Markets fall for second day in row amid fresh foreign fund outflows
Mumbai: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty buckled under selling pressure for the second straight session on Thursday as a bearish trend in global markets amid escalating geopolitical uncertainties unnerved investors.
Besides, disappointing quarterly earnings numbers and revenue forecast from IT services company Wipro also weighed on investor sentiments, traders said. Metal, energy and power stocks witnessed selling pressure while buying in auto and consumer durable counters capped the losses.
The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 247.78 points or 0.38 per cent to settle at 65,629.24 points. During the day, it plunged 533.52 points or 0.80 per cent to 65,343.50 points.
The Nifty declined 46.40 points or 0.24 per cent to 19,624.70 points.
Among the Sensex firms, Wipro fell nearly 3 per cent after the company reported an almost flat consolidated net profit at Rs 2,667.3 crore for the September quarter, trailing street expectations.
It has also projected up to 3.5 per cent fall in revenue in the current quarter due to a weak global economic outlook and uncertain business environment.
NTPC, Tech Mahindra, JSW Steel, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Reliance Industries were among the other major laggards.
Nestle jumped nearly 4 per cent after the FMCG major reported an increase of 37.28 per cent in net profit at Rs 908.08 crore for the third quarter ended September 30, helped by a consistent performance almost across all major brands.
UltraTech Cement, IndusInd Bank, Larsen & Toubro and Axis Bank were among the gainers.
In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge declined 0.08 per cent and smallcap index climbed 0.07 per cent.
Among the sectoral indices, metal fell 0.95 per cent, oil & gas (0.48 per cent), services (0.44 per cent) and tech (0.42 per cent). Consumer Discretionary, FMCG, auto and consumer durables were the gainers.
The rupee traded in a narrow range to settle 5 paise higher at 83.23 against the US dollar on Thursday, tracking softening crude prices in the international markets amid lingering geopolitical uncertainties.
