Sensex cuts losses at close amid global sell-off, Re fall

Indian equities pared losses quite sharply in last couple of hours of trade as both BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty closed marginally lower as compared to more than 1% fall since early trade on Friday. Markets outperformed global peers that may be due to steep fall in crude oil prices, but the rupee's fall beyond the psychologically important 57 a dollar mark has capped the recovery.

The BSE Sensex fell 60.05 points to close at 16,972.51 that recouped 165 points from intraday low amid global sell-off. The NSE benchmark dropped 18.95 points to 5,146.05.

Nirmal Jain of India Infoline feels a lot of negativity has been already built into the price and sentiment. "The worst will be behind us. Crude oil is one of the significant issues for our balance of payment as well as fiscal deficit. Now, the crude has come down significantly and is also looking technically weak. That itself can change our current account deficit as well as fiscal deficit numbers significantly," he explained.

Yesterday Brent crude fell (below USD 90 a barrel) to lowest level since December 2010 that gained 1% to USD 90.19 a barrel today.

The fall across the globe was led by growth concerns after weak manufacturing data for June (globally), Moody's downgrade of world's 15 biggest banks and mounting worries over euro-zone debt troubles including the size of a bailout needed to save Spain's banking sector.

France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were down around 1%. Asian markets too closed lower.

Back home, the Indian rupee touched a record low of 57.30 as against the US dollar that was down by 95 paise to 57.25 per dollar at 15:35 hours IST.

According to Ashok Gautam of Axis Bank, this move was triggered by rating action taken yesterday by Moody's on several US and European banks. From here on, the next level that Gautam eyes is 57.75 a dollar.

Private sector lenders ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank rebounded quite smartly in late trade to close marginally higher while their rival State Bank of India fell 1%.

State-owned oil & gas producer ONGC gained 1.5% due to fall in crude oil prices in international market yesterday. However, Reliance Industries continued to fall since its partner (with 10% stake in KG D6 with BP & Reliance) Niko Resources slashed KG D6 reserve estimates by 80%; the stock was down 1%.

Country's largest software services exporter TCS rose 0.7% whereas its rival Infosys declined 0.7%.

Among auto stocks, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Auto and Hero Motocorp moved up over 0.5% while top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors lost 0.44%.

Housing finance company HDFC fell over 1% as it is quoting ex-dividend today. Capital goods majors Larsen & Toubro and BHEL dropped 0.7% on profit booking, which had gained in previous sessions on hopes of likely import duty on power equipment.

Metal stocks were down due to fall in commodities prices; Tata Steel and Hindalco tanked around 3% while Jindal Steel fell 1.6%.

In the second line shares, HDIL and Reliance Power rallied 3%. Shree Renuka Sugars and WWIL surged 5% amid huge volumes. Indiabulls Power shot up 10%.

Manappuram Finance and Dishman Pharmaceuticals gained 7% whereas NCC fell 5% and United Spirits was down 2.5% on profit booking.

The broader markets were flat as the market breadth was neutral.

At 14:57 hours IST: Sensex recovers to 17000; HDFC Bank, ICICI turn positive

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty cut losses quite sharply as both benchmarks were marginally lower in afternoon trade, outperforming global peers. France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were down 1% each.

The BSE benchmark touched the 17,000 level that was down 36.03 points to 16,996.53 after showing recovery of more than 180 points from day's low. Meanwhile, the NSE benchmark fell 11.3 points to 5,153.70.

However, the Indian rupee continued to move around 57.20 as against the US dollar, a depreciation of 90 paise over previous close.

Private sector lenders HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank gained 0.3% each while their rival State Bank of India was flat.

Among auto stocks, Maruti Suzuki, Hero Motocorp, Bajaj Auto and Mahindra & Mahindra rallied 0.6-1.5% whereas Tata Motors turned flat.

Top software services exporter TCS and state-owned oil & gas producer ONGC climbed over 1%.

However, shares of Reliance Industries, HDFC, Infosys, ITC, Larsen & Toubro and Bharti Airtel were down 0.5-1%.

Metal stocks tanked quite steeply due to fall in price of commodities in international market. Tata Steel tumbled 2.2% and Hindalco slipped 3%.

At 13:59 hours IST: Sensex trims losses; TCS, ONGC, Maruti outperform

The market has trimmed losses in afternoon trade as both BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty were down 0.5% each as compared to more than 1% fall half an hour back. However, France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE fell more than 1% and the Indian rupee continued to trade around record low of 57.25, down 95 paise.

The BSE benchmark slipped 76.55 points to 16,956.01 and the NSE benchmark was down 24.45 points to 5,140.55.

Nirmal Jain of India Infoline feels the fall in crude oil prices improved sentiment of market whereas fall in rupee continues to be a worry. Brent crude bounced back by 0.4% to USD 89.59 a barrel today after falling more than 3% yesterday; it has been down nearly 30% from USD 128 a barrel that touched during 2012. However, the Indian rupee too depreciated by 28% since April 2011.

Top software services exporter TCS and state-owned oil & gas producer ONGC gained 1% and 1.4%, respectively.

Country's largest car manufacturer Maruti Suzuki rallied 1.8%. Two-wheeler majors Hero Motocorp and Bajaj Auto gained 0.8% each.

However, top lenders State Bank of India and ICICI Bank too cut losses, falling 0.7% each.

Housing finance company HDFC and index heavyweight Reliance Industries declined 1.25% each.

Top cigarette major ITC, India's second largest software services exporter Infosys and engineering and construction major by sales Larsen & Toubro were down 0.7% each.

Among metals stocks, Tata Steel tanked 2.5% and Hindalco Industries tumbled 3.5%.

Cement stocks like Jaiprakash Associates (unlisted company Jaypee Cement), ACC and Ambuja Cements crashed 3-5% after Competition Commission of India slammed with a fine of more than Rs 6,000 crore on 11 cement companies.

At 12:46 hours IST: Sensex, Nifty drop 1%; Rupee at record low of 57.22/USD

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty dropped over 1% in afternoon trade due to sharp depreciation in the Indian rupee. Banks, capital goods, metals and telecom stocks extended fall. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries and engineering and construction major by sales Larsen & Toubro tanked nearly 2%.

The BSE benchmark fell 192.37 points to 16840.19, weighed down by 25 components. Meanwhile, the NSE benchmark dropped 60.35 points to 5,104.65.

Continuing its falling streak for the fifth straight day today, the rupee hit yet another record low of 57.22, down 0.92 paise 1.64% on sustained capital outflows and strong demand from oil importers for the American currency.

Dollar also gained against euro and other currencies in the overseas forex markets amid global economic growth concerns, Moody's downgrade of world's 15 biggest banks and mounting worries over euro-zone debt troubles including the size of a bailout needed to save Spain's banking sector.

European markets like France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE started off trade with 1% gap down.

Back home, cigarette major ITC, top commercial vehicle maker and country's largest coal mining company Coal India slipped over 1%.

Top private sector lender ICIC Bank tanked 1.6% while its rivals State Bank of India and HDFC Bank were down 1.1% and 0.85%, respectively.

Among metals stocks, Tata Steel and Hindalco crashed over 3%; Jindal Steel lost over 2%.

However, shares of Cipla and Maruti outperformed, rising 1% each. TCS, Hero Motocorp and Bajaj Auto rose 0.5% each.

About two shares declined for every share advancing on the National Stock Exchange.

At 11:40 hours IST: Volatile Sensex trades lower; L&T, HDFC, Reliance down 1.5%

The BSE Sensex fell over 100 points as the Indian rupee touched a record low of 57 a dollar on Friday. Index heavyweights Reliance Industries and Larsen & Toubro tanked 1.5% each. Housing finance company HDFC too was down 1.5%.

The BSE benchmark was down 116 points to 16,915.5 and the NSE benchmark fell 37.4 points to 5,127.60.

Country's largest lenders State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank went down 0.6-1%.

Top telecom operator Bharti Airtel and India's second largest software services exporter Infosys lost 1% each.

The Indian rupee was trading at record low of 57 as against the US dollar today, down 0.7 paise or 1.24% over previous close. Pradeep Khanna of HSBC India feels the oil companies may be buying dollars.

Brent crude oil prices dropped nearly 28% from this year's peak around USD 128 a barrel. It rebounded with 0.7% gains to USD 89.80 a barrel after falling more than 3% yesterday. NYMEX crude too rose 0.4% to USD 78.50 a barrel after seeing a loss of 4% yesterday.

Such a sharp fall in crude is really beneficial for countries that are net importers. Indian government imports more than 80% of crude oil requirement. But India could not get full beneficial because of depreciation in rupee.

The broader markets were flat as the market breadth was neutral.

In the second line shares, India Infoline, Sobha Developer, Shree Global, Cox & Kings and Shree Renuka shot up 4-8% whereas Madras Cements, India Cements, Vijaya Bank, Prism Cement and State Bank of Mysore fell 2-4%.

Media stocks like NDTV, Hindustan Media and TV18 Broadcast rallied 6-8%. (Note: Web18, which owns Moneycontrol.com and Indiaearnings.com, belongs to the Network 18 Group).

On the global front, Asian markets remained under pressure. Shanghai and Hang Seng fell over 1%. Kospi tanked over 2% while Straits Times was down 0.8%.

At 10:09 hours IST: Nifty, Sensex pare losses; Rupee moves towards 57/$

Indian equity benchmarks pared half of their losses due to buying interest in heavyweights at lower levels. The Indian rupee has fallen quite sharply since yesterday that was down 49 paise to 56.79 as against the US dollar.

The BSE benchmark fell 94.78 points to 16,937.78 and the NSE benchmark slipped 31 points to 5,134. Asian markets remained lower in the range of 0.5-2%, but Nikkei showed smart recovery to trade flat.

Cement stocks too huge knock today after the Competition Commission of India slammed with more than Rs 6,000 crore fine on 11 cement companies. ACC, Ambuja Cements, Jaiprakash Associates, Grasim, Ultratech Cement, Madras Cement and India Cement were down 1.5-3.5%.

Oil & gas producers Reliance Industries and ONGC dropped 1.2% and 0.6%, respectively, but oil marketing companies like BPCL, HPCL and IOC gained 0.8-1.6% due to sharp fall in crude oil prices since yesterday. WTI crude fell well below USD 80 a barrel after weak economic data that was down over 4%.

Infosys, country's second largest software services exporter went down 1.4% whereas rival TCS rose 0.5%.

India's largest lenders State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank were down over 0.6% after the rating agency Moody's downgraded 15 biggest global banks by 1-3 notches.

Among metals stocks, Tata Steel, Sterlite Industries and Hindalco Industries tanked 1.5% as copper slipped nearly 3% on the LME yesterday.

Top commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors fell 1% whereas M&M, Maruti and Hero Motocorp were up 0.6-1%.

Defensives like HUL and ITC were marginally higher. Drug producer Cipla outperformed, rising 2%.

Even the market breadth improved, though declining shares outnumbered advancing by 627 to 499 on the National Stock Exchange.

At 9:20 hours IST: Sensex, Nifty open 1% lower on global sell-off

The BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty started off trade with a 1% gap down following downward journey across the globe on growth concerns, but benchmarks immediately pared somewhat losses. Asian markets were down between 0.5% and 2%.

The BSE benchmark fell 105 points to 16,926.70 and the NSE benchmark was down 32.85 points to 5,132.15.

The Indian rupee was moving towards the 57 level on huge demand for US dollar from corporates. It was trading at 56.86 as against the US dollar, down 56 paise.

Shares of cement companies caught in bear grip after Competition Commission of India slapped with a fine of Rs 6,200 crore on 11 cement companies. JP Associates crashed 4%. Ambuja Cements and ACC were down 3% each.

Among others, Grasim, India Cements, Ultratech Cement and JK Cement slipped 1.5-3%.

Banks stocks were down after rating agency Moody's downgraded 15 biggest global banks by 1-3 notches.

Sterlite, Hindalco Industries, Infosys, Sesa Goa, HDFC, ICICI Bank, PNB, SBI and ONGC were under pressure.

However, oil marketing companies like BPCL, IOC and HPCL rallied 1-2% as crude oil prices have fallen 3% yesterday in international market on demand worries.

ITC, HUL, Cipla and Hero Motocorp were marginally higher.

The CNX Midcap Index fell 56 points to 7,072 as about five shares declined for every share rising on the National Stock Exchange.

In the second line shares, NCC, Lanco Infratech, GMR Infrastructure and GVK Power were down 1.5-2.5%.

Apollo Tyres, S Kumars, Titan Industries and Educomp fell 1.5% each.

Idea Cellular tanked 2% amid large volumes while Reliance Communications slipped 1%.

However, Pipavav Defence, Essar Oil and Manappuram Finance gained 0.5%. WWIL shot up 3.75%.