Sensex closes 104 pts down on Parliament logjam; banks dive

The BSE Sensex fell more than 100 points in late trade on first day of the week due to further downward journey in banks, capital goods, technology and auto stocks.

Another reason may be the bad start to the second week of monsoon session in parliament today as the opposition party stuck to its demand of Prime Minister's resignation after the huge notional loss of Rs 1.85 lakh crore to the government in coal allocation scam. It means the hopes of some action on reforms by government looks unlikely in near term.

Market expert Ambareesh Baliga said, "The hope is clearly dimming and the political scenario which we are facing right now, clearly policy action is very remote. I think it's time that people have started giving up. Especially those stocks, which had moved in the last couple of weeks, they are clearly giving up as of now."

The 30-share BSE benchmark fell 104.40 points to close at 17,678.81. The 50-share NSE benchmark managed to hold the 5350 level amid selling pressure, which declined 36.45 points to 5,350.25.

Nifty dips further; PNB hits 52-week low, Bharti cuts gains

Indian shares extended losses in afternoon trade, weighed down by banks, capital goods, metals and technology stocks. Profit booking may also be the reason as the market had gained 0.5% last week.

The 30-share BSE Sensex slipped 79 points to 17,704.33 and the 50-share NSE Nifty was down 27.40 points to 5,359.30.

India's largest lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank dropped 2% and 1.5%, respectively. Punjab National Bank has touched a 52-week low of Rs 683.20, down 4%. Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda were down nearly 3%.

IT services exporter Infosys declined 1.5% while its rival Wipro went down over 1%. Among auto stocks, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra plummeted 1.5% whereas M&M was up 1.3%.

Private steel and power producer JSPL remained top loser among largecaps with 5% losses. State-owned power equipment manufacturer BHEL plunged 2% and engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro fell 0.8%.

Shares of Reliance Industries, Hindustan Unilever, Sun Pharma and Cipla moved up 0.6% each.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel trimmed gains to 1.15% from 2% after the Supreme Court extended 2G Auction deadline. The 2G auction will begin on November 12, 2012 and end on January 11, 2013.

Choppy Sensex remains under pressure; Jindal Steel falls 5%

Equity benchmarks remained under pressure amid choppy trade, due to fall in ICICI Bank and Infosys. SBI, Tata Motors and L&T too were down, but the upmove in Reliance Industries, HUL and Bharti Airtel has capped the downside.

The BSE benchmark was down 60 points to 17,723.26 and the NSE benchmark lost 19 points to 5,367.90. The broader markets too were marginally lower as decliners outnumbered advancers by 831 to 581 on the National Stock Exchange.

Country's largest lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank dropped 1.8% each. IT services exporters Infosys and Wipro went down 1% each while their rival TCS was down 0.5%.

Jindal Steel extended fall to 5% while Sterlite Industries and Hindalco Industries were down 0.8-1%. Top car maker Maruti and commercial vehicle major Tata Motors slipped 1.4% each.

Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro and state-owned power equipment manufacturer were down 0.7% and 1.8%, respectively.

Country's largest utility vehicle manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra and telecom operator Bharti Airtel topped the buying list with 1.5% gains.

Two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto and index heavyweight Reliance Industries rose 0.75% each while FMCG major Hindustan Unilever gained 1%.

Healthcare stocks like Cipla, Sun Pharma and Dr Reddy's Labs moved up 0.35-0.8%.

Volatile Sensex trades lower; ICICI, Tata Motors plunge

The BSE Sensex extended fall to 60 points amid volatility, due to fall in European markets in initial trade. Banks, metals, capital goods and technology stocks were under pressure, but gains in Reliance Industries, HUL and Bharti has limited the downside.
 
The BSE benchmark was down 60 points to 17,723.61 and the NSE benchmark declined 21 points to 5,365.70.

Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro and state-owned power equipment manufacturer moved down 1% and 1.7%, respectively.

Country's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank fell 1.5% while its rival State Bank of India lost 1.2%. PNB and Axis Bank were down over 2.5%.

Commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors and top car maker Maruti Suzuki declined 1.9% and 1.3%, respectively; but utility vehicle major Mahindra & Mahindra remained higher with 1.4% gains.

Software services exporters TCS, Infosys and Wipro went down around 0.5%. Jindal Steel & Power topped the selling list with 4% losses.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel gained 2% and index heavyweight Reliance Industries rose 0.6%. FMCG major Hindustan Unilever and drug producer Cipla were up over 1%.

Most active shares on exchanges were SBI, United Spirits, Wockhardt, Crompton Greaves, Tata Steel, HDFC, Axis Bank and Infosys.

Nifty, Sensex lacklustre; Bharti, Reliance extend gains

Indian shares remained lacklustre since early trade due to lack of major global or local cues. The market has been in a range of 5200-5400 this month and foreign institutional investors were quite supportive during the same period as they bought nearly Rs 9,000 crore worth of shares in last 18 consecutive sessions.

Another reason for holding this range is that the market still looks hopeful for some reforms or cut in diesel price by government, after the current monsoon session in the parliament. On the global front, there are reports that the European Central Bank may launch new bond buying plan and also reports of some easing by Federal Reserve.

The BSE Sensex went down 30.62 points to 17,752.59 and the NSE Nifty slipped 10.70 points to 5,376. The broader markets too were flat as the market breadth was neutral.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel extended gains to 2% after the upgraded by Goldman Sachs and the news that its subsidiary may hit capital markets soon.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries, FMCG major Hindustan Unilever, two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto and drug producer Cipla gained 1% each.

Housing finance company HDFC and state-owned oil & gas producer ONGC rose 0.3% each. Utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra was up 1.4%.

Country's largest lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank fell over 1%. Top software services exporters TCS, Infosys and Wipro declined 0.5%.

Commercial vehicle major Tata Motors and cigarette major ITC were down 1.6% and 0.7%, respectively.

In the second line shares, Motilal Oswal, 3M India, Dewan Housing, Jindal Stainles and Rallis India rallied 3-3.5% whereas Glodyne Tech, IFCI, HOEC, UCO Bank and Wockhardt lost 2-5%.

Nifty rangebound; IT, banking stocks under pressure

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty continued to trade in a range around their previous closing levels as the selling in banks, technology, metals and capital goods counterbalanced gains in oil & gas, healthcare stocks, HDFC and HUL.

The BSE benchmark declined 27.57 points to 17,755.64 and the NSE benchmark was down 7 points to 5,379.70.

Sudarshan Sukhani of s2analytics.com says, the market has gone into a narrow groove. "This is not a buy on dips market because we are in a trading range. So, there is essentially no dip or no rally. It's just a momentum inside the boundaries. So, do not put money on the Nifty, till it moves away," he adds.

Country's largest IT services exporters TCS, Infosys and Wipro were down 0.5-1%. Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro lost 0.8%.

Top lenders State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank dropped 0.5-0.9%. Commercial vehicle major Tata Motors went down 1% whereas utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra gained 1.4%.

Among metals and mining stocks, Jindal Steel, Coal India, Sterlite Industries and Hindalco Industries plummeted 0.7-2%.

Oil & gas producers Reliance Industries and ONGC rose 0.75% and 0.5%, respectively. Housing finance company HDFC and FMCG major Hindustan Unilever were up 0.4% and 0.66%, respectively.

Pharmaceutical companies like Cipla, Dr Reddy's Labs and Sun Pharma moved up 0.3-0.8%.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel remained higher with 1.4% gains on news the IPO of its subsidiary of Bharti Infratel may hit capital markets soon.

Sensex, Nifty flat; Reliance, Bharti, M&M top gainers

Indian equity benchmarks started off Monday trade on a flat note due to mixed global cues. Asian markets edged down in morning trade, but US markets closed higher on Friday on hopes of some easing by Federal Reserve and likely new bond buying plan by European Central Bank.

The 30-share BSE Sensex moved up 25.18 points to 17,808.39 and the 50-share NSE Nifty went up 10 points to 5,396.35.

Bharti Airtel gained 1.4% on reports that the company may file IPO papers of its subsidiary Bharti Infratel soon.

Reliance Industries was up 1% after foreign research firm Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock.

Cairn India, BHEL, Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries, Coal India, M&M, Tata Motors and Ambuja Cements were gainers in early trade.

L&T, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bank of Baroda, HDFC and Infosys were under pressure.

The CNX Midcap Index rose 22 points to 7,230. About two shares advanced for every share declining on the National Stock Exchange.

Deccan Chronicle Holdings was up 4% after DNA reported that promoters are learnt to have zeroed in on a strategic investor.

AP Paper jumped 2.6% and MTNL was up 2%.

United Spirits gained 1.5% as The Financial Express reported that Daigeo is in talks with the company for stake buy.

Shree Cements moved up another 1.35% after rising more than 5% in previous two sessions due to stronger than expected results for the June quater.

Jain Irrigation gained another 1% after Friday's 5% rally. Opto Circuits too rose another 3%.

Plethico Pharma tumbled 4% after falling over 45% in previous sessions.

Lanco Infratech, Adani Port and Punj Lloyd were down 1.5-3% after The Economic Times reported that these companies have been banned by the home ministry from participating in two major port projects on security grounds.

IFCI tumbled another 3.5% after losing 16% on Friday.