Bourses add losses in late afternoon deals

Local equity markets have magnified their losses in late afternoon deals, hovering near the lowest points of the day on account of selling in frontline counters. Markets mainly dragged by Telecom, Consumer Durables and FMCG sector. The broader indices, BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index were also trading in red. Nifty VIX was down, slipping below 17 levels. Traders ignored report that India’s service sector activity expanded in the month of October, with companies indicating that a notable pick-up in new business led to the fastest expansion in output in over a decade. As per the survey report, the seasonally adjusted Nikkei Services Business Activity Index stood at 58.4 in October from 55.2 in September. Further, the Nikkei India Composite PMI Output Index -- which measures both manufacturing and services -- stood at 58.7 in October from 55.3 in September.

On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red with investors biding their time ahead of a hotly anticipated Federal Reserve meeting, though Hong Kong and Shanghai were again weighed by concerns about China’s economy as leaders struggle to contain a new wave of Covid infections. European markets were trading lower as investors prepared for the latest comment and monetary policy decision from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 59733.86, down by 295.20 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 59670.44 and 60361.82. There were 10 stocks advancing against 19 stocks declining on the index, while 1 stock remains unchanged.

The broader indices were trading in red; the BSE Mid cap index declined 0.20%, while Small cap index was down by 0.21%.

The gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Capital Goods up by 2.10%, Realty up by 1.94%, Metal up by 0.86%, Industrials up by 0.84% and PSU was up by 0.74%, while Telecom down by 1.16%, Consumer Durables down by 0.92%, FMCG down by 0.91%, Auto down by 0.82%, Energy down by 0.81% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Larsen & Toubro up by 4.37%, SBI up by 3.13%, Ultratech Cement up by 1.85%, Tech Mahindra up by 1.40% and HCL Tech up by 0.88%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 3.35%, Indusind Bank down by 1.88%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.49%, ICICI Bank down by 1.28% and ITC down by 1.24% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, India’s service sector activity expanded in the month of October, with companies indicating that a notable pick-up in new business led to the fastest expansion in output in over a decade. As per the survey report, the seasonally adjusted Nikkei Services Business Activity Index stood at 58.4 in October from 55.2 in September. Further, the Nikkei India Composite PMI Output Index -- which measures both manufacturing and services -- stood at 58.7 in October from 55.3 in September.

The report further noted that services companies continued to hire additional workers in October. Although moderate, the pace of job creation quickened from September to the strongest since February 2020. Subsequently, companies were able to clear their backlogs of work. Outstanding business decreased for the third month in a row during October, albeit only slightly.

On the inflation front, price pressures intensified in October, with the aggregate rate of input cost inflation climbing to the joint-highest in over nine years. The rate of charge inflation was moderate in comparison, but nevertheless the fastest since mid-2017. Business sentiment among companies operating in the Indian private sector strengthened in October, owing to a notable rebound in optimism at goods producers.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17813.50, down by 75.45 points or 0.42% after trading in a range of 17792.25 and 17988.75. There were 20 stocks advancing against 29 stocks declining on the index, while 1 stock remain unchanged.

The top gainers on Nifty were Larsen & Toubro up by 4.34%, SBI up by 3.18%, UPL up by 2.37%, Hindalco up by 2.13% and Ultratech Cement up by 1.80%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 3.59%, Indusind Bank down by 2.15%, Bharti Airtel down by 1.65%, ICICI Bank down by 1.50% and Britannia down by 1.44% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red, Hang Seng decreased 74.92 points or 0.3% to 25,024.75, KOSPI fell 37.78 points or 1.25% to 2,975.71, Straits Times trembled 10.85 points or 0.34% to 3,221.52 and Shanghai Composite was down by 7.09 points or 0.2% to 3,498.54. On the flip side, Taiwan Weighted strengthened 56.19 points or 0.33% to 17,122.16 and Jakarta Composite was up by 58.85 points or 0.91% to 6,552.13.

European markets were trading lower, UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 6.09 points or 0.08% to 7,268.72, France’s CAC decreased 0.57 points or 0.01% to 6,926.46 and Germany’s DAX was down by 7.15 points or 0.04% to 15,947.30.