Sensex slips; ITC, Tata Motors drag

The market opened slightly higher on Thursday, but slipped into the red within minutes, on the back of select bank, FMCG and auto shares.

At 10:15 am, the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex was down 100 points or 0.7 per cent at 14,187.15, making a low of 14,187.15. the high, so far, was 14,360.21.

The National Stock Exchange’s Nifty was down 8 points or 0.19 per cent at 4305.25. The index touched a low of 4297.10 and high of 4334.95, in trade so far.

Global cues were mixed and the crude prices were back on the trot. Volatility is on the radar, according to dealers, as the current month derivatives contracts expire.

“International cues hardly matter on the settlement day, when local punters orchestrate the moves to suit their plan. The reduction of open interest in the 4300 Call for the current month and addition to 4300 strike Nifty Puts for July indicates an ending higher than 4300. The ADAG stocks, the best plays for a post trust vote scenario, are set to reap good harvest this settlement. Take your profits here. We will look at building fresh positions after we see how the market fairs today,” Anagram Stock Broking said in a note.

Nifty July futures were trading at 4325.95.

Major gainers were Sterlite Industries (1.69%), Wipro (1.31%), Tata Steel (0.94%), Mahindra & Mahindra (0.88%) and Reliance Infrastructure (0.75%).

Losers comprised ITC (-3.62%), Tata Motors (-2.95%), Ranbaxy Laboratories (-1.57%), State Bank of India (-0.78%) and ACC (-0.66%).

Market breadth on BSE showed 445 advances and 272 declines.

The price of crude oil rose more than $4 a barrel on Wednesday after US data showed an unexpected drop in gasoline stocks as suppliers facing weak consumer demand cut production and imports. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, September crude settled up $4.58, or 3.75 per cent, at $126.77 a barrel.

Asian markets were mixed Thursday. Japanese stocks had reversed earlier gains, pulling the benchmark Nikkei 225 down 0.43 per cent. But in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng was up 0.33 per cent and in Singapore the Straits Times was up 0.26 per cent, extending gains from the US rally overnight.

US stocks ended a volatile session higher on Wednesday as optimism over unexpected growth in a private-sector jobs report helped offset a surge in crude-oil prices. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.63 per cent, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index advanced 1.67 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.44 per cent.