Indian stock markets fell again on Tuesday, September 8, as both benchmark indices were down, with global and domestic concerns still hanging over the market. The Sensex and Nifty had the first-ever lower start as investors continued to worry about crude oil prices, US Federal Reserve interest rate uncertainty, and massive fund flows through the booming IPO market.
The Nifty 50 opened below 23,700, and the Sensex also came under selling pressure early on.
Sensex and Nifty Open Lower
The BSE Sensex fell 343.29 points, or 0.45%, to 75,789.52. The NSE Nifty declined 90.95 points, or 0.38 percent, to 23,688.20.
Despite the weakness of the headline indices, market breadth was rather mixed. Around 1,365 stocks rose, 1,037 declined, and 179 remained unchanged.
The opening session was as much a sign of the investor unease that still exists in the market after the market’s recent weakness. Traders are closely tracking global markets, crude oil prices, currency moves, and economic policy outlooks.
Top Nifty Gainers
Several stocks were able to survive the rest of the market collapse.
HDFC Life, Eternal, Bharat Electronics, Hindalco, and Bajaj Finserv were the most prominent gainers on the Nifty.
The gains in these counters gave a bit of support to the broader market but were not enough to offset declines in several heavyweight stocks.
Top Nifty Losers
On the other hand, there were a lot of big stocks under selling pressure.
The most prominent Nifty laggards were Shriram Finance, Tech Mahindra, M&M, InterGlobe Aviation, and Bharti Airtel.
The poor performance of these stocks led to the decline of the benchmark indices in the opening trade.
The Rupee Falls Against US Dollar
The Indian rupee also started the session on a weaker note. The currency fell 10 paise to Rs 94.66 against the US dollar in early trade.
The rupee had fallen 13 paise to Rs 94.56 against the dollar yesterday.
The domestic currency is under pressure from several external factors because of higher crude oil prices, as well as global market headwinds. At the same time, foreign currency deposit inflows are providing some support to the rupee.
Crude oil and Fed rate fears weigh on the market, as well as Fed rate concerns weigh on sentiment.
Rising crude oil prices are a concern for Indian investors since India depends heavily on imports to supply energy needs. Higher crude prices can increase the country’s import bill and could increase inflation and weaken the rupee.
Investors are also watching the interest-rate outlook of the US Federal Reserve. Higher interest rates will also affect global capital flows and investor appetite for emerging markets as well.
The Indian market is also experiencing a significant fund requirement from the primary market. A strong IPO pipeline can attract significant investor capital, which will reduce liquidity in secondary market equities.
Asian Markets Mixed
Asian markets were mixed in Tuesday morning trade. GIFT Nifty was in negative territory as well, signifying a risk premium for domestic investors.
But Japan's Nikkei 225 index rose higher, and sentiment was not all negative on the ground in Japan.
Investors will now be closely watching the day’s trading for signs of recovery or more selling pressure. Oil prices, the rupee, global equity markets, and US monetary policy expectations will be among the most important factors affecting Indian stocks.
As Sensex and Nifty start in the red, market participants will be thinking about the performance of the indices in terms of whether the benchmarks are able to recover from their early losses or if selling pressure increases as the trading moves on.
Comments
Please to leave a comment on this article.