Sensex Falls 105 Points, RIL Closes Above Rs 1,100 After Two Years

Sensex fell over 100 points and Nifty closed below its crucial psychological level of 8,850 on the back of selling pressure in banking, power and FMCG shares.

The Sensex ended 105 points lower at 28,668 and Nifty slipped 36 points to settle at 8,831.

For most part of the day, the Sensex and Nifty traded in a choppy manner. Sensex fell as much as 146 points and Nifty touched intraday low of 8,820.

Banking stocks which witnessed good buying in the previous session witnessed selling pressure in trades today. Nifty Bank index closed 1 per cent lower. Axis Bank was the top loser from this space, the stock closed 6 per cent lower at Rs 556.45. 

Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of India, Yes Bank and Federal Bank were also among the losers, down 1-2 per cent each.

From the Nifty basket of shares, 38 ended lower while 13 closed higher.

ACC, Lupin, Ambuja Cememts, Aurobindo Pharma, Infosys, Power Grid and Tata Motors were among the laggards.

On the other hand, Reliance Industries was the top Nifty gainer the stock closed above its crucial psychological level of Rs 1,100 for first time in over 2 years.


HCL Tech, Dr Reddy's Labs, BPCL and TCS were also among the notable gainers.

The broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices, the BSE mid-cap index ended 0.28 per cent higher.

The overall market breadth was negative as 1,494 stocks ended lower while 1,168 closed higher on the BSE.

3:16 p.m.: Banking shares extend losses. Nifty Bank index falls over 1 per cent; Axis Bank was the top loser from this space, down 6 per cent to Rs 556.60. Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of India, Bank of India and Yes Bank were also among the losers, down 1-2 per cent each.

2:57 p.m.: Stock markets extended losses on selling pressure in banking shares. Sensex falls 70 points to 28,703 and Nifty trades below 8,850.

2:12 p.m.: Stock markets continue to trade on a list less note. Sensex down 6 points at 28,767 and Nifty up 1 point at 8,868.

1:18 p.m.: Axis Bank was the top Nifty loser, down 4.3 per cent to Rs 566.45. Lupin, ACC, Ambuja Cements, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors and Yes Bank were also among laggards.

12:58 p.m.: PSU banking shares were witnessing selling pressure. IDBI Bank, Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and Allahabad Bank were among the losers.

12:36 p.m.: Adlabs Entertainment was the top gainer from the small-cap space, up 20 per cent at Rs 100.20. Shreyas Shipping, Morepen Laboratories, Metalyst Forgings, SRF and Moser Baer were also among the gainers.

12:23 p.m.: Shares of Lincoln Pharmaceuticals surged nearly 5 per cent today after the company launched Ondansetron oral spray, used for treatment of nausea and vomiting caused by surgery or cancer drugs, in India. 

The stock gained 4.71 per cent to Rs 247.85 on BSE. 

11:41 a.m.: Morepen Laboratories shares surged as much as 11 per cent on Friday on a report that the Delhi-based pharma company is in talks to sell its OTC (over-the-counter) business. 

The Economic Times, quoting sources, said Morepen Laboratories has mandated Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu to run a formal process and negotiations are at an advanced stage.

11:29 a.m.: Oil & gas stocks were witnessing buying interest. The BSE Oil & Gas index was up 1 per cent; IGL, Hindustan Petroleum, Indian Oil, ONGC, BPCL, Petronet LNG and Reliance Industries were among the gainers, up 0.8-2.7 per cent each.

11:22 a.m.: FMCG shares were witnessing selling pressure. The BSE FMCG index was down 0.25 per cent; Emami, Hindustan Unilever, Cogate Palmolive, Dabur, Godrej Consumer Products and ITC were among the laggards.

10:57 a.m.: Stock markets continue to trade on a lacklustre note. Sensex declines 31 points to 28,742 and Nifty slips 9 points to 8,858.

10:09 a.m.: PSU banking stocks witness selling pressure. The PSU Bank Nifty declines 0.72 per cent; Allahabad Bank was the top loser from this space, down 1.5 per cent to Rs 81. Canara Bank, Syndicate Bank, Andhra Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of India and IDBI Bank were also among the laggards, down 0.87-1.35 per cent each.

10:06 a.m.: L&T Technology Services shares list on a strong note, jump as much as 8.25 per cent to Rs 931.

9:53 a.m.: Market breadth was positive as 1,073 stocks were advancing while 677 were declining.

9:47 a.m.: L&T Technology Services will be listed on stock exchanges later in the day. Its IPO was oversubscribed 2.5 times.

9:44 a.m.: Reliance Capital was the top gainer from the mid-cap space, up 3 per cent at Rs 591. Shriram Transport Finance, Bharat Forge, IDFC Bank, IDFC Bank, Reliance Infrastructure, Bajaj Finserv and Piramal Enterprises were also among the gainers.

9:22 a.m.: Stock markets edged lower in opening deals on Friday owing to profit booking after Thursday's sharp upmove.

The Sensex declined as much as 58 points to 28,714 and Nifty was hovering around its crucial psychological level of 8,850.

Selling pressure was seen in banking stocks on account of profit booking after previous session's strong rally. The Bank Nifty was the top sectoral loser, down 0.5 per cent or 106 points at 20,003.

Auto, IT, FMCG and power stocks were also witnessing selling pressure.

From the Nifty basket of shares, 35 were declining while 16 were declining.

Axis Bank was the top Nifty loser, down 2 per cent at Rs 580. ACC, Tata Motors, Infosys, Hindalco, Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel, State Bank of India, Yes Bank, ICICI Bank, Lupin and ONGC were also among the laggards.

On the other hand, Bharti Infratel, BPCL, Larsen & Toubro, HCL Technologies, Reliance Industries and Aurobindo Pharma were among the gainers.

The broader markets were outperforming the benchmark indices. The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices were up 0.3 and 0.4 per cent each.

9.00 a.m.: Rupee opens lower at 66.69 per dollar against Thursday's close of 66.66. 

8.10 a.m.: The BSE Sensex and the Nifty are likely to open with minor gains on Friday as indicated by futures trade of Nifty on the Singapore Exchange, which was up 11 points (or 0.12 per cent) at 8,890 as of 7.45 a.m.. 

After Thursday's nearly 1 per cent gain in the benchmark indices, a sense of relief has returned to the market. However, analysts still suggest caution as markets are trading closer to record highs. 

"Indications are in the favour of further consolidation in Nifty in near future prior to any major directional move. However, the bias would remain on the positive side so maintain buy on dips approach," said Jayant Manglik of Religare Securities. 

Telecom stocks will be in focus today after Vodafone Group Plc infused fresh equity of around Rs 48,000 crore in to its Indian arm-Vodafone India-ahead of an auction of airwaves starting next month. Analysts say Vodafone India may bid aggressively in the upcoming spectrum auction to counter the new entrant Reliance Jio. 

L&T Technology Services, which raised Rs 894 crore through its initial public offer (IPO) last week, will make market debut today. The IPO was subscribed 2.5 times and shares were issued at Rs 860. 

Bharat Financial Inclusion will also be in focus today as the microfinance company has opened an Rs 750 crore Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP), which will result in equity dilution of 7.6-7.9 per cent. Price band of the QIP is fixed at Rs 740-Rs 770 compared to its Thursday's closing price of Rs 812.3. 

Meanwhile, Asian shares were mostly positive today except Japan's Nikkei, which was down 0.15 per cent tracking gains in the yen. The Hang Seng was up 0.23 per cent, South Korea's Kospi index traded 0.17 per cent higher while China's Shanghai Composite was up 0.07 per cent as of 7.45 a.m. 

Overnight, US stocks climbed as big tech names supported gains. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 98.76 points, or 0.54 per cent, to 18,392.46, the S&P 500 gained 14.06 points, or 0.65 per cent, to 2,177.18 and the Nasdaq Composite added 44.34 points, or 0.84 per cent, to 5,339.52.

(With inputs from Reuters)