Indian equity
benchmarks ended sharply lower with losses of over one and half percent on
Wednesday dragged by heavy selling across the board. All the major sectoral
indices ended in the red with Realty, Metal, Auto and Banking falling the most.
Key gauges made gap-down start and stayed in red terrain for whole day, as
rising coronavirus cases in the country dampened the sentiments in the markets.
India recorded 47,264 new cases, taking to tally to 11,733,594, according to
Worldometer. The death toll from the deadly infection jumped to 160,477. India
has the 7th highest number of active cases globally. Maharashtra recorded
28,699 new Covid-19 cases and 132 deaths. Sentiments remained down-beat with
the IMF's managing director stating that prospects for a recovery from the
COVID-induced economic slowdown are uncertain and uneven, with some emerging
economies and almost all low-income countries at risk of lower growth. Traders
also took a note of reports that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman raised the
limit for tax exemption on interest earned on provident fund contribution by
employees to Rs 5 lakh per annum in specified cases as against Rs 2.5 lakh
proposed in the Budget. Key indices extended losses in late afternoon deals,
amid weak global cues. The impending expiry of futures and options monthly
contracts on Thursday added further pressure on the markets. Traders overlooked
Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur's statement
that increased economic activities have resulted in higher GST collection which
stood above Rs 1 lakh crore for five months in a row since October 2020. He
said this could be possible on the back of the measures taken by the government
to boost economic activities over the last year to deal with the COVID-19
pandemic. Market participants also paid no heed towards survey by Nasscom
stated that chief executive officers (CEO) of Indian technology companies are
most optimistic about the global economy, with 97 per cent believing that 2021
will be better than the difficult year of 2020.
Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 871.13 points or 1.74% to 49,180.31, while
the CNX Nifty was down by 265.35 points or 1.79% to 14,549.40.
The US markets
ended lower on Wednesday, with Nasdaq dropping over two percent, on lingering
concerns about the outlook for high-growth companies contributed to the
sell-off by technology stocks, which have seen considerable volatility in
recent sessions. Within the tech sector, shares of Intel (INTC) showed a
substantial downturn on the day, slumping by 2.3 percent after spiking by 6.2
percent to its best intraday level in over a year in early trading. Further,
investors remained concerned about Europe's recent struggles with limiting the
spread of coronavirus. Germany reversed plans for a stricter lockdowns over the
Easter holiday, but worries remain about a potentially slower economic recovery
for the region, even as fresh economic data have provided a bright spot. On the
economic data front, the Commerce Department released a report showing new
orders for US manufactured durable goods unexpectedly decreased in the month of
February. The Commerce Department said durable goods orders slumped by 1.1
percent in February after spiking by an upwardly revised 3.5 percent in
January. The pullback came as a surprise to participants, who had expected
durable goods orders to climb by 0.8 percent compared to the 3.4 percent jump that
had been reported for the previous month. Excluding a steep drop in orders for
transportation equipment, durable goods orders still fell by 0.9 percent in
February after surging up by 1.6 percent in January. Street had expected a 0.6
percent increase.
Crude oil futures ended sharply
higher on Wednesday after a ship that got struck in the Suez Canal raised
concerns about possible supply disruptions. The MV Ever Given, a Panama-flagged
container ship that carries trade between Asia and Europe, became grounded
Tuesday in the narrow, man-made waterway dividing continental Africa from the
Sinai Peninsula, threatening to disrupt a global shipping system already
strained by the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, Data released by the Energy
Information Administration (EIA) showed US crude inventories increased by 1.9
million barrels in the week ended March 19 compared to an expected drop of
900,000 barrels. Crude oil futures for May rose $3.42 or about 5.9 percent to
settle at $61.18 barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. May Brent crude
gained $3.69 or 6 percent to settle at $64.48 a barrel on London's
Intercontinental Exchange.
Indian rupee ended weaker against
dollar on Wednesday with fresh dollar demand by banks and importers. Sentiments
were under pressure amid fears that authorities may tighten restrictions
further as covid-19 cases continue to surge. Also, weakness in domestic equity
markets put pressure on Indian currency. Traders overlooked Minister of State
for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur's statement that increased
economic activities have resulted in higher GST collection which stood above Rs
1 lakh crore for five months in a row since October 2020. On the global front,
dollar hit a four-month high on Wednesday as concerns over a third COVID-19
wave in Europe, potential US tax hikes, and escalating tensions between the
West and China sapped risk appetite. Finally, the rupee ended 72.55, weaker by
12 paise from its previous close of 72.43 on Tuesday.
The FIIs as per Wednesday's data
were net seller in equity segment, while net buyer in debt segment. In equity
segment, the gross buying was of Rs 7811.92 crore against gross selling of Rs 7841.38
crore, while in the debt segment, the gross purchase was of Rs 856.34 crore
with gross sales of Rs 675.04 crore. Besides, in the hybrid segment, the gross
buying was of Rs 26.67 crore against gross selling of Rs 25.06 crore.
The US markets ended lower on
Wednesday led by declines in tech heavyweights like Facebook and Apple. Asian
markets are trading mostly in green on Thursday though tech shares in the
region took a hit following a sell-off in the sector overnight on Wall Street.
Indian markets ended nearly two percent lower on Wednesday as selling
intensified, dragged down by financial, auto and metal stocks amid weakness in
global stocks. Today, the start of F&O series expiry session is likely to
be flat-to-positive tacking gains in Asian peers. Traders will be taking
encouragement as Fitch Ratings revised India's GDP growth estimate to 12.8 per
cent for the fiscal year beginning April 1 from its previous estimate of 11 per
cent, saying its recovery from the depths of the lockdown-induced recession has
been swifter than expected. Some support will come as Finance Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman said that the Finance Bill 2021 has some amendments aimed at
achieving a reduction in compliance and improving ease of doing business.
Traders may take note of report that With COVID-19 cases on the rise again and
reports of a new double mutant variant found, the government is likely to slow
down its vaccine exports for the next two months. Besides, Finance Minister
Nirmala Sitharaman said India enjoys an investment grade rating and she does
not see a rating downgrade because of higher spending. However, rising
coronavirus cases may dampen sentiments in the markets. India has registered
53,419 fresh cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, taking to tally to
11,787,013, according to Worldometer. The death toll from the deadly infection
jumped to 160,726. India has the 7th highest number of active cases globally.
Maharashtra recorded a fresh peak of 31,855 - up from the previous high of
30,535 registered on March 21 - and state tally went up to 2,564,881 till date,
three days after crossing the 2.50 million mark. There will be some reaction in
power stocks as Power distribution companies (discoms) in 26 of India's 36
states and union territories (UT) have witnessed an increase in overdue since
last year; with 30 territories having dues pending for more than two months.
Meanwhile, two stocks will make debut today. The Rs 660 crore IPO of Laxmi
Organics was subscribed 107 time in a price band of Rs 129-130 per share.
Craftsman Automation was sold in the price range of Rs 1,488-1,490 per share
and was subscribed 3.82 times. Market participants will also keep an eye on
updates from today's board meeting of the Securities and Exchange Board of
India (Sebi).
Support and
Resistance: NSE (Nifty) and BSE (Sensex)
Index
|
Previous close
|
Support
|
Resistance
|
NSE
Nifty
|
14,549.40
|
14,472.15
|
14,689.50
|
BSE
Sensex
|
49,180.31
|
48,915.58
|
49,649.82
|
Nifty Top volumes
Stock
|
Volume
|
Previous close (Rs)
|
Support (Rs)
|
Resistance (Rs)
|
(in Lacs)
|
Tata
Motors
|
615.23
|
294.45
|
290.10
|
301.90
|
State
Bank of India
|
423.18
|
359.85
|
355.99
|
366.39
|
Oil
& Natural Gas Corporation
|
310.83
|
104.80
|
103.10
|
106.25
|
ITC
|
276.09
|
215.95
|
213.20
|
220.75
|
ICICI
Bank
|
244.34
|
567.50
|
561.49
|
577.04
|
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