Indian equity markets witnessed a huge sell-off on Tuesday and ended with losses of over a percent due to weakness in IT, TECK and FMCG stocks. Benchmark indices opened on a negative note and extended the losses as the day progressed as traders preferred to avoid any unwarranted risk ahead of the US Fed's monetary policy due tomorrow. Additionally, the gradual increase in crude oil prices further dampened market sentiment. Traders remained cautious with provisional data from the NSE showing that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 2,051.09 crore on March 18.  Some concern also came amid a private report stating that India is unlikely to achieve the 8%-10% economic growth rates that China pulled off over the long term. It said economic progress in India is being hamstrung by a lack of infrastructure, and a low skilled workforce. Sentiments remained under pressure in late afternoon deals, even as data showed that India's outward foreign direct investment (FDI) commitments rose substantially to $3.47 billion in February 2024, compared to over $2.82 billion in February 2023. Sequentially, FDI commitments were also up from $2.18 billion in January 2024. Traders overlooked reports that the Secretary of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Rajesh Kumar Singh revealed that the Government of India's plans to introduce a dedicated policy aimed at fostering deep-tech startups. Singh disclosed that the government is currently in the advanced stages of crafting a specialized policy framework specifically tailored to support deep-tech startups. Traders also paid no heed towards newly elected president of apex exporters body FIEO Ashwani Kumar's statement that the country's merchandise exports are expected to reach $450 billion by the end of this fiscal despite geo-political challenges like the Red Sea crisis. He said that the need of the hour is to address the Red Sea crisis challenges by ensuring the availability of marine insurance and rational increase in freight charges. Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 736.37 points or 1.01% to 72,012.05 and the CNX Nifty was down by 238.25 points or 1.08% to 21,817.45.

The US markets ended higher on Tuesday after a report released by the Commerce Department showed a substantial rebound in new residential construction in the U.S. in the month of February.  The Commerce Department said housing starts spiked by 10.7 percent to an annual rate of 1.521 million in February after plunging by 12.3 percent to a revised rate of 1.374 million in January. Street had expected housing starts to surge by 7.1 percent to a rate of 1.425 million from the 1.331 million originally reported for the previous month. The report also said building permits shot up by 1.9 percent to an annual rate of 1.518 million in February after dipping by 0.3 percent to a revised rate of 1.489 million in January. Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, were expected to jump by 1.7 percent to a rate of 1.495 million from the 1.470 million originally reported for the previous month. Meanwhile, traders continued to look ahead to the Federal Reserve's highly anticipated monetary policy announcement on Wednesday. While the Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, the central bank's accompanying statement and economic projections could have a significant impact on the outlook for rates. On the sectoral front, oil service stocks moved significantly higher over the course of the session, driving the Philadelphia Oil Service Index up by 2.2 percent to its best intraday level in well over four months. The rally by oil service stocks came amid an increase by the price of crude oil, with crude for April delivery climbing $0.75 to $83.47 barrel. The substantial rebound by housing starts also contributed to considerable strength among housing stocks, as reflected by the 1.7 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index.

Crude oil futures ended higher on Tuesday as traders continued to assess the impact of Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries on oil supplies. With Ukraine continuing to attack Russian oil facilities, Russian refining capacity has already dropped by about 7% or approximately 370,500 barrels per day. Besides, crude oil prices were also supported by Iraq's decision to reduce crude exports to 3.3 million barrels per day in the coming months, in order to comply with its OPEC+ quota. Benchmark crude oil futures for April delivery rose $0.75 or about 0.90% to settle at $83.47 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for May delivery surged by $0.49 or about 0.56% to $87.38 per barrel on London's Intercontinental Exchange.

Indian rupee ended lower against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday weighed down by a heavy selloff in domestic equities and persistent foreign capital outflows. Traders overlooked Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) data showing that India's outward foreign direct investment (FDI) commitments rose substantially to $3.47 billion in February 2024, compared to over $2.82 billion in February 2023. Sequentially, FDI commitments were also up from $2.18 billion in January 2024. Meanwhile, newly elected president of apex exporters body FIEO Ashwani Kumar said that the country's merchandise exports are expected to reach $450 billion by the end of this fiscal despite geo-political challenges like the Red Sea crisis. On the global front, the Japanese yen tumbled on Tuesday after the central bank made the momentous, but widely anticipated, decision to end its negative interest rate policy, while the dollar rose ahead of the upcoming Federal Reserve decision on rates. Finally, the rupee ended at 83.03 (Provisional), weaker by 13 paise from its previous close of 82.90 on Monday.

The FIIs as per Tuesday's data were net sellers in both equity and debt segments. In equity segment, the gross buying was of Rs 11281.72 crore against gross selling of Rs 12448.39 crore, while in the debt segment, the gross purchase was of Rs 1463.15 crore with gross sales of Rs 2244.48 crore. Besides, in the hybrid segment, the gross buying was of Rs 68.60 crore against gross selling of Rs 84.53 crore.

The US markets ended higher on Tuesday after shares in hotshot chipmaker Nvidia shook off early losses and investors looked ahead to the Federal Reserve's policy meeting conclusion on Wednesday for clues on interest rate policy. Asian markets are trading mostly in green on Wednesday as investors digested the Bank of Japan's landmark shift in monetary policy while awaiting the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision. Indian markets ended significantly lower on Tuesday following a sell-off in index majors TCS, Infosys and RIL and weak Asian trends as Japan's central bank hiked rates for the first time in 17 years. Today, markets are likely to open in green amid positive moves across global markets. Foreign fund inflows likely to aid domestic sentiments. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net bought shares worth Rs 1,421.48 crore on March 19, provisional data from the NSE showed. Traders will be taking encouragement as S&P Global Market Intelligence said India's economy will likely grow 6.8% in FY25, up from 6.5% projected earlier, on the back of stronger growth momentum and improving global prospects. It said We have revised up 2024's growth forecast for India due to stronger than expected momentum at the start of the year. An improving global economic environment and an expected gradual easing of domestic financial conditions will support economic activity. More optimism will be come as the government data showed India's net direct tax collection recorded a growth of 19.88 per cent to over Rs 18.90 lakh crore till March 17. The Income tax department data also stated that the net direct tax collection of Rs 18,90,259 crore (as of March 17) includes Corporation Tax (CIT) at Rs 9,14,469 crore (net of refund) and Personal Income Tax (PIT), including Securities Transaction Tax (STT) at Rs 9,72,224 crore (net of refund). Some support will come as an article on the State of Economy in the central bank's March Bulletin showed that India can sustain 8 per cent annual GDP growth and the conducive macroeconomic configuration may become a launching pad for a step-up in the country's growth trajectory. However, there may be some cautiousness as the Reserve Bank of India's data in the March 2024 bulletin showed that the net foreign direct investment (FDI) in India, inflows minus outflows, declined 38.4 per cent year-on-year to $15.41 billion in the first 10 months of this financial year due to an increase in the repatriation of capital. As per the data, FDI in India was $25.53 billion and outflows were $10.11 billion in April 2023-January 2024. There will be some reaction in beverages industry stocks as ICRA said the domestic alcohol beverages (alcobev) industry is expected to grow at 8-10 per cent along with an improvement in margins, helped by a moderation of raw materials prices.

Support and Resistance: NSE (Nifty) and BSE (Sensex)

Nifty Top volumes

• Tata Steel's UK subsidiary -- Tata Steel UK has planned to cease operations of the Coke Ovens at the Port Talbot plant, in Wales, following a deterioration of operational stability.
• HCL Technologies has planned to expand partnership with CAST to offer customized chips to enable OEMs across industries accelerate their digital transformation and automation journeys.
• Dr. Reddy's Laboratories has launched of Versavo (bevacizumab) in the United Kingdom and it is available in strengths of 100mg and 400mg single use vials.
• Tata Motors has inaugurated its fifth Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility, near Delhi; marking a significant stride in its commitment to advancing sustainable mobility.