Photo: The Hindu Business Line
Chennai, India (BBN) - The benchmark BSE Sensex was trading by nearly 300 points in the mid-session due to offloading of positions by participants with today being the last day of November series contracts in the derivatives segment.
Also, investors were cautious ahead of September quarter GDP data to be released later in the day, reports The Hindu Business Line.
At 1.45 p.m., the 30-share BSE index Sensex was down 281.10 points or 0.84 per cent at 33,321.66 and the 50-share NSE index Nifty was down 83.5 points or 0.81 per cent at 10,277.80.
All BSE sectoral indices were trading in the negative zone. Among them, banking index fell 1.02 per cent, followed by metal 0.73 per cent, auto 0.68 per cent and power 0.6 per cent.
Major Sensex losers were Axis Bank (-1.88%), Reliance (-1.75%), M&M (-1.6%), State Bank of India (-1.49%) and Cipla (-1.48%), while the only four gainers were Dr Reddy's (+0.8%), Bajaj Auto (+0.34%), Bharti Airtel (+0.23%) and L&T (+0.13%).
HDFC Bank fell 0.9 per cent after gaining in the last four sessions, while ICICI Bank Ltd slipped more than 1 per cent. The Nifty bank index was down 1 per cent, on track for a third session of losses.
The Nifty PSU bank index fell for the third straight session, losing as much as 1.4 per cent, with State Bank of India down 1.8 per cent.
PSU banks seem to be under pressure as the likelihood of interest rates falling further from current levels has been postponed, Jasani said.
GDP DATA, F&O EXPIRY
Domestically, investors were wary ahead of the GDP data, with analysts expecting growth to have picked up as businesses started to overcome teething troubles after the launch of a national sales tax and the ban on high-value banknotes last year.
Some volatility was also anticipated ahead of the expiry of monthly derivative contracts at the end of the session.
“Markets are at quite a high level in terms of valuations; so some amount of correction is normal to expect,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities
FII SELLING
As per provisional data, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs. 859.27 crore yesterday. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth Rs. 771.07 crore.
Asian shares fell on Thursday, weighed down by a plunge in high-flying technology shares, a move that some see as a healthy correction after a strong rally but others believe may herald the peak of a “super cycle” that has been boosting the sector.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dropped 0.5 per cent, with technology bellwether Samsung Electronics falling 2.9 per cent to two-month lows. Japan’s Nikkei dipped 0.1 per cent, led by a 2.0 per cent fall in electronic machinery makers.
In the US, the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.27 per cent as investors shifted to financials and other sectors even as the S&P 500 was almost flat and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.44 per cent.
BBN/MMI/ANS