Weak global cues drag Sensex 100 pts down, Tata Motors biggest loser

The market extended weakness on Friday with the Sensex opening more than 100 points lower due to weak global markets, but it immediately managed to trim early losses. The Sensex fell 44.62 points to 20,843.71, and the Nifty lost 15.75 points to 6,205.40.

Tata Motors fell the most after December auto sales numbers, falling nearly 2 percent.

Index heavyweights Reliance Industries and ITC too are under pressure. Banks continued to see selling pressure with the ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, SBI and Axis Bank falling marginally.

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Meanwhile, Indian rupee opened marginally lower at 62.35 against the US dollar on Friday versusprevious day’s closing value of 62.26 per dollar.

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Pramit Brahmbhatt of Alpari India feelsstrong dollar coupled with weak equity, poor manufacturing PMI data and high dollar demand from oil marketing companies will exert negative pressure on rupee. “However, there is a strong chance of RBI intervention above 62.50 levels to provide some respite,” he adds. According to Pramit, the range for the day is seen between 61.80-62.65/USD.

Unperturbed by the rise in the fiscal deficit, Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Thursday exuded confidence that it would remain within the target of 4.8% of GDP in the current financial year.

“We will maintain the fiscal deficit at 4.8 %. That is the red line that will not be breached. I am confident that it will not be breached,” he said at a press conference.

Globally, US stocks fell on their first day of trading in 2014 as investors booked profits in the wake of the S&P 500’s best yearly advance since 1997, with many of last year’s strongest performers down on the day.

Asian share markets were under water on Friday after a sudden reversal in some very popular, and thus crowded, trades sparked a bout of global risk aversion.MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS shed a sharp 1.3 percent, with markets from Shanghai to Sydney all in the red.