12 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- were trading in the red. 12 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- were trading in the red. 12 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- were trading in the red. Indian equity benchmarks fell in early deals on Thursday ahead of monthly futures and options (F&O) expiry. The 30-share BSE Sensex pack slipped 151 points or 0.24 per cent to trade at 61,624, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 28 points or 0.15 per cent down to trade at 18,258. On the global front, most Asian shares were last seen trading lower tracking an overnight fall in the US stock markets. A slide in global equities as US debt ceiling negotiations continued with no resolution in sight weighed on investor sentiment.
Back home, mid- and small-cap shares were down as Nifty Midcap 100 crawled 0.10 lower per cent and small-cap shed 0.08 per cent.
"The important factor weighing down the markets in the near term is the lack of a breakthrough in the US debt ceiling impasse. Investors may utilise the current weakness in the market to buy high-quality stocks since resolution to the debt ceiling impasse is almost certain and post the resolution a rally is likely," said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued their buying spree and purchased Rs 1,186 crore worth of equities on Wednesday. FIIs have bought Indian shares in 19 of the last 20 sessions since April 26.
12 out of the 15 sector gauges -- compiled by the National Stock Exchange -- were trading in the red. Sub-indexes Nifty IT, Nifty Metal and Nifty PSU Bank were underperforming the NSE platform by falling as much as 0.48 per cent, 0.54 per cent and 0.74 per cent, respectively.
On the stock-specific front, Tata Motors was the top loser in the Nifty pack as the stock cracked 1.35 per cent to trade at Rs 513.20. Hindalco, M&M, SBI and Wipro fell up to 1.30 per cent.
In contrast, Bajaj Auto, Britannia, ITC, Nestle India and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the top gainers.
The overall market breadth was positive as 1,506 shares were advancing while 1,141 were declining on BSE.
On the 30-share BSE index, Trident and Gujarat Pipavav Port tanked up to 5.59 per cent. Credit Access Grameen, Adani Wilmar, Mahindra CIE Automotive and Deepak Nitrate fell up to 3.26 per cent.
On the other hand, JB Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals, KEC International, ZF Commercial Vehicle Control, Welspun India, NCC, Indus Towers, Zomato, JSW Energy and Bajaj Auto climbed up to 7.26 per cent. Also, CEAT, LIC and Biocon rose up to 2.57 per cent.
Sensex had declined 208 points or 0.34 per cent to end at 61,774 yesterday, while Nifty had moved 63 points or 0.34 per cent down to settle at 18,285.
Nifty outlook
"For Nifty, we have 18,100 levels as the important support zone as of now which should not be breached to maintain the overall positive trend intact. The support for the day is seen at 18,200 levels while the resistance is seen at 18,400 levels," said Vaishali Parekh, Vice-President - Technical Research at Prabhudas Lilladher.
Nifty Bank outlook
"For Nifty Bank, some of the frontline heavyweight banking stocks like ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank have slipped down, which is showing exhaustion and pulling the index downward. The sub-index would have a daily range of 43,300-43,100 levels," Parekh stated.