, the insurance subsidiary of Mastek, offers an integrated portfolio of software and services to the insurance industry. With the help of Agile Technologies and Cover-All Technologies (acquired in the US and both integrated in FY16), the company is in entire cycle of insurance industry - property, casualty, life insurance and servicing.

1:37 pm Market check: The Sensex is down 129.76 points or 0.5 percent at 25566.68, and the Nifty is down 37.05 points or 0.5 percent at 7748.80. About 1242 shares have advanced, 1211 shares declined, and 90 shares are unchanged.

BHEL, M&M, HDFC, NTPC and Axis Bank are top losers.

1:30 pm Market outlook: One of the reasons why many private sector banks had been enjoying premium valuations in the last few years was because of limited competition, feels Ajay Srivastava of Dimensions Consulting. With the entry of payment banks, more banks will have to cut their interest rates to protect market share, and this could lead to a shrinking of the juicy valuations, Srivastava tells CNBC-TV18.

He remains cautious on the market and says the government's decision to accept the AP Shah panel recommendations offering relief to FIIs on retsrospective Minimum Alternate Tax will not help boost sentiment in a big way. That is because the market is grappling with bigger global issues at this point and investors are withdrawing from equities.

The market is in red as the Sensex is down 39.60 points at 25656.84. The Nifty is down 7.75 points at 7778.10. About 1300 shares have advanced, 1142 shares declined, and 91 shares are unchanged.

TCS, Tata Steel, Lupin, Infosys and Reliance are top gainers while BHEL, M&M, NTPC, SBI and Axis Bank are major losers.

The slowdown in growth in China has been spooking investors for a while now. But the rally there started in 2014 and there is still quite a bit of profit there, says Ben Luk of JP Morgan Asset Management.

According to him, at the moment the Chinese government needs to push through further monetary and fiscal measures to tide over the crisis. However, the likelihood of the Chinese government pushing through further intervention in the equity market is rather low.

On the brighter side though, US Futures is showing recovery after major indices on Tuesday ended in correction territory, down nearly three percent in their third-largest daily decline for 2015.

12:55 pm Market Update: The Sensex gained 16.70 points at 25713.14 and the Nifty rose 5.10 points to 7790.95. About 1274 shares have advanced, 1107 shares declined, and 102 shares are unchanged on the BSE.

12:45 pm Interview: Marico expects a volume growth of over 8 percent if urban consumption revives and rural demand stabilises, says Saugata Gupta, MD and CEO of the company.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Gupta says the entire fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector is benefiting from lower commodity prices and 'ploughing it back into innovation and pricing' will be an additional positive.

On international sales, he says with stable macro situations for most of Marico's markets abroad, it is only the internal factors impacting the sales.

12:35 pm Europe Update: European markets opened marginally higher, after their Asian counterparts pared losses after some heavy selling in the previous session.

France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE gained 0.4-0.5 percent.

12:30 pm Maruti's LCV launch: Country's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India plans to launch its first ever light commercial vehicle (LCV) during the ongoing fiscal despite declining sales in the segment.

"Our plans to launch the LCV during the current fiscal remains intact. We plan to launch it in few states first as a pilot project before going pan India," MSI Executive Director Marketing and Sales, RS Kalsi told agency.

 
LCV sales are still under pressure in the domestic market even as the other segments in the commercial vehicle segment have started showing some level of growth. MSI plans to sell the LCV through a separate network.

Commenting on the passenger vehicle sales, Kalsi said the company plans to reach out to 1.5 lakh villages this fiscal as compared to 1.25 lakh villages last financial year.

12:15 pm SIAM on GST: Calling for removing high rates of taxation, auto industry body SIAM on Wednesday said it has been "disheartened" by the lack of political consensus on implementation of Goods and Services Tax.

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) said the industry has been slowly turning around after witnessing a prolonged slowdown but "there are speed breakers" in the form of government policies as the country prepares for future emission norms and safety standards.

"The auto industry is highly taxed with multiple excise duty rates from 12.5 percent to 30 percent," SIAM President Vikram Kirloskar said at the inaugural session of the auto industry body's general meeting.

He further said after additional state taxes, the overall cascading effect goes up to 84 percent on vehicles. "SIAM has been seeking for reduced taxation and was looking forward to GST but we are disheartened at the lack of political consensus on it...," Kirloskar added.

12:00 pm Market Check
The market continued to be volatile in noon trade following sharp fall in previous session. The Sensex gained 30.93 points at 25727.37 and the Nifty rose 14.50 points to 7800.35.

The broader markets were marginally in positive terrain as about 1205 shares have advanced against 1070 shares declined on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Aban Offshore and Jindal Drilling Industries gained 3 percent and 12 percent, respectively after the petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan said Cabinet has approved higher participation of private companies in small oil fields. "Cabinet approved auction of 69 oil & gas fields and also approved separate policy for these fields," he added.

11:50 Stock view: JP Morgan has reiterated overweight rating on Infosys with a target of Rs 1250 a piece. Shares of the IT major rose 1.5 percent intraday on Wednesday.

The brokerage states with attrition in control and client confidence rising, Infosys has set the stage for a broad-based and sustainable revival.The company plans to roll-out innovation to all its 8,500 master projects in one way or another by the end of the current year. The brokerage believes Infosys innovation and automation will likely be saviour of the industry amidst continued pricing pressure.  However, it will continue to watch per capita revenue and win rates to track the measurable benefits of automation for Infosys.

11:40 am Market outlook: One of the reasons why many private sector banks had been enjoying premium valuations in the last few years was because of limited competition, feels Ajay Srivastava of Dimensions Consulting. With the entry of payment banks, more banks will have to cut their interest rates to protect market share, and this could lead to a shrinking of the juicy valuations, Srivastava tells CNBC-TV18. He remains cautious on the market and says the government's decision to accept the AP Shah panel recommendations offering relief to FIIs on retsrospective Minimum Alternate Tax will not help boost sentiment in a big way. That is because the market is grappling with bigger global issues at this point and investors are withdrawing from equities.

11:30 am Interview: Slowdown in the Chinese market will have a negligible impact on auto ancillary major Motherson Sumi , which gets 85 percent of its business from Europe, while India contributes just 12-13 percent. Vivek Chaand Sehgal, chairman of Motherson Sumi Group, says, "Europe and the United States continue to remain poised and can make up for any slowdown in China." Besides, he adds that these slowdowns in fact give good acquisition opportunities. However, the stock has fallen nearly 26 percent in the past month. But Sehgal says the company's operations, balancesheet, debt - everything is comfortable.

The market continues to remain flat after early gains. The Sensex is up 14.73 points at 25711.17 and the Nifty is up 7.80 points or 0.10% at 7793.65. About 1205 shares have advanced, 842 shares declined, and 79 shares are unchanged.

TCS, ITC, Lupin, Reliance and Infosys are top gainers. Among the losers are BHEL, NTPC, Axis Bank, Hero and SBI are losers in the Sensex.

Gold edged lower after a four-day advance that had been fuelled as uncertainty over the fate of China's economy hit global equities. Asian shares slipped after weak manufacturing activity reports from both the US and China sent Wall Street reeling, while the dollar steadied after steep losses. All eyes will be on Friday's US nonfarm payrolls with economists saying strong employment growth in August could help cement expectations that the Fed will raise interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade at its next meeting on Sept. 16-17.

10:45 am Market Update: Equity benchmarks gained strength again amid choppy trade. The Sensex rose 130.01 points or 0.51 percent to 25826.45 and the Nifty advanced 45 points or 0.58 percent to 7830.85.

About 1259 shares have advanced, 709 shares declined, and 60 shares are unchanged on the BSE.

10:35 am Market Expert: One of the reasons why many private sector banks had been enjoying premium valuations in the last few years was because of limited competition, feels Ajay Srivastava of Dimensions Consulting. With the entry of payment banks, more banks will have to cut their interest rates to protect market share, and this could lead to a shrinking of the juicy valuations, Srivastava tells CNBC-TV18.

He remains cautious on the market and says the government's decision to accept the AP Shah panel recommendations offering relief to FIIs on retsrospective Minimum Alternate Tax will not help boost sentiment in a big way. That is because the market is grappling with bigger global issues at this point and investors are withdrawing from equities.

He says auto sales in July were strong mainly because of the heavy discounts offered by vehicle makers. September will be a crucial month for the auto sector, feels Srivastava. If the dealers do not stock up heavily ahead of the festive season, it means weak sales in the coming months, he says.

10:15 am Hero hits 52-week low: Shares of Hero Motocorp fell 3.5 percent intraday to touch a 52-week low of Rs 2,302.70 after further decline in two-wheeler sales during August.

Hero sold 4,80,537 units in August 2015, lower by 14 percent compared to 5,58,609 units sold in the year-ago period, said the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer. Sales also declined 1.4 percent on month-on-month basis.

While citing the reason for subdued sales, it said the festive season this year will begin almost three weeks late as compared to last year and this shift in season is also reflected in the subdued sales in August against same period last year.

With the upcoming festive season, Hero expects sentiments to improve which in turn is likely to revive market demand as industry expects second half of the year to be better than first two quarters.

10:00 am Market Check
The market remained in a positive terrain amid consolidation after a 587-point fall in previous session due to global turmoil. The Sensex gained 62.58 points at 25759.02 and the Nifty rose 23.30 points to 7809.15.

The broader markets marginally outperformed benchmarks; the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices advanced 0.3 percent and 0.65 percent, respectively. The market breadth was positive as about 1087 shares have advanced against 668 shares declined on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

ITC, Reliance Industries, TCS and Lupin topped the buying list on Sensex, up 1.5-2 percent. However, SBI, Tata Motors, Hero Motocorp, ONGC, Cipla, NTPC, BHEL, GAIL and Tata Steel dropped 1-2.5 percent.

9:50 am FII view: Mahesh Nandurkar, CLSA says the recent drop in global commodity prices helps India's macro as it lowers the twin deficits and inflation pressures. He feels while India will likely emerge as a relative beneficiary, a worsening global growth outlook would negatively impact corporate earnings.

According to him, assuming spot prices for commodities and currency, and pushing out India's economic recovery to FY18, the earnings cut for FY16 and FY17 for coverage universe would be 4 percent and 8 percent, respectively.

He feels sectors with the highest potential earnings cut would be metals and oil, followed by cement, public financials, property and capital goods.

9:40 am Buzzing: Shares of DLF gained nearly 8 percent intraday as its wholly-owned subsidiary, DLF Home Developers (DHDL) and GIC have entered into a joint venture to invest in two upcoming projects located in Central Delhi.

The JV is expected to benefit from GIC's experience of investing in integrated developments across the globe.

GIC will invest Rs 1990 crore and both projects will be developed under DHDL.

Saurabh Chawla, Senior Executive Director-Finance, DLF said, "We hope that this investment is a beginning of a new relationship with GIC at the project level. We look forward to working together with GIC in many projects, both residential and commercial."

9:30 am Market check:  The market has become extremely volatile. The Sensex is up 35.15 points at 25731.59 and the Nifty is up 6.40 points at 7792.25.
About 846 shares have advanced, 480 shares declined, and 64 shares are unchanged. ITC, Sun Pharma, Axis Bank, Lupin and TCS are top gainers while Hero, ONGC, Tata Steel, Vedanta and Maruti are losers in the Sensex.

After sharp cuts yesterday, the market has opened higher. The Sensex is up 148.78 points or 0.6 percent at 25845.22 and the Nifty is up 44.20 points or 0.6 percent at 7830.05. About 570 shares have advanced, 135 shares declined, and 34 shares are unchanged.

Lupin, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma and Hindalco are top gainers in the Sensex.Among the losers are Hero, ONGC, Bajaj Auto, NTPC and Tata Motors.

The Indian rupee declined in early trade. It has opened lower by 10 paise at 66.32 per dollar against 66.22 a dollar on Tuesday.

Himanshu Arora, Religare feels the rupee is expected to trade slightly weak today amid a slew of negative data releases from US to China. He says the range for rupee today is seen between Rs 65.95-66.60/USD.

Dollar slipped against the yen and the euro as the fall in equity markets forced investors to unwind well established trades, sending the euro and safe-haven yen higher.

Meanwhile, mainland shares led losses in Asia, tracking offshore losses driven by persisting concerns over the health of China's economy.

However, Japan's Nikkei 225 index managed to stage a rebound by mid-morning trade, probably inspired by the near 1 percent rises in the S&P 500 futures and Dow futures in early Asian trade.

Wall Street ended in correction territory overnight, with the major averages closing down nearly 3 percent in their third-largest daily decline for 2015. In their worst start to September in 13 years, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 had their worst first-of-the-month trading day of a month since March 2009. The tech-heavy Nasdaq had its worst first trading day since October 2011.

Crude prices declined sharply with Nymex crude sliding to 44 dollars a barrel. Also a report showed US crude stocks rose last week.

In the precious metals space, gold prices remained steady at around USD 1130 an ounce.