BSE Sensex reversed gains from the previous session’s record highs to fall on Thursday, as investors waited for clues on which way interest rates are headed when India’s central bank meets to deliberate on monetary policy later in the day. Although the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has pulled surprises at its last three policy meetings, analysts uniformly expect no change in interest rates, according to a Reuters poll.
Across the world, stocks fell as risk appetite soured after minutes of the US Federal Reserve’s last meeting showed most policymakers thought the central bank should begin trimming its $4.5 trillion balance sheet later this year, much earlier than many had expected. US stock market futures fell 0.3% and MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.8% lower. “Market is awaiting what RBI does on the liquidity front and that has the potential to impact banks negatively, if there is an increase in CRR (cash reserve ratio),” said Dipen Shah, senior vice-president and head of private client group research, Kotak Securities.
Banking stocks dragged Nifty down, with the Nifty Bank index falling as much as 0.55%. The bank index has risen about 19% this year. Jindal Steel and Power gained as much as 5.22% after posting a 12.3% sequential rise in quarterly consolidated steel production. Phoenix Mills Ltd gained as much as 7.3% to its highest in seven months after Canada Pension Plan Investment Board said it would invest in the company’s unit.
1.34pm: BSE Sensex trades lower by 126 points, or 0.42%, to 29,848, while the Nifty 50 falls 38 points, or 0.41%, to 9,227.
12.25pm: BSE Sensex falls lower by 89 points, or 0.30%, to 29,886, while the Nifty 50 falls 27 points, or 0.29%, to 9,238.
11.32am: BSE Sensex falls lower by 133 points, or 0.44%, to 29,841, while the Nifty 50 falls 39 points, or 0.42%, to 9,226.
10.15am: BSE Sensex trades lower by 76 points, or 0.25%, to 29,898, while the Nifty 50 falls 24 points, or 0.26%, to 9,241.
9.32am: BSE Sensex trades lower by 64 points, or 0.21%, to 29,910, while the Nifty 50 falls 26 points, or 0.29%, to 9,239.
9.30am: Brahmaputra Infrastructure Ltd shares rise 15% to Rs30 after the company said it got order worth Rs. 44.80 crores from government of Assam Source text for Eikon.
9.25am: The Phoenix Mills Ltd shares rise 5% to Rs428.20 after Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) said that it will invest as much as $250 million in Island Star Mall Developers Pvt. Ltd, a unit of Phoenix Mills Ltd.
9.20am: Bajaj Auto Ltd shares rise 1.6% to Rs2,804.45 after Morgan Stanley raised its rating to overweight against underweight and increased its target price to Rs 3251 a share from Rs2,502 a share. Growth in domestic sales and exports from recent trough seen underpinning performance, analysts led by Binay Singh write in April 5 report.
9.18am: Aditya Birla Money Ltd shares hit 20% upper circuit for the second consecutive sessions. The stock gained 58% in last four trading sessions and so far this year it surged 67%.
9.15am: The rupee opened at 65.05 a dollar. At 9.15am, the home currency was trading at 65.06, down 0.27% from its Wednesday’s close of 64.88.
9.10am: The 10-year bond yield was trading at 6.651%, compared to its previous close of 6.649%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
9.00am: Asian currencies were trading lower. South Korean won was down 0.72%, Taiwan dollar 0.32%, Thai baht 0.15%, Indonesian rupiah 0.14%, Malaysian ringgit 0.13%, China offshore 0.08%, China renminbi 0.05% and Singapore dollar 0.04%. However, Japanese yen was up 0.2%.
With inputs from Reuters
