Profit bookings pull equity indices lower

Mumbai, April 18: Profit booking, along with heavy selling pressure in the banking sector stock led the key Indian equity indices to break their nine-day gaining streak on Wednesday.

According to market observers, the key equity indices, however, traded in the green for the better part of the session on the back of positive global cues and forecast of normal monsoon rains.

But heavy selling pressure in the consumer durables, banking and auto stocks pulled the key indices lower during the fag end of the session.

Index-wise, the wider Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) fell by 22.50 points or 0.21 per cent to 10,526.20 points.

The barometer 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE, which opened at 34,443.42 points, closed at 34,331.68 points — down 63.38 points or 0.18 per cent from its previous session’s close.

The Sensex touched a high of 34,591.81 points and a low of 34,270.04 points during the intra-day trade.

The BSE market breadth was bearish with 1,527 declines and 1,131 advances. The market breadth on NSE also was bearish during the day.

In the broader markets, the S&P BSE mid-cap index closed lower by 0.07 per cent and the small-cap index by 0.37 per cent.

Deepak Jasani, Head, Retail Research, HDFC securities said: “Selling emerged from the highs of 10,593 to finally bring the Nifty into negative territory.”

“Broad market indices like the BSE mid-cap index fell less, thereby outperforming the main indices,” Jasani told IANS.

On the currency front, the Indian rupee weakened by two paise to 65.67 against the US dollar from its previous close at 65.65.

In terms of investments, provisional data with the exchanges showed that foreign institutional investors sold scrip worth Rs 915.71 crore, while the domestic institutional investors bought stocks worth Rs 869.70 crore.

Sector-wise, the S&P BSE fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) index rose by 170.16 points, followed by metal index which gained 65.26 points and basic materials which edged up by 12.41 points.

On the other hand, the S&P BSE consumer durables index fell by 272.43 points, banking index by 241.34 points and auto index by 120.13 points.

Major Sensex gainers on Wednesday were: ITC, up 2.82 per cent at Rs 275.30; Wipro, up 2.40 per cent at Rs 292.35; Bharti Airtel, up 1.29 per cent at Rs 386.20; Tata Steel, up 0.95 per cent at Rs 601.50; and Adani Ports, up 0.81 per cent at Rs 385.95 per share.

The top Sensex losers were: Axis Bank, down 2.60 per cent at Rs 518.70; Mahindra and Mahindra, down 1.55 per cent at Rs 797.05; IndusInd Bank, down 1.23 per cent at Rs 1,844.65; Hero MotoCorp, down 0.97 per cent at Rs 3,733.55; and Coal India, down 0.89 per cent at Rs 285.05 per share.  (IANS)