MARKET: Indices snap 5-day rally amid weak global cues, Sensex dips 59 pts

Snapping their five-day gaining streak, the benchmark indices ended Wednesday's choppy session in the red amid selling in IT, private banks, and consumer goods shares. Weak global markets owing to US-China tensions and a surge in coronavirus cases dented the investor sentiment. 

The S&P BSE Sensex today ended 59 points or 0.16 per cent to settle at 37,872, with Axis Bank (up 7 per cent) being the top gainer and HUL (down 3 per cent) the biggest loser. 

NSE's Nifty ended at 11,133, down 30 points or 0.27 per cent. India VIX, the volatility index gained over 1 per cent to 24.75 levels. 

Among individual stocks, Reliance Industries (RIL) hit a fresh record high of Rs 2,010 on the BSE during the day. The stock ended at Rs 2,004, up over 1.6 per cent. 

Bajaj Auto ended 0.6 per cent lower at Rs 2,986 on the BSE after the company reported a standalone net profit of Rs 528 crore for the April-June quarter of FY21 (Q1FY21), down 53 per cent, from a profit of Rs 1,125.67 crore in the year-ago period. READ MORE

Shares of Axis Bank ended over 7 per cent higher at Rs 479 on the BSE after the private sector lender reported a healthy set of April-June (Q1FY21) quarter numbers with a strong operational performance. CLICK TO READ FULL REPORT

The sectoral trend on the NSE was largely negative. The Nifty PSU Bank index declined over 1.5 per cent to 1,449.20 levels while the Nifty Auto slipped over 1.2 per cent to 7,203.95 points. The Nifty IT index fell over 1 per cent to 17,076 points. On the other hand, Nifty Bank gained nearly 0.5 per cent to 22,882.60 levels and the Nifty Pharma rose 0.21 per cent to 10,175 points. 

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index gained 0.19 per cent to 13,649 while S&P BSE SmallCap index slipped 0.23 per cent to 12,917. 

Global markets

European shares fell on Wednesday as escalating US-China tensions and a surge in coronavirus cases dented sentiment after an EU-wide debt deal sent the region’s markets to four-month highs in the previous session.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was down nearly 1 per cent, easing from its strongest close since March 5. 

US President Donald Trump warned overnight the pandemic would get worse before it got better, while a Reuters tally showed global Covid-19 infections surged past 15 million on Wednesday.

In Asia, China stocks ended higher for the fourth straight session, buoyed by Beijing’s capital market reforms, though gains were checked by ongoing Sino-US tensions. Hong Kong stocks, on the other hand, fell the most in nearly six weeks. 

In commodities, oil prices fell as industry data showed a bigger-than-expected inventory build in the United States, where a surge in coronavirus cases could further dent fuel demand in the world’s biggest oil consumer.

(With inputs from Reuters)