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Sensex, Nifty Close Lower After 5 Days Of Gain: 10 Things To Know
22 Jan 2019, 03:43 PM IST 
Selling in auto, metal and state-run banking stocks dragged the markets lower
- Market breadth favoured the declines with 1,157 stocks closing lower on the NSE, as against the 536 that finished higher.
- The domestic markets took negative cues from Asian peers, where equities moved lower after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its world economic growth forecasts for 2019 and 2020 citing weakness in Europe and some emerging markets.
- In its second downgrade in three months, the global lender predicted the global economy to grow at 3.5 per cent in 2019 and 3.6 per cent in 2020, down 0.2 and 0.1 percentage point respectively from its forecasts last October. The IMF also noted that failure to resolve trade tensions could further destabilise a slowing global economy.
- India, however, appears to be fairly well insulated from the global risks, the IMF said, forecasting an economic growth of 7.5 per cent for the country in 2019. "The Indian economy is quite healthy. We revised it up slightly and that was because of lower commodity prices and the effect that that would have on monetary policy," IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath told NDTV on the sidelines of the annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos. (Watch)
- Analysts said worries on the fiscal deficit front hurt market sentiment. "While India's economic forecasts were retained (by the IMF), concerns were raised over the difficulties in containing the fiscal deficit. Continued weakness in the rupee favoured IT and pharma stocks while majority of other sectors were under pressure," said Paras Bothra, president-equity research at Ashika Group.
- The Nifty Auto - a sectoral index on the NSE comprising automobile stocks - finished 0.8 per cent lower. Besides M&M, prominent laggards in the sector included Ashok Leyland and Maruti Suzuki India, which finished 3 per cent and 2.1 per cent lower respectively.
- Shares in TVS Motor Company, however, closed 3.1 per cent higher, after the auto maker reported a better-than-expected rise in quarter profit. TVS Motor Company posted a 15.6 per cent increase in net profit for the quarter ended December 31, higher than analysts' estimates.
- Asian Paints shares finished 1.2 per cent lower despite the announcement of strong earnings by the paint company. Asian Paints reported a 14.6 per cent rise in its net profit for the December quarter, beating Street estimates.
- Analysts awaited more quarterly earnings from large cap corporates. ITC, Yes Bank and Larsen & Toubro are scheduled to report their quarterly earnings this week.
- The benchmark indices put an end to five consecutive sessions of gains, in which the Sensex and Nifty had risen 725 points, or 2 per cent, and 224 points, or 2.1 per cent.
(With agency inputs)