The headline equity benchmarks continued to trade in negative terrain in mid-morning trade. The Nifty traded below the 23,450 mark. Oil & gas shares witnessed selling pressure for the seventh consecutive trading session.
At 11:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex dropped 411.20 points or 0.53% to 77,169.11. The Nifty 50 index lost 127.20 points or 0.54% to 23,405.50.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.18% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index slipped 0.63%.
The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,443 shares rose and 2,464 shares fell. A total of 162 shares were unchanged.
IPO Update:
The initial public offer (IPO) of Zinka Logistics Solutions received bids for 84,90,258 shares as against 2,25,67,270 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 11:15 IST on 18 November 2024. The issue was subscribed 0.38 times.
The issue opened for bidding on 13 November 2024 and it will close on 18 November 2024. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 259 to Rs 273 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 54 equity shares and in multiples thereof.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Oil & Gas index lost 1.76% to 10,620.35. The index dropped 7.89% in seven consecutive trading sessions.
Indraprastha Gas (down 18.19%), Mahanagar Gas (down 11.72%), Gujarat Gas (down 5.46%), Gujarat State Petronet (down 5.07%) and Adani Total Gas (down 2.96%), GAIL (India) (down 1.57%), Reliance Industries (down 1.44%), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (down 1.07%), Oil India (down 0.7%) and Indian Oil Corporation (down 0.46%) declined.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Ahluwalia Contracts (India) slipped 2.02% after the civil construction company’s consolidated net profit declined 29.78% to Rs 38.67 crore in Q2 FY25 as against Rs 55.07 crore posted in Q2 FY24. Revenue from operations increased 12.19% year on year (YoY) to Rs 1,011.48 crore in the quarter ended 30 September 2024.
Muthoot Finance rallied 5.77% after the company reported 26.25% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 1,251.14 crore on 34.57% increase in total income to Rs 4,117.44 crore in Q2 FY25 over Q2 FY24.
Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals jumped 6.20% after the company’s standalone net profit jumped 30.05% to Rs 123.28 crore on 11.45% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 1,645.33 crore in Q2 FY25 over Q2 FY24.
Global Markets:
Asian stocks traded mixed on Monday as investors tempered expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts following recent signs of US economic resilience.
Japanese and Australian shares fell. South Korea’s benchmark bucked the trend, led by Samsung Electronics Co.’s rally after it announced a stock buyback plan.
Later on Monday, traders will be watching a speech and media briefing by Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda for clues on the central bank's next policy move, particularly regarding the weakening yen.
United States equities were lower at the close on Friday, as the post-election rally faded. Strong economic data fueled concerns about fewer Fed rate cuts. At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.70%, while the S&P 500 index declined 1.32%, and the NASDAQ Composite index fell 2.25%.
Applied Materials dropped 9% after a disappointing earnings report, citing slowing demand from China.
US retail sales increased slightly more than expected in October, rising 0.4% last month above the 0.3% expected, and compared with the upwardly revised 0.8% advance in September. Robust consumer spending helped the economy maintain its strong pace of growth last quarter.
At the same time, US import prices unexpectedly rose in October, rebounding 0.3% last month after an unrevised 0.4% decline in September, the latest indication of lack of progress lowering inflation in recent months.