Financial data displays price trends and movements on a trading screen during market hours | Photo Credit: FabrikaCr
The top gainers on the Nifty 50 were ICICI Bank (up 1.43%), Grasim (0.98%), Reliance (0.75%), Bajaj Auto (0.70%), and M&M (0.39%).
The laggards were Adani Enterprises (down 7.01%), Adani Ports (3.99%), Eternal (3.11%), Tata Steel (2.69%) and Infosys (1.62% lower).
Of the 3,589 stocks that traded on the NSE today, 1219 advanced while 2,282 decline.
Weak trends in global markets and foreign fund outflows dented investor sentiment.
India’s new mechanism to arrive on closing price in stocks (CAS) with futures and options, coupled with an MSCI index rebalancing, acted as a stress test for the new system.
The Indian rupee rose 0.2 per cent versus the US dollar to 95.1625, as inflows related to a stock index rejig further pushed the currency higher after the central bank stepped in again to support in early part of the session.
The benchmark 10-year bond was quoted at 99.895 rupees, with the yield up 4 bps at 6.953%.
Earlier, domestic shares traded flat through midday as an escalation in the Iran war pushed crude prices higher, with investors bracing for potential volatility from an MSCI index rejig and the country’s new stock closing system.
Global sentiment weakened after US forces struck two Iranian launchers, marking the first known American strikes on Iran since late July. Brent crude was trading around $90 a barrel, up about 2 per cent amid renewed US-Iran tensions.
Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd, said the market was facing a few headwinds at the start of the week. He said sentiments had turned slightly negative following Fed chief Kevin Warsh’s statement that if inflation persists above the Fed’s long-term target, “we have work to do”.
According to Vijayakumar, the market has interpreted this as an indication of a rate hike at the FOMC meeting scheduled for September 15-16, with the consequent rise in bond yields negative for equity markets. He also pointed to renewed US-Iran tensions pushing Brent crude above $90.
