11
NEW DELHI: Extending their losing streak for a fifth consecutive session, equity benchmarks suffered significant losses on Monday on heavy selling in pharma, industrial, auto, consumer durables, metal and realty stocks.
Investor sentiment remained weak amid surging crude oil prices and falling rupee.
Besides, a selloff in midcap and smallcap stocks due to recent Sebi classification also dealt a blow to the market.
Sebi has asked fund houses to segregate their schemes into distinct categories, based on their underlying investment focus or style.
It has allowed only one scheme per category, barring some exceptions, ET reported.
The BSE Midcap and smallcap indices closed the day 1.64 per cent and 2.20 per cent down, respectively.
The 50-share Nifty pack fell 80 points or 0.75 per cent to settle at 10,517, with 15 stocks in the green, 33 in the red and 2 unchanged.
The Sensex slipped 232 points or 0.67 per cent, finishing the day at 34,616.
The 31-stocks kitty saw only 6 stocks advancing, while 25 declining.
“We expect the market to remain rangebound in the coming sessions.
Further course of market would be dictated by global developments -- crude oil prices and currency movement in the near term.
However, stock specific volatility would continue with ongoing corporate earnings season.
We would advise investors to accumulate quality companies on dips,” said Jayant Manglik, President, Religare Broking
State Bank of India ended with a gain of over 2 per cent, leading the pack of Sensex gainers.
Country's largest lender is slated to release its quarterly results on Tuesday, and brokerages expect the numbers to come in on the weaker side on fresh slippages and higher provisioning.
Tata Consultancy Services, Coal India and ICICI Bank too remained among the top gainers today, rising over 1 per cent in the Sensex index.
On the other hand, Sun Pharma and Dr Reddy's Labs tanked over 4 per cent, emerging as the top Sensex losers of the day.
HDFC, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and YES Bank remained the top drags on Sensex index.
Shares of Ashok Leyland plunged 9.50 per cent to settle at Rs 134.30 on BSE on lower March quarter margins.
Although the company on Friday posted a 40.15 per cent increase in profit at Rs 667.38 crore for the fourth quarter, the ebitda margin improvement was about 50 bps lower than expected, as gross margins declined despite operating leverage, Reuters reported, quoting Credit Suisse analysts.
Shares of Indiabulls Real Estate plunged 10 per cent on Monday as the company approved a share buyback proposal.
The board on Friday approved the Rs 624 crore share buyback for nearly 5.5 per cent of its shares at a price of up to Rs 240.
Punjab National Bank jumped 4.52 per cent despite the Global rating agency Moody's Investors Service on Monday downgraded the local and foreign currency deposit rating of the bank to junk.
Barring IT, oil gas and TECK, all sectors on BSE finished in the red, with BSE Realty as the top loser, falling over 3 per cent.
Global stocks reflected positive sentiments as worries of a trade war between the US and China waned.
