Sensex flat on rupee support, auto stocks gain
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The BSE Sensex opened lower for a third straight day Friday, tracking weakness in Asian stocks. At 09.20 a.m., it traded 41 points or 0.25% lower at 16,177, while the broader Nifty index slipped 12 points at 4,912.
The rupee gained 19 paise against the dollar, lending some support to markets. The currency has fallen over 6% in May, tracking a similar weakness in the euro.
Banking stocks (0.3%) saw some buying interest after the sharp fall yesterday. Private lenders Axis Bank (1%), ICICI Bank (0.83%) and PSU lender SBI (0.53%) traded higher in early trade.
Auto stocks traded with gains ahead of announcement of May sales. Tata Motors (0.90%) recovered after three days of hammering. Maruti (0.89%), India's biggest car maker, also saw gains.
40 of the Nifty 50 stocks traded lower. Oil and gas major Cairn India (-3%) was the top Nifty loser. Asian Paints (-1.8%) and mining major Sesa Goa (-1.6%) also saw selling pressure.
IT stocks (-0.72%) were the big underperformers. Wipro (-1.7%) and TCS (-0.5%) saw some selling pressure in early trade.
Asian stocks traded lower after May's PMI data in China indicated a slowdown in the manufacturing sector. Japan's Nikkei index traded 1.2% lower. However, benchmarks in China and Hong Kong traded higher on hopes of government action to kick start the economy.
Overnight, the Dow closed 0.2% lower at 12,393, capping the worst May in two years. Jobless claims rose to a five-week high and the economy grew at 1.9% in the first quarter, below estimates of 2.2%.
(With inputs from AP)