Equity markets ended the penultimate trading session of the calendar year 2019 on a flat note amid mixed global cues and lack of market participants in the holiday season.
The S&P BSE Sensex on Monday lost 17 points or 0.04 per cent to settle at 41,558 amid selling in financial and IT bellwethers. ICICI Bank (down around 1 per cent) emerged as the top loser on the index while Nestle (up around 1.5 per cent) was the biggest gainer. ICICI Bank, TCS, Axis Bank, and Infosys contributed the most to the index’s slide while HDFC Bank, RIL, Bharti Airtel, and Maruti gave the much-needed support.
Out of 30 constituents, 18 advanced and 12 declined. During the day, the index hit a high and low of 41,715 and 41,453, respectively.
Market breadth remained in favour of advances as 2,767 companies traded on the BSE, 1,449 advanced and 1,124 declined while 194 securities remained unchanged.
NSE’s Nifty closed at 12,261, up 15 points or 0.12 per cent.
Volatility index India VIX surged around 3.5 per cent to 10.89 levels.
In the broader market, Nifty Midcap 100 index gained 0.37 per cent to 17,070 levels while Nifty SmallCap 100 index rallied 0.6 per cent to end at 5,792-mark.
Sectoral indices:
Auto stocks advanced the most in trade with Nifty Auto index rising 1.5 per cent to 8,329.50. All the 15 constituents in the index ended in the green. Metal counters were next on the list as Nifty Metal index gained 1.20 per cent. On the downside, PSU bank stocks slumped the most. The Nifty PSU Bank index fell over 1 per cent 2,538 levels.
Buzzing stocks:Shares of Tata Motors climbed over 4 per cent to Rs 183.60 on the BSE, gaining more than 50 per cent in October-December quarter. The stock of Tata Group automobiles company is set to post its sharpest quarterly gain in the past one decade.
Shares of cinema theatre operators were in focus with PVR (Rs 1,925) and Inox Leisure (Rs 399) hitting their respective all-time highs on expectation of strong earnings growth in October-December quarter (Q3FY20).
Shares of Prince Pipes and Fittings Ltd made a tepid market debut today and listed at Rs 160, a 10 per cent discount against its issue price of Rs 178 per share on the BSE. The stock ended the session at Rs 166.60.
And, now let’s take a look at how the global markets fared in today’s session –
A broad gauge of Asian share markets rose to an 18-month high on Monday as Chinese equities gained, while oil touched three-month highs on a combination of US crude inventory drawdowns, trade optimism and unrest in the Middle East.
Japan’s Nikkei stock index finished its last trading day of the year down 0.76 per cent.
Source: Maalaimalar