Mumbai April 10 (IANS) Global geo-political tensions coupled with outflow of foreign funds and a weak rupee pulled the domestic equity markets lower on Monday.
Investors were also cautious ahead of the upcoming fourth quarter earning results and major macro-economic data points which are slated to be released during the week.
The key indices closed the day s trade in the red as heavy selling pressure was witnessed in IT consumer durables and Teck (technology media and entertainment) stocks.
The wider 51-scrip Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) which opened above its psychologically significant mark of 9 200 points fell by 16.85 points or 0.18 per cent to 9 181.45 points.
The barometer 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the BSE which opened at 29 752.62 points closed at 29 575.74 points -- down 130.87 points or 0.44 per cent from the previous close at 29 706.61 points.
The Sensex touched a high of 29 831.32 points and a low of 29 553.04 points during the intra-day trade.
In contrast the BSE market breadth was bullish -- with 1 757 advances and 1 144 declines.
However the broader markets outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE mid-cap index rose by 0.63 per cent while the small-cap index closed higher by 0.64 per cent.
Carrying on from last Friday markets continued to drift lower on Monday for the third consecutive session to finally close with modest losses. IT stocks dropped in the weak market Deepak Jasani Head - Retail Research HDFC Securities told IANS.
Traders and investors remained cautious amid rising geopolitical tensions weak US jobs data and ahead of earnings season that will be kicked off by Infosys on Thursday. Major Asian markets have ended on a mixed note while European indices like FTSE 100 CAC 40 and DAX traded lower.
Anand James Chief Market Strategist Geojit Financial Services said: Weak global cues could have kept earnings expectations also under check. Rupee fell sharply after opening on a firm note but was not enough to turn IT stocks fortunes.
To this end Q4 holds key as rupee oil dollar El Nino threaten to stall progress.
On the currency front the Indian rupee weakened by 27 paise to 64.56 against a US dollar from its previous close of 64.29 to a greenback.
In terms of investments provisional data with the exchanges showed that the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold scrip worth Rs 716.19 crore while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased scrip worth Rs 201.69 crore.
According to Dhruv Desai Director and Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls after a positive opening the Nifty witnessed range bound movement throughout the session and ended on a flat note.
Among the sectors IT witnessed selling pressure throughout the session while banks media and metals remained the top performing sectors on the positive side Desai explained.
Sector-wise the S&P BSE IT index slipped by 164.35 points followed by the consumer durables index which went down by 65.74 points and the Teck index which fell by 62.43 points.
On the other hand the banking index surged by 128.96 points the oil and gas index rose by 122.43 points and the metal index edged higher by 110.36 points.
Major Sensex gainers on Monday were: Tata Motors up 1.51 per cent at Rs 475.05; Axis Bank up 1.38 per cent at Rs 510.75; Coal India up 1.16 per cent at Rs 287.25; Adani Ports up 1.06 per cent at Rs 351.25; and Tata Steel up 0.52 per cent at Rs 495.45.
Major Sensex losers were: Infosys down 2.88 per cent at Rs 952.95; Wipro down 2.10 per cent at Rs 501; Asian Paints down 1.91 per cent at Rs 1 060.05; Reliance Industries down 1.74 per cent at Rs 1 381.05; and HDFC down 1.28 per cent at Rs 1 465.
--IANS
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Geo-political concerns, funds outflow pull equities lower (Roundup)
