The Indian benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, ended lower on Tuesday amid weak global equities. Paring intra-day gains, the 30-share BSE index Sensex settled 51 points lower at 38,365 and Nifty fell 37 points to 11,317. On Monday, the BSE Sensex had ended 60 points higher at 38,417 and Nifty gained 27 points to 11,325.
Among index heavyweights, State Bank of India, L&T, Nestle, IndusInd Bank Tata Steel, Bharti airtel, Axis Bank, ONGC, Sun Pharma, NTPC, Kotak Bank and Asian Paint were among top losers. On the flip side, HCL Tech, Infosys, Reliance Industries, TCS, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Maruti and Bajaj Auto, were among top gainers. On the sectoral front, all the indices ended in red, barring IT index, with over 3 per cent fall registered in media, followed by about 2 per cent decline in metal index.
"After trading positive for most of the day, the benchmark indices slipped into the red towards the end. This was accompanied by an increase in volatility, measured by India VIX, by around 5 per cent and mixed global cues. Indo-China border tensions flared again, along with dismal GDP forecast by rating agencies which impacted the markets. Global markets are also looking weak and we maintain our stance on being cautious in the current market scenario," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
Here's what you need to know before share market opens on September 9.
Downward revision in India's GDP forecast
Global rating agencies Fitch Ratings and Goldman Sachs have lowered their estimates for growth in India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the current fiscal. Fitch pegs India's GDP to contract 10.5 per cent in FY21 against its earlier estimate of 5 per cent contraction in this period, while Goldman Sachs expects Indian economy to undergo a deeper recession in the current fiscal. The US-based research firm expects a sharper contraction at 14.8 per cent versus 11.8 per cent contraction forecasted earlier for FY21.
Global cues
Globally, European and US stocks fell on Tuesday, led by sharp decline in technology index. European shares ended lower today amid fears that the United Kingdom was in danger of leaving the European Union without a trade agreement. US stocks were also trading lower, weighed down by decline in technology and energy stocks.
Coronavirus cases
Rising coronavirus cases continue to impact stock market. India's COVID-19 tally crossed the 42-lakh mark to 42,80,422, with 75,809 new cases and 1,133 fatalities record in the last 24 hours, the Union Health Ministry data showed. The number of recoveries surged to 33,23,950 with the recovery rate rising to 77.65 per cent. India currently has 8,83,697 active cases, while the death toll stood at 72,775.
Rupee movement
Tracking weak cues from equity market, Indian rupee closed 26 paise lower at 73.60 against US dollar on Tuesday. The local currency opened 30 paise lower at 73.64 per dollar against previous close of 73.34. During the day's trade, the rupee traded in the range of 73.38-73.64.
Stock specific movement
Shares of IRCTC will remain in focus amid report that the government may sell about 15-20 per cent of its stake in the state-owned entity. The stake sale will be conducted through offer for sale (OFS) and the transaction will be completed in at least three tranches, as per PTI report.
Motherson Sumi shares will also see some movement after its board approved raising funds in the range of Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 3,000 crore through the issuance of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) on private placement basis.By Chitranjan Kumar