Share Market Today: The two key equity benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, on Thursday are trading in the red amid a wider sell-off across sectors. At 10.20 am, the BSE Sensex declined 307 points to 81,194. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 was trading at 24,824, dropping 147 points.
Stock update
On the 30-share Sensex platform, M&M, Maruti, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Bank, ICICI Bank are among the early losers. On the flip side, Infosys, TechM, Reliance, TCS, SBI, and ITC emerged gainers.
In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 fell 0.15 per cent while the NIfty Smallcap rose slightly by 0.04 per cent.
Sectoral update
Sectorwise, all indices, except for IT, are trading in the red, with the auto index down 3 per cent and the realty index down 2 per cent.
In the previous session on Wednesday, the BSE Sensex declined 319 points to close at 81,501, while the NSE Nifty50 settled at 24,971, dropping 86 points.
"Nifty slipped below the 25,000 mark in yesterday’s trade, and while today’s session seeks recovery, sentiment remains fragile due to persistent FII selling (with Rs 67,300 crore outflows in October), underwhelming Q2 earnings, ongoing Middle East tensions, and concerns over China’s economic outlook," said Prashanth Tapse, senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.28 per cent to $74.43 a barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,435.94 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
Global update
In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo quoted lower, while Shanghai and Hong Kong traded higher. The US markets ended in the positive territory on Wednesday.
Rupee gains 3 paise
The rupee saw range-bound trade and gained 3 paise to 83.99 against the US dollar in initial deals on Thursday, as suspected RBI intervention, coupled with softer oil prices supported the rupee at lower levels.
Forex traders said the rupee is likely to trade in a narrow range during the day as strong dollar and a muted tone in the domestic equities weighed on the local unit, while weak crude oil prices and any intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may also support the local currency.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 84.01 against the greenback. In the initial trade, it touched 83.99, registering a rise of 3 paise over its previous close. On Wednesday, the rupee witnessed a range-bound trade and strengthened marginally by 2 paise to 84.02 against the US dollar.