Sensex ends volatile session on flat note, Nifty ends below 9450; FMCG up

The market ended the day, that was largely dominated by the bears and highly volatile, on a flat note. The Sensex managed to clock a record intraday high, while the Nifty reclaimed 9500 before tripping below the key milestone of 9450.

The market had a gap-up opening and the indices surged over a percent, before witnessing a correction midway.

The sharp correction was seen on the back of a drag on large cap names. However, FMCG stocks such as ITC and HUL weighed positively on the indices.

The 30-share Sensex closed higher by 30.13 points at 30464.92, while the Nifty ended 1.55 points lower at 9427.90. The market breadth, too, was negative through the day, albeit the opening surge which was on the healthier side.

Majority of the indices were largely lower between 0.5-1 percent, except for Nifty FMCG, which surged over 2 percent.

“Positivity over GST rates agreement got lost in the global tremors over political uncertainty. With currencies remaining volatile and with derivatives expiry approaching, investors chose to lock in gains on the last working day of the week,” Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services said in a statement.

Among commodities, gold’s allure went up by many notches today as the US political turmoil saw the bullion soar Rs 215 to Rs 29,200 per 10 grams today, mirroring a firm overseas trend amid frenzied buying by local jewellers.

This is the third straight day of gains by the yellow metal, which reclaimed the Rs 29,000 level. Risk aversion was in full display as investors looked for safer assets in view of the deepening crisis in the US, a fallout of President Donald Trump’s firing of the former FBI director.

Silver staged a comeback to recapture the Rs 39,000-mark by surging Rs 350 to Rs 39,150 per kg, backed industrial demand and coin manufacturers.

Among stock-specific movements due to GST, FMCGs were the clear winners for the day, led by ITC. The stock surged with uncertainty over GST being gone and the rates coming in lower than estimated. Colgate Palmolive too spiked on the back of an effective lower rate. The rally in FMCGs was seen in other majors such as Hindustan Unilever, which ended 2 percent higher. Others in the basket such as Dabur India and Emami too increased by 1 percent and 2 percent, respectively. On the downside, United Spirits fell as the GST Council decided to tax the raw materials that are used in the manufacture of alcohol.

A few scrips also reacted to their quarterly figures such as Bank of Baroda, State Bank of India, and Cummins, among others. SBI ended 2 percent higher after it posted steady set of numbers for the March quarter, while Bank of Baroda ended half a percent higher after posting good results too. Analysts were upbeat about its improvement in asset quality as well. Cummins India, meanwhile, tanked 10 percent after the company posted dismal set of earnings as well as gave out weak guidance of 5-10 percent growth.

The new entrant on the bourses, Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) ended over a percent lower after opening at a premium of 21.5 percent. The stock closed at Rs 72.50, lesser than its listing price of Rs 73.55.

The IPO of India Grid Trust to raise Rs 2,250 crore was oversubscribed 1. 28 times till evening trade on the last day of the offer. The issue received bids for 16,20,15,147 shares against the total issue size of 12,62,78,838, data available with the NSE till 4:00 pm showed. Meanwhile, PSP Projects, too, has seen good demand, with the issue being oversubscribed 8.39 times. It received bids for 4,65,18,290 shares against an issue size of 55,44,000.
With the upcoming derivatives expiry, the Street could see some volatility next week. Jayant Manglik, President, Retail Distribution, Religare Securities said in a statement, “Traders should stay focused and keep their leveraged positions hedged. Mostly losses due to the volatility and the upcoming derivatives expiry will add to that. In short, focus on position management and wait for further clarity.”