Sensex, Nifty Turn Flat Amid Choppy Trade; HDFC, Top Drags at Kotak Mahindra Bank
On a weak note, domestic stock markets began the last session of the week, a day after benchmark indices jumped more than 1% after four straight days of losses. In the first few minutes of trading, the S&P BSE Sensex index dropped by as much as 102.19 points to 41.220.81, and the wider NSE Nifty benchmark plummeted to as low as 12.092.80, down 33.1 points from the previous close. Gains in IT and pharmaceutical stocks offset declines in financial services and metal inventories.
At 9:41 am, the Sensex was 6.99 points-or 0.02%-lower at 41.316.01, while the Nifty was down 2.80 points-or 0.02%-to 12.123.10 points.
At the time twenty-eight stocks were heading higher on the 50-scrip benchmark index. Cipla, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC, Hindalco and JSWL Steel were the top percent losers, ranging between 0.80% and 1.09% lower.
On the other hand, the top Nifty gainers were IndusInd Bank, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Zee Entertainment, Bharti Infratel and ONGC-up from 1.23% to 3.40%.
The top drags on Sensex were the HDFC, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.
On Thursday, equities in other Asian markets edged up, helped by a decline in cases of coronavirus and hopes of more Chinese stimulus to offset the epidemic’s economic impact.
MSCI’s largest Asia-Pacific share index outside Japan was 0.1% higher. Nikkei from Japan rallied 1.5%.
On Thursday, the epicenter of the outbreak in China’s Hubei recorded just 349 new cases, the lowest since January 25, though followed by a change in the rules of diagnosis.
More than 2,100 people have died in China from the coronavirus, spreading to over two dozen countries, and governments around the world are trying to prevent it from becoming a global pandemic.
The S&P BSE Sensex index and the wider NSE Nifty 50 benchmark on Wednesday had risen by 428.62 points-or 1.05%-to end at 41.323.00 and 133.40 points-or 1.11% respectively-to settle at 12.125.90, backed by gains across most sectors.
The capital markets for Mahashivratri will remain closed Friday.
