Sensex Falls 310 Points Led By Losses In Oil & Gas Stocks

Indian stock markets fell for second straight day with Sensex falling over 300 points and Nifty closing below its important psychological level of 8,600 on the back of intense selling in oil & gas, auto, power and healthcare stocks.

The Sensex closed 310 points lower at 27,775 and Nifty fell 103 points to end at 8,575.

From the Nifty basket of stocks, 43 ended lower while only eight stocks managed to close on a positive note.

Grasim Industries was the top Nifty loser, the stock fell 7.28 per cent to close at Rs 4,809. Meanwhile, BSE sought clarification from Grasim Industries on news report that Birla group plans to merge Grasim, AB Nuvo into $11 billion company. Grasim Industries in response said, "No such proposals have been considered or approved by the board."

Lupin fell 4 per cent to close at Rs 1,544 following the drugmaker's quarterly earnings announcement on Tuesday. Lupin, India's third-largest drugmaker, posted a 55 per cent rise in its first-quarter profit at Rs 882 crore. Reported revenues were up 41 per cent to Rs 4,440 crore.

ACC, Idea Cellular, Ambuja Cements, Hero MotoCorp, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, BHEL and Cipla were also among the losers.

On the other hand, Adani Ports and SEZ was the top Nifty gainer, the stock closed 8 per cent higher at Rs 258.45 a day after the port operator reported a 31 per cent jump in its June quarter profit. Adani Ports - India's largest port developer - was the top Nifty50 gainer in morning trade.

Adani Ports reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 836 crore on total income of Rs 1,826.58 crore in Q1. Cargo volume rose sharply to 42.33 million metric tonnes (MMT) in Q1 from 39.61 MMT in the year-ago period.

Bank of Baroda, TCS, Yes Bank and Coal India were also among the notable gainers.

The broader markets ended in-line with the benchmark indices. BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices closed 1 per cent each.

3:18 p.m.: Stock markets near day's lowest level. Sensex slumps nearly 350 points and Nifty hits low of 8,564.

3:12 p.m.: Auto stocks witness selling pressure. The BSE Auto index falls 1.72 per cent; Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra, Motherson Sumi, Hero MotoCorp, Eicher Motors and Ashok Leyland were among the laggards.

3:00 p.m.: Broader market check - BSE midcap and smallcap indices down about 1 per cent each. Gautam Chhaochharia, head of India Research at UBS Securities, the valuations of midcaps are more stretched as compared that of largecaps. From a near-term perspective, a shift to largecaps from midcaps is advisable, he added. 

2:43 p.m.: Shares of Motherson Sumi slumped as much as 12 per cent to Rs 315 after the auto component major announced its June quarter earnings. 

Motherson Sumi reported a 16 per cent jump in net profit of Rs 439 crore while net sales also grew 16 per cent to a record Rs 10,352 crore. 

However, the operational performance of the company disappointed the Street, traders said. The margins came in below the Street's expectations, triggering a selloff in the stock. (Read)

2:35 p.m.: Oil & gas stocks extend selloff. The BSE Oil & Gas index falls nearly 2 per cent; Indian Oil, Reliance Industries, HPCL, Bharat Petroleum, GAIL India and Castrol were among the laggards.

2:24 p.m.: Shares of Tata Chemicals rose as much as 13.27 per cent to hit fresh 52-week high of Rs 524.70 after the company announced sale of its urea business to Yara India for Rs 2,670 crore.

Tata Chemicals in a statement issued to the Bombay Stock Exchange said that its board of directors approved the "transfer of the business of sale and distribution of urea and customized fertilisers, manufactured by the company at its plants located in Babrala, Uttar Pradesh, by way of a slump sale by the company to Yara India". (Read)

2:10 p.m.: From the Nifty basket of shares, 46 stocks fall while 5 advance.

1:52 p.m.: Stock markets remain under pressure as heavyweights such as Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, HDFC, Tata Motors and ITC fall. Sensex slumps 289 points to 27,795 and Nifty falls 96 points to 8,582.

1:42 p.m.: Mahindra & Mahindra reports net profit of Rs 962 crore in Q1, beats estimates. Shares decline 2.6 per cent to Rs 1,442.

1:23 p.m.: Stock markets extend loss. Sensex falls 242 points to 27,843 and Nifty declines 80 points to 8,597.

1:11 p.m.: Market breadth remains bearish as 1,724 stocks fall while 774 advance on the BSE.

12:54 p.m.: Auto component maker Motherson Sumi Systems on Wednesday reported 15.81 per cent increase in consolidated net profit at Rs 439.36 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2016.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 379.38 crore in the same period last fiscal, Motherson Sumi Systems (MSSL) said in a BSE filing.

Motherson Sumi shares were trading 5 per cent lower at Rs 335.30. (Read)

12:25 p.m.: Grasim Industries was the top Nifty loser, down 5.2 per cent to Rs 4,917. Lupin, Ambuja Cements, IndusInd Bank, ACC, ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries, Aurobindo Pharma and Bharat Petroleum were also among the laggards, down 1.65-3 per cent each.

12:18 p.m.: Stock markets continue to trade with a negative bias. Sensex falls 216 points to 27,869 and Nifty declines 76 points to 8,602.

12:13 p.m.: Market breadth remains negative as 1,696 stocks fall while 704 advance.

12:07 p.m.: Gokaldas Exports was the top loser from the small-cap space, down 17.45 per cent to Rs 87.75. Vikas Eco Tech, SRS Real Estate, Unitech, Anuh Pharma, RSWM Ltd, BS Limited, Showman Logistics and Intellect Design Arena were also among the losers, down 6-13 per cent each.

12:00 p.m.: Adani Ports and SEZ shares jumped over 5 per cent on Wednesday, a day after the port operator reported a 31 per cent jump in its June quarter profit. Adani Ports - India's largest port developer - was the top Nifty50 gainer in morning trade.

Adani Ports reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 836 crore on total income of Rs 1,826.58 crore in Q1. Cargo volume rose sharply to 42.33 million metric tonnes (MMT) in Q1 from 39.61 MMT in the year-ago period. (Read)

11:50 a.m.: Lupin shares fell sharply for the second day, following the drugmaker's quarterly earnings annoucement on Tuesday. Lupin, India's third-largest drugmaker, posted a 55 per cent rise in its first-quarter profit at Rs 882 crore. Reported revenues were up 41 per cent to Rs 4,440 crore.

Some analysts noted that the jump in Lupin's Q1 profit was driven in part by a lower tax rate. An HDFC Securities analyst said Lupin's margins were off 2.5 per cent, due to higher employee costs. (Read)

11:33 a.m.: Real estate stocks fall. The BSE Realty index slumps 1.7 per cent; HDIL, Indiabulls Real Estate, Godrej Properties, DLF, Unitech, Prestige Estates and NBCC were among the losers.

11:27 a.m.: Oil & gas stocks were witnessing selling pressure. The BSE Oil & Gas index falls 1.4 per cent; Indian Oil, Reliance Industries, HPCL, Bharat Petroleum, ONGC, GAIL India and Castrol India were among the losers.

11:18 a.m.: JP Associates was the top loser from the mid-cap space, down 4 per cent to Rs 11.28. Indiabulls Housing Finance, Canara Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Reliance Infrastructure, GMR Infra, Torrent Power, Reliance Capital, Titan and Reliance Communications were also among the losers, down 2.5-3.3 per cent each.

11:01 a.m.: Broader markets witness selling pressure. The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices fall 0.9 and 0.75 per cent each respectively.

10:58 a.m.: Market breadth remains extremely bearish as 1,528 stocks fall while 684 advance.

10:50 a.m.: Selling pressure visible across the sectors. Banking, metal, realty, capital goods, consumer durables and healthcare indices fall 1 per cent each.

10:47 a.m.: OMCs in India look attractive as of now, says Mahesh Nandurkar of CLSA.

10:45 a.m.: Don't see more than 10 per cent growth in FY'17 for Indian IT, says Mahesh Nandurkar of CLSA.

10:38 a.m.: See non-performing asset ratios rising n FY17, says Mahesh Nandurkar of CLSA.

10:32 a.m.: Sensex extends losses, falls 219 points to 27,866 and Nifty falls below 8,600.

10:20 a.m.: Banking stocks were leading the decline in the stock markets. The Nifty Bank index fell nearly 1 per cent or 179 points to 18,754; IndusInd Bank was the top loser from this space, down 1.66 per cent to Rs 1,166. Canara Bank, Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Punjab National Bank, Axis Bank, Federal Bank and HDFC Bank were also among the laggards.

10:13 a.m.: Stock markets witness swift decline. Sensex falls 168 points to 27,917 and Nifty declines 58 points to 8,620.

9:48 a.m.: Stock markets continue to trade with a negative bias. Sensex declines 27 points to 28,057 and Nifty slips 11 points to 8,667.

9:46 a.m.: US Fed could hike interest rates by December and not in September, says Gautam Chhaochharia, head of India research with UBS Securities.

9:43 a.m.: Valuations of mid-cap stocks look stretched and advice investors shifting from mid-cap stocks to large-cap stocks, says Gautam Chhaochharia, head of India research at UBS Securities.

9:41 a.m.: Would advice caution for investors, says Gautam Chhaochharia, head of India research at UBS Securities.

9:32 a.m.: FMCG stocks were witnessing selling pressure. The BSE FMCG index was the top sectoral loser, down 0.38 per cent; ITC, Godrej Consumer Products, Marico, Colgate Palmolive, Hindustan Unilever, Emami and Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation were among the laggards from this space.

9:27 a.m.: After opening slightly higher, the benchmark indices slipped into the red tracking selling pressure in select FMCG, IT, healthcare and banking stocks.

From the Nifty basket of shares, 15 were advancing while 36 were declining.

Bharti Infratel was the top Nifty loser, down 1.7 per cent to Rs 378.50. Idea Cellular, Grasim Industries, Tata Motors, Dr Reddy's Labs, HDFC, ITC and Infosys were also among the laggards.

On the other hand, Adani Ports and SEZ was the top Nifty gainer, up 4.7 per cent to Rs 251. Bosch, Aurobindo Pharma, ONGC, Hindalco and Bajaj Auto were also among the notable gainers.

9:20 a.m.: Stock markets opened on a flat note in trades today. The Sensex was up 21 points at 28,106 and Nifty jumped 2 points to 8,680.

09.00 a.m. Rupee opens higher at 66.68 per dollar against Tuesday's close of 66.84.

08.15 a.m. Indian stock markets are likely to open on a positive note on Wednesday, according to Nifty futures trading on Singapore Exchange (SGX), which were up 17 points or 0.20 per cent at 8,724 as of 08.15 a.m.

The Sensex and Nifty had slipped around 0.4 per cent yesterday, snapping a three-day winning streak, after the Reserve Bank held repo rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent.

Foreign institutional investors, who have accumulated equities worth over $5 billion year-to-date, bought cash shares worth Rs 144 crore on Tuesday. However, domestic institutional investors sold shares to the tune of Rs 610 crore yesterday.

Analysts are divided in their outlook on domestic markets. Some expect a correction is around the corner, with the Nifty running up sharply over the last five months, while others expect the rally to continue.

"We're currently seeing consolidation in Nifty on expected lines and its negative divergence with banking index putting further pressure now. Traders should continue with stock specific trading approach while maintaining positive yet cautious stance especially in leveraged trades," said Jayant Manglik of Religare Securities.

Corporate earnings will continue to be in focus, with auto major M&M reporting its Q1 numbers today. Indian Hotels, J&K Bank, Minda Corp, Motherson Sumi, Rajesh Exports and Thermax are some key companies that will report numbers today.

Asian markets were mixed today, with Hang Seng rising 0.6 per cent and Nikkei down 0.3 per cent. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan rose 0.1 per cent, staying near a one-year high hit the previous day.

Overnight on Tuesday, Wall Street eked out gains following a strong session for European stock markets, with Germany's DAX index jumping 2.5 per cent to its highest of 2016 due to strong earnings from reinsurer Munich Re and telecoms group Altice.

MSCI's all-country world index covering 46 markets rose 0.5 per cent on Tuesday to touch its highest level since late August 2015.