The benchmark indices suffered small losses during mid-afternoon trade, as IT stocks dragged the market. The barometers recovered substantially from its intraday low level. The Nifty hovered above 17,750 mark.
At 14:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, dropped 548.07 points or 0.91% at 59,675.08. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 160.30 points or 0.89% at 17,764.95.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.19% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was flat.
The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,930 shares rose and 1,416 shares fell. A total of 107 shares were unchanged.
COVID-19 Update:
India has reported 90,928 cases in the last 24 hours, recording a sharp spike of over 56% in daily new infections. The country's active caseload now stands at 2,85,401. The country also reported 325 deaths. The Omicron tally in country stands at 2,630.
Economy:
According to a domestic credit rating agency, the third wave of the pandemic, which has seen a massive spike in infections after the more infectious Omicron variant of the coronavirus appeared, is likely to shave 40 bps off the fourth quarter GDP growth that may print in at 4.5-5%.
Numbers to Track:
The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.535% as compared with 6.508% at close in the previous trading session.
In the foreign exchange market, the rupee lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 74.4350, compared with its close of 74.38 during the previous trading session.
MCX Gold futures for 4 February 2022 settlement fell 0.80% to Rs 47,636.
The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, rose 0.07% to 96.24.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for March 2022 settlement fell 21 cents at $80.59 a barrel.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Realty index fell 1.85% to 483.80. The index rose 1.20% in the past trading session.
Brigade Enterprises (down 3.83%), Macrotech Developers (down 2.86%), The Phoenix Mills (down 2.17%), DLF (down 2%) and Indiabulls Real Estate (down 1.76%) were the top losers in the Realty segment.
Global Markets:
European markets as well as Asian stocks tumbled on Thursday as traders geared up for potentially tighter U.S. monetary policy. Activity in China's services sector expanded at a faster pace in December, a private sector survey showed on Thursday. The Caixin/Markit services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) rose to 53.1 in December from 52.1 in November.
Japan's services sector activity expanded at a slower pace in December. The final au Jibun Bank Japan Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) dropped to a seasonally adjusted 52.1 from the prior month's 53.0, which was the highest reading since August 2019.
Minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's December meeting released Wednesday showed the central bank has discussed reducing its balance sheet shortly after it raises rates later this year. The minutes show officials to be considering shrinking the balance sheet along with raising rates as another way to remove policy accommodation. The Fed also signaled it could get more aggressive in raising rates.
The US stock market reacted negatively to the news on Wednesday, with stocks falling and government bond yields rising on the prospect of a tighter Fed in 2022.
Fed officials said repeatedly during the meeting that they believe ultra-easy policies instituted in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic were no longer warranted or justified. Addressing the key pillars of their dual goals, committee members expressed concern over surging inflation while saying they see the jobs market at close to full employment.
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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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