The equity barometers extended losses and hit the day's low in afternoon trade. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 316.41 points or 0.67% at 46,644.28. The Nifty 50 index slipped 96.55 points or 0.70% at 13,664.
The selling was broad based. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.87%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 0.73%.
Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 1,085 shares rose and 1,779 shares fell. A total of 155 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 13 stocks advanced while 37 stocks declined.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 2,720.95 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net sellers to the tune of Rs 2,424.61 crore in the Indian equity market on 18 December 2020, provisional data showed.
COVID-19 Update:
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 7,68,25,590 with 16,93,213 deaths.
India reported 3,03,639 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,45,810 deaths while 96,06,111 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Farmer's Protest:
The government has asked farmers to choose a date for next round of talks. In a letter to farmer Unions, joint secretary in the Agriculture Ministry Vivek Agrawal urged them for a dialogue to resolve the issue. He said the centre is making all efforts to find an appropriate solution to resolve all the issues raised by the farmers with an open mind.
Agarwal said, government intends to convene the next meeting at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi for resolving the issue. He also mentioned that the government-held meetings with several other farmers' organisations and sought their suggestions on the matter.
The sixth-round talk between farmers and government was cancelled after farmers' leaders rejected the government's draft proposal to amend certain provisions of the farm laws and declined to participate in the meeting.
Gainers & Losers:
Cipla (up 2.36%), HCL Technologies (up 1.36%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 1.06%), Infosys (up 1.03%) and Tech Mahindra (up 0.73%) were major gainers in Nifty 50 index.
IOCL (down 3.99%), ONGC (down 3.89%), GAIL (India) (down 3.88%), Mahindra & Mahindra (down 3.71%) and IndusInd Bank (down 3.42%) were major losers in Nifty 50 index.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals advanced 2.09% after the company received tentative ANDA approval for Dabigatran Etexilate capsules. The drug company announced that it has received tentative approval by the USFDA for Dabigatran Etexilate capsules, 75 mg, 110 mg, and 150 mg. The capsules are generic version of Pradaxa Capsules, 75 mg, 110 mg, and 150 mg, of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 0.57%. RIL and bp on Friday announced the start of production from the R Cluster, ultra-deep-water gas field in block KG-D6 off the east coast of India. RIL and bp are developing three deepwater gas projects in block KG D6 - R Cluster, Satellites Cluster and MJ - which together are expected to meet approximately 15% of India's gas demand by 2023. These projects will utilise the existing hub infrastructure in KG D6 block. RIL is the operator of KG D6 with a 66.67% participating interest and bp holds a 33.33% participating interest.
R Cluster is the first of the three projects to come onstream. The field is located about 60 kilometers from the existing KG D6 Control & Riser Platform (CRP) off the Kakinada coast and comprises a subsea production system tied back to CRP via a subsea pipeline. Located at a water depth of greater than 2000 meters, it is the deepest offshore gas field in Asia. The field is expected to reach plateau gas production of about 12.9 million standard cubic meters per day (mmscmd) in 2021.
Global Markets:
European shares declined at opening bell on Monday. Traders are nervously watching the new COVID-19 mutation in the U.K., which has resulted in a tough lockdown in London and other parts of southeast England. The variant is thought to be up to 70% more transmissible than the original strain of the disease. The World Health Organization said it has so far been identified in Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia.
The situation could further complicate Brexit talks. Britain and the European Union remain in a deadlock over post-Brexit trade relations as a 31 December 2020 deadline looms, with disputes over issues such as fisheries plaguing negotiations.
Most Asian stocks advanced on Monday. China on Monday kept its Loan Prime Rates unchanged, in line with market expectations. The one-year and five-year LPR were kept at 3.85% and 4.65%, respectively.
In US, stocks ended lower on Friday, pulled down by uncertainty around a coronavirus stimulus deal, while Tesla shares jumped in heavy trading in anticipation of their addition to the S&P 500. Meanwhile, Moderna Inc's coronavirus vaccine on Friday became the second to receive emergency use authorization (EUA) from the US Food and Drug Administration.
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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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