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Sensex falls 72 points; HCL Tech soars 7% on Q4

If you missed our coverage, here are the top 10 stories of the day.

Anand Shimpi (Image courtesy: theverge.com)
Anand Shimpi (Image courtesy: theverge.com)

The 30-share BSE Sensex ended below the 17,000 mark for a third straight day. The Nifty index managed to hold on to the 5,100 mark as Indian markets closed off the day's low tracking gains in European stocks. The Indian rupee continued to be under pressure and traded at 56.24 to the dollar.

European stocks advanced despite little change in global cues. Spain's bond yields sustained over 7 per cent, though the country’s IBEX index traded with nearly 2 per cent gains.

Investors were also concerned that Greece might miss its deficit reduction targets. Markets in Asia closed with deep cuts. Japan's Nikkei index fell nearly 1.5 per cent.

The Sensex declined 72 points or 0.43 per cent to 16,846, while the Nifty index shed 19 points to 5,110. The Sensex recovered over 110 points from the intraday low.
IT stocks managed to close with gains on the back of an earnings outperformance by HCL Tech, India's 4th largest IT outsourcer. The stock was the top Nifty gainer, rising 6.8 per cent. HCL Tech beat estimates on profits and margins.

However, other frontline IT stocks like Infosys and Wipro closed in the red. Infosys hit its 52-week low today, while Wipro declined for the fourth straight day. Both companies have forecast muted sales growth.

FMCG stocks also gained. Tobacco major ITC rose 1.8 per cent though HUL, India's biggest FMCG firm, fell 2.4 per cent on the back of profit booking. HUL had hit a new life-time high yesterday. FMCG stocks are considered defensive and tend to gain in a weak market.

Metal stocks were the big underperformers today. Power and steel major JSPL was the top Nifty loser, declining 4.6 per cent. The stock hit a life time low after it failed to meet consensus estimates in the June quarter.

Other steel stocks - state run SAIL and Tata Steel- declined 2.6-3.8 per cent.

The market breadth was weak with 68 per cent stocks declining on the broader BSE 500 index.