Friday, August 20, 2010

Sensex sheds 53 points on profit-booking

MUMBAI: Snapping a two-day winning streak, the BSE benchmark Sensex declined by over 50 points on profit-booking, coupled with negative global cues.

After gaining a record 406 points in the last two sessions, the Bombay Stock Exchange's 30-share bellwether today opened weak and remained range-bound throughout the day to finally settle at 18,401.82 points, down 0.29%, or 53.12 points.

"The negative mood of the market was primarily in line with the weak global cues. Besides, there was portfolio churning by the investors, which suggests there was no fresh buying in stocks," CNI Research CMD Kishore P Ostwal said.

The National Stock Exchange's wide-based Nifty-50 ended 0.17 per cent lower at 5,530.65 points.

Analysts noted that Nifty managed to end above the psychological mark of 5,500, which it regained yesterday after 30 months, which shows the strength of the market.

Among the 13 indices on the BSE, the maximum loss was seen in IT, bank and FMCG.

IT bellwether Infosys, which carries the maximum weight in the Sensex after Reliance Industries, fell by 1.24 per cent to Rs 2,769.20. Other IT majors, Wipro and TCS, also declined by 1.77% and 0.56%, respectively.

"The US data that indicated the slowdown in the economic recovery is primarily taking the IT counters down," HDFC Securities Head for Private Broking and Wealth Management Vinod Sharma said.

Out of 30 Sensex scrips, 21 stocks ended in the red, while the remaining nine closed in positive terrain. The loss in the Sensex was offset by a 1.16% gain in the country's most valued firm, Reliance Industries.

Meanwhile, Tata Motors was the biggest Sensex loser, registering a fall of 2.41% to Rs 1,015. The country's largest car-maker, Maruti Suzuki, also closed down 0.97% from the previous close at Rs 1,239.35.

Among banking stocks, the country's largest lender, State Bank of India, ended with a loss of 0.79%, while private sector lender ICICI Bank plunged by 1.78 per cent. In addition, HDFC Bank was down 0.15%, while HDFC lost 0.68%.

"There is nervousness in the market due to weak global cues. Banking stocks have also reacted just in line with the negative broader market," SMC Capitals Equity Head Jagannathan Thunuguntla said.

FMCG counters ITC and HUL witnessed a fall of 1.36% and 1.74%, respectively.

Telecom majors Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications finished the day on a negative note, with the former losing 1.16% and the latter shedding 0.49%.

TOI

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