Benchmark indices ended lower for the first time in four sessions as traders on the sidelines ahead of Assembly elections in Karnataka on Saturday amid concerns over surging global crude oil prices and weakening rupee.
The Sensex ended lower by 73.08 points or 0.21 per cent at 35,246.27 and the Nifty down 25.15 points or 0.23 per cent at 10,716.55.
Barring oil & gas, all other BSE sectoral indices ended in the negative zone.
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Top five Sensex gainers were ONGC, Bharti Airtel, Reliance, HDFC Bank and Coal India, while the major losers were Dr Reddy's, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, PowerGrid and Bajaj Auto.
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According to provisional data, on a net basis, foreign portfolio investors had sold shares worth Rs 704.03 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 664.92 crore yesterday.
Global markets
World stocks hit a three-week high and turned positive for the year as rising oil prices gave energy firms a shot in the arm that countered the effects of increased political uncertainty. Read more
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Bullion prices
Gold prices gained Rs 60 to Rs 32,300 per 10 grams at the bullion market, on positive global cues and increased buying by local jewellers. Read more
Gold bars are seen in the Austrian Gold and Silver Separating Plant 'Oegussa' in Vienna, Austria, December 15, 2017. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger
3.25 pm
Sensex gainers, losers
Pre-close trade
The Sensex fell 90.05 points or 0.25 per cent to 35,229.29 and the Nifty shed 29.3 points or 0.27 per cent to 10,712.40.
Nifty sectoral indices
Silver futures
Silver prices rose 0.12 per cent to Rs 40,128 per kg at the futures trade as speculators built up fresh positions amid a firm trend overseas. Read more
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Gold futures
Gold prices were up by 0.16 per cent at Rs 31,260 per 10 grams at the futures trade as speculators created fresh positions, despite weak global cues. Read more
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Nifty volume gainers
BSE gainers, losers
NSE gainers, losers
Benchmark indices were largely unchanged, with investors staying on the sidelines ahead of elections in Karnataka.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party will be looking to gain a foothold in Karnataka, the first big state electing an Assembly this year to be followed by three others before general elections next May.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an election meeting in Koppal, Karnataka
Votes will be cast on Saturday with counting being held on May 15, and the results will be declared later that day.
“Markets will react positively if BJP wins in Karnataka,” said Aditya Agarwal, head-technical research, Way2Wealth.
“Expect minor corrections in the next couple of sessions with the possibility of NSE even falling to 10,500. It could get a little volatile.”
The BSE index was trading up 15.43 points or 0.04 per cent at 35,334.78 and the NSE index down 10.9 points or 0.1 per cent at 10,730.80.
Bridge the gaps for an effective RERA
Demand for real estate is likely to remain listless unless consumer confidence revives with the effective implementation of recent policy pronouncements and regulatory changes. Click here to read more
![real-estate real-estate](/theme/images/bl-online/1x1_spacer.png)
real-estate
Oil on the boil provides buying opportunity
In the past few weeks, brent crude oil has crossed the $70/barrel mark and remained there for some time. This is making market participants evaluate the risk on fiscal spending, current account balance, currency and equity markets. Click here to read more
Good show by Eicher Motors
On the face of it, Eicher Motors’ muted consolidated profit growth of less than 1 per cent in the quarter ended March 2018 ( over the March 2017 quarter) is disappointing. But, adjusted for the exceptional loss of ₹187 crore incurred on the winding up of the joint venture with Polaris during the quarter, the bottomline has shown a robust 41.2 per cent growth to ₹648. 5 crore. Click here to read more
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Nifty 50 May Futures (10,746)
Traders with a near-term perspective can go short on a decisive fall below 10,745 levels with a stop-loss at 10,755 levels. Near-term targets are 10,725 and 10,700 levels. Click here to read more
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Auto sales
Domestic passenger vehicle sales rose 7.5 per cent to 2,98,504 units in April from 2,77,683 units in the same month last year. Domestic car sales were up 4.89 per cent at 2,00,183 units against 1,90,854 units in April 2017. More on this
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Passenger Vehicle (File Photo)
Benchmark indices were largely unchanged, with investors staying on the sidelines ahead of elections in Karnataka.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be looking to gain a foothold in Karnataka, the first big state electing an Assembly this year to be followed by three others before general elections next May.
![Modi Karnataka Modi Karnataka](/theme/images/bl-online/1x1_spacer.png)
Votes will be cast on Saturday with counting being held on May 15, and results will be declared later that day.
“Markets will react positively if BJP wins in Karnataka,” said Aditya Agarwal, head-technical research, Way2Wealth.
“Expect minor corrections in the next couple of sessions with the possibility of NSE even falling to 10,500. It could get a little volatile.”
The BSE index was down 5.16 points or 0.01 per cent at 35,314.19 and the NSE index down 13.8 points or 0.13 per cent at 10,727.90.
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Banks were mostly trading higher with the Nifty Private Bank index extending gains into a tenth session. HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank rose about 1 per cent each.
Federal Bank falls to 2-1/2-year low
The stock dropped as much as 10.8 per cent to Rs 90.25, posting its biggest intraday percentage fall since October 2015. More on this
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Eicher Motors jumps 3%
Eicher Motors stock jumped as much as 2.94 per cent to Rs 31,207.45, its biggest daily percentage gain in about a fortnight. Read more
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Zydus Cadila has received final approval from the US health regulator to market Carbidopa tablets, used for treating Parkinson’s symptoms which inclue shakiness, stiffness and difficulty in moving. Read more
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IRB Infrastructure Developers’ subsidiary has won a road project worth Rs 2,043 crore from state-run NHAI in Gujarat. Read more
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11.35 am
Benchmark indices turned flat as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of Karnataka elections on May 12.
IndiaTV final opinion poll has given Congress 96 seats, BJP 85 and JDS+ 38, which is likely to play the kingmaker on the D-Day. With no party touching the magic mark in the opinion poll, Karnataka is likely to throw a hung Assembly.
The Sensex was trading up 31.13 points or 0.09 per cent at 35,350.48 and the Nifty up 2.95 points or 0.03 per cent at 10,744.65.
Among BSE sectoral indices, power, realty, metal and infrastructure succumbed to heavy selling pressure, while oil & gas, IT and TECk found investors' support.
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Top five Sensex gainers were ONGC, Coal India, Bharti Airtel, Infosys and IndusInd Bank, while the major losers were PowerGrid, Dr Reddy's, NTPC, Tata Motors and Tata Steel.
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Spot gold down 0.1%
Gold prices nudged lower as the dollar held near its 2018-peak on firm US bond yields, with investors also keeping an eye out for any further impact from US President Donald Trump's decision to pull out of a nuclear deal with Iran. Read more
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Dollar holds firm
The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies stood at 93.11 after hitting a 4 1/2-month high of 93.42, extending its gains from its April low to 4.7 per cent. Read more
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Dollar index near 4 1/2-month high. File Photo
Oil hits multi-year high
Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, hit their strongest since November 2014 at $77.76 per barrel on Thursday. WTI crude futures also marked a November-2014 high, at $71.75 a barrel. Read more
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Iran produces almost 4 per cent of global oil supplies. File Photo
Nikkei edges up
The Nikkei gained 0.3 per cent to 22,464.35 in mid-morning trade. Shares of Toyota Motor rose 2.3 per cent to hit fresh three-month highs. Read more
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Rupee slumps to fresh 15-month low
The rupee weakened by 10 paise to a fresh 15-month low of 67.37 against the US dollar in early trade due to strengthening of the American currency overseas, sustained foreign fund outflows and soaring global crude prices. Read more
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Domestic indices extended their uptrend for the fourth straight session owing to positive global cues. Unabated buying by domestic institutional investors also boosted the uptrend. According to brokers, investors keep expanding their positions on hopes of encouraging earnings from more companies.
The Sensex was trading up by 84.87 points or 0.24 per cent at 35,404.22 and the Nifty up 26.9 points or 0.19 per cent at 10,762.35.
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Among BSE sectoral indices, oil & gas, TECk, IT and banking found investors support, while power, realty, healthcare and FMCG succumbed to selling pressure.
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Top five Sensex gainers were Bharti Airtel, Coal India, ONGC, Kotak Bank and IndusInd Bank, while the major losers were PowerGrid, Dr Reddy's, Tata Motors, Asian Paints and Tata Steel.
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Asian markets
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan advanced 0.4 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei climbed 0.1 per cent. South Korea's KOSPI rose 0.4 per cent and Shanghai edged up 0.3 per cent. Read more
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Stocks firmer after oil surge boosts Wall St energy shares. File Photo
The board of directors of PC Jeweller will meet today to consider a proposal of buyback of its shares. The company shares were trading higher by 2.47 per cent Rs 213.75 on the BSE. Read more
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Welspun Enterprises has emerged as the lowest bidder for an NHAI project in Tamil Nadu – four-laning of the Sattanathapuram to Nagapattinam section - at ₹1,837 crore. The company shares were up 2.28 per cent at Rs 157 on the BSE. Read more
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Hikal board has recommended an issue of bonus shares (through capitalisation of its reserves) in the ratio of 1:2 (one bonus equity share for every two existing equity shares). Hikal shares were trading down by 4.8 per cent at Rs 242.05. Read more
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Ashoka Buildcon has announced that one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries Ashoka Infraways Limited has received an arbitral award whereby the SPV has been awarded 1,384 additional toll days against various claims filed by the SPV. The company shares were trading up 1.53 per cent at Rs 278 on the BSE. Read more
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Day Trading Guide
Given below are supports and resistances for Nifty 50 futures and seven key stocks that can help in your intra-day trading:
₹1979 • HDFC Bank
₹1171 • Infosys
₹282 • ITC
Click here to view the full guide
9.15 am
The 30-share BSE index Sensex rose 108.74 points or 0.31 per cent to 35,428.09 and the 50-share NSE index Nifty climbed 37.95 points or 0.35 per cent to 10,779.65.
9.05 am
Today's stock pick
Hindustan Oil Exploration Company (₹129.8): Buy
On Wednesday, the stock jumped 6.3 per cent with above average volume, breaking above a key resistance as well as 50 per cent fibonacci retracement level of prior downtrend at ₹127. This rally gives investors with a short-term perspective an opportunity to buy the stock at current levels. Read more
![BLPG4RIG BLPG4RIG](/theme/images/bl-online/1x1_spacer.png)
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