Sensex slips 314 points, Nifty ends below 17,900; realty, pharma stocks drag

After remaining volatile for the most part of the day, domestic benchmark equity indices witnessed one more round of selling in afternoon session  on Wednesday pressured by inflationary woes and weak global cues. Sensex ended at 60,008.33, down 314.04 points or 0.52%, while Nifty dropped 100.55 points or 0.56% to settle at 17,898.65.

“Robust US retail sales data failed to inspire global markets as domestic indices were seen trading with a negative bias to close deep in the red. UK’s rising annual inflation rate reported at 4.2% in October from 3.1% a month ago, has begun to sour investor moods, adding to the existing inflationary worries. US October Retail Sales data rose 1.7% MoM, beating estimates. The surge in fresh covid cases is keeping global investors on the edge fanning fears of an economic slowdown. On the domestic front, the auto sector was in focus as reports suggested relief in chip & semi-conductor shortages,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Gainers & losers

Axis Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, shedding around 2 per cent, followed by Reliance Industries, Kotak Bank, Bharti Airtel, Titan, Dr Reddy’s and M&M. On the other hand, Maruti, Asian Paints, PowerGrid and NTPC were among the gainers.

Primary market

The initial public offer (IPO) of Tarsons Products received bids for over 74.22 crore shares as against 1.08 crore shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:24 IST on Wednesday (17 November 2021). The issue was subscribed 68.45 times. The issue opened for bidding on 15 November 2021 and it will close on 17 November 2021. The price band of the IPO is fixed at Rs 635-662.

The IPO of Go Fashion (India) received bids for over 1.03 crore shares as against 1.53 crore shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:24 IST on Wednesday (17 November 2021). The issue was subscribed 1.90 times. The issue opened for bidding on 17 November 2021 and it will close on 22 November 2021. The price band of the IPO is fixed at Rs 655-690.

Buzzing index

The Nifty Realty index fell 1.80% to 535.30. The index has declined by 1.93% in two sessions. Godrej Properties (down 4.30%), Sunteck Realty (down 2.95%), Prestige Estates (down 2.79%), Indiabulls Real Estate (down 1.93%), DLF (down 1.83%) and Oberoi Realty (down 1.31%) declined while Brigade Enterprises (up 1.48%) and The Phoenix Mills (up 1.23%) advanced.

Global markets

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended with losses, while Shanghai was positive.

Stock exchanges in Europe were largely trading with gains in mid-session deals.