The benchmark indices on Wednesday pared morning gains to turn lower ahead of the start of March quarter earnings season, while geopolitical risks weighing on global markets also kept the momentum negative.
At 10:25 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 29,652, down 136 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,196, down 41 points.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices underperformed to lose 0.7% and 1%, respectively.
"Going ahead, yesterday’s low of 9172.85 would be seen as a crucial and strong support; whereas, we expect a continuation of ongoing optimism first towards 9,274 and then beyond the 9,300 mark," said brokerage Angel Broking in a technical note.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, foreign investors turned net sellers to the tune of Rs 750 crore, while domestic investors bought equities worth Rs 827 crore.
Buzzing stocks
Tata Motors, Adani Ports and Tata Steel were the top losers on Sensex and shed up to 2%, while Infosys (up 0.4%) edged higher ahead of its March quarter results due tomorrow. The stock was the top Sensex gainer.
Buzzing stocks
Tata Motors, Adani Ports and Tata Steel were the top losers on Sensex and shed up to 2%, while Infosys (up 0.4%) edged higher ahead of its March quarter results due tomorrow. The stock was the top Sensex gainer.
Among gainers, Goa Carbon surged 16% to Rs 153, also its 52-week high on BSE, after the company reported a standalone net profit of Rs 5.08 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2017 (Q4FY17), due to exchange gain of Rs 6.71 crore.
Berger Paints gained over 3% after the company entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Chugoku Marine Paints of Japan for co-operation and collaboration in the field of marine and related industrial paints in India.
Earnings season kicks off tomorrow
Nearly one-third of Sensex 30 companies are likely to report a drop in fourth quarter profits, the Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA-ML) has said. The brokerage expects the aggregate earnings of Sensex companies to grow by 7.1 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in the fourth quarter of FY17. The growth will be led by commodity companies. Excluding commodity companies, the growth will be 2.7 per cent, it said. The broader market performance, however, is expected to be better by virtue of good performance of state-owned banks on a low base. CLICK HERE FOR FULL REPORT
safe-haven assets rise
The yen, a favored harbor in times of stress due to Japan's position as the world's largest creditor nation, climbed across the board. The dollar was nursing a grudge at 109.62 yen, having been as low as 109.53 at one stage.
Gold hit a 5-month high after rising nearly 2% on Tuesday, with investors seeking refuge in safe-haven assets due to rising tensions over US relations with Russia and North Korea. The yellow metal climbed to $1,275.66 an ounce and touched its highest since November 10.
Global markets
The geopolitical unease tarnished an otherwise brightening outlook for global economic growth and put equities on the defensive.
Japan's Nikkei slid over 1%, while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was near flat. China's Shanghai Composite was down 0.4%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng and Taiwan's TSEC shed 0.1% each.
On Wall Street, The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended down 6.72 points, or 0.03% to 20,651.3, the S&P 500 lost 3.38 points, or 0.14% to 2,353.78 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 14.15 points, or 0.24% to 5,866.77.