Sensex slips 100 points, Nifty closes below 11,450 ahead of F&O expiry; weak rupee weighs on the markets

Mumbai: Benchmark Sensex erased early gains and ended over 100 points lower Wednesday as investor sentiment remained subdued ahead of the expiry of derivative contracts.

A weak rupee and lingering worries of a global slowdown also weighed on the markets, brokers said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex settled 100.53 points, or 0.26 percent lower at 38,132.88, while the broader NSE Nifty slipped 38.20 points, or 0.33 percent, to 11,445.05.

During the day, the benchmark indices witnessed sharp volatility after Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that he will be addressing the nation, amid various speculations about the message.

However, the markets rose during Modi’s announcement that India had demonstrated anti-satellite missile capability by shooting down a live satellite.

“Market gave up opening gains ahead of F&O expiry (on Thursday) and on worries over global economic growth as US 10-year yield slid further. However, bank index remains on a positive trajectory in expectation of ease in a liquidity crunch and pick up in credit growth by FY20.

“India is likely to continue its outperformance among emerging markets due to FII inflow, expectation of revival in earnings growth and political stability,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

NTPC was the biggest loser in the Sensex pack, tumbling 2.25 percent, followed by Tata Motors, Bharti Airtel, PowerGrid, HDFC, Reliance Industries, Hero MotoCorp and M&M that shed up to 1.85 percent.

Yes Bank was the top gainer, spurting 5.62 percent.

Other winners were IndusInd Bank, SBI, Bajaj Auto, HCL Tech, ONGC, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, Infosys and Vedanta, rising up to 5.27 percent.

Sectorally, BSE Utilities shed 1.08 percent, energy 1.01 percent, power 0.95 percent and auto 0.77 percent, among others.

Bankex gained 0.70 percent, followed by consumer durables, finance and basic materials.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net bought shares worth Rs 999.02 crore Tuesday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) offloaded equities to the tune of Rs 196.70 crore, provisional data showed.

Globally, equity markets were mixed amid expectations of action by central banks to counter slowdown fears.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei dropped 0.23 percent, Singapore’s Straits Times 0.06 percent, Taiwan index 0.16 percent and Korea’s KOSPI fell 0.15 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.56 per cent and Shanghai Composite Index advanced 0.85 percent.

Among European markets, Paris CAC 40 fell 0.42 percent and Frankfurt’s DAX shed 0.33 percent in morning deals. London’s FTSE too dropped 0.47 percent.