Sensex Closes 224 Points Lower As Markets Extend Losses To Second Day

Domestic stock markets started the week on a lower note, with the BSE Sensex closing 224 points down amid weakness in banking and financial services equities. The 30-scrip BSE benchmark index settled at 37,644 while the NSE Nifty ended 73 points lower at 11,355, ahead of release of consumer inflation data due later in the day. Gains in IT and pharma shares provided some support and limited the downside in the key indices. Top laggards on the Nifty 50 were BPCL, HPCL, Yes Bank, Vedanta, and IOC, closing with losses of between 3 per cent and 6 per cent.

The Nifty Bank and the Nifty Financial Service - the NSE's sectoral indices comprising banking and financial services stocks - fell 1.2 per cent and 1.4 per cent respectively. SBI, Bank of Baroda and Punjab National Bank shares fell 1-3 per cent. Private sector peers ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, HDFC, Axis Bank, Yes Bank and Indiabulls Housing Finance finished between 0.8 per cent and 3.6 per cent lower.

"We feel any decline due to external factors would be short-lived... it's healthy to have such corrective phase as it eliminates weak hands. However, it also causes trouble to traders as stock selection and position management become difficult," said Jayant Manglik, president, Religare Broking.

On the other hand, IT stocks kept the fall in check, with HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Infosys and Mindtree rising 1.6-3.6 per cent. The Nifty IT index closed 1.4 per cent higher. TCS and Wipro advanced 0.3 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively.

Analysts say weakness in the rupee is positive for exporters as it boosts their profitability.

Pharma stocks also rose, led by up to 2 per cent gains in heavyweights Sun Pharma and Cipla. That provided some more support to the markets.

Shares in other Asian markets dipped, as risk aversion following the sharp drop in the Turkish lira drove demand for safer asset classes. The rupee logged an all-time closing low of 69.93 against the US dollar, marking its steepest single-day fall against the greenback. Sharp losses for the rupee came amid broader weakness in other emerging market currencies following the Turkish rout spill-over.

The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 47 countries, was down 0.5 per cent on Monday. Mr Manglik suggests monitoring global developments along with the ongoing earnings season closely for market direction.

Analysts will closely watch inflation data due for release at 5:30 pm. A Reuters poll estimates July inflation of 4.51 per cent compared with a five-month high of 5.0 per cent hit in the previous month.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 510.66 crore while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 457.83 crore on a net basis last Friday, provisional data from the NSE showed.

(With agency inputs)