MARKETS: Sensex falls 100 points, Nifty below 17,550, IT stocks slip

Opening Bell

LIVE market updates: The benchmark indices started on a muted note in line with weak global cues. The BSE Sensex was at 58,629, down 159 points, while the Nifty50 was 42 points lower at 17,518. The two indices were 0.2 per lower.

In the broader market, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices were also in red and were down by up to 0.3 per cent.

Among the Sensex-30 constituents, ITC, Tata Steel, Sun Pharma, PowerGrid, IndusInd Bank, HDFC Bank, SBI, Ultratech Cement and Sun Pharma were the top gainers. On the Nifty, ONGC and Hindalco were the additional gainers, up 1-2 per cent.

Meanwhile, Infosys, TCS, Wipro, Reliance and HCL Tech were the top losers on the Sensex. Tata Consumer and Hero MotoCorp were the top laggards on the Nifty.

Sectorally, the Nifty Realty and IT indices were leading the losses, down by up to 0.8 per cent, while Nifty Bank and Nifty Metal were the gainers. Auto index, along with Pharma were largely muted.
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Pre-open session

LIVE market updates:

The benchmark indices were seen holding gains in the pre-open trades with the BSE Sensex up 104 points at 58,892 and the NSE Nifty at 17,587, higher by 27 points.

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LIVE market updates: The benchmark indices are expected to open on a muted note on Friday after a sell-off session the day before. At 8:10 am, the SGX Nifty futures were quoting 17,585 level, around 30 points up from Nifty’s spot close the previous day.

Today, majors ITC and Titan may see action after the two reported their Q3 results on Thursday. The cigarettes-to-hotels major reported a 14.8 per cent YoY increase in consolidated net at Rs 4,118.80 crore in Q3FY22, led by growth across segments, whereas the latter reported a sharp 91 per cent YoY surge in Q3 profit to Rs 1,004 crore.

That apart, Bank of India, Devyani International, Paytm, Tata Steel, Shree Cement, Bank of India, InterGlobe Aviation and Vijaya Diagnostics will be in focus ahead of their Q3 earnings today.

In the primary markets, ‘Manyavar’ brand owner Vedant Fashions IPO opens for subscription today. The company plans to raise up to Rs 3,150 crore. The price band of the issue is fixed at Rs 824 to Rs 866 per share.

Global cues

Overnight in the US, stocks snapped their 4-day winning run as Facebook-owner Meta Platforms registered the biggest-ever single day fall in value by an US company. Its market cap eroded by $200 bn on account of a 26.4 per cent fall in the share price. The earlier dubious record was held by Apple, when it shed $180 billion value in a single day on September 3, 2020.

The Dow Jones shed 1.5 per cent, the S&P 500 index dropped 2.4 per cent and the Nasdaq plunged 3.7 per cent on Thursday.

Meanwhile, oil prices spiraled higher on Thursday as a winter storm across the central, northeast US added to the supply woes. Brent Crude surged 1.8 per cent to $91.11 a barrel, and WTI Crude soared 2.1 per cent to $90.27 a barrel.

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