Markets in bear grip, Sensex crashes; Hong Kong sinks 700 pts

Moneycontrol Bureau12:53 pm Earnings Poll: Tata Steel's first quarter profit is seen falling 61.7 percent to Rs 292 crore and revenue declining 3.9 percent to Rs 29,110 crore compared to year-ago period, according to average of estimates of analysts polled by CNBC-TV18.

In base quarter (Q1FY16), profit was supported by other income of Rs 762 crore.

However, operational performance is likely to be strong with operating profit rising 6 percent to Rs 2,940 crore and margin expanding 90 basis points to 10.1 percent on yearly basis.

Analysts expect more focus on domestic business and UK asset sales progress.12:45 pm Europe opens: European stocks opened sharply lower as investor sentiments is rattled by concerns that the US Federal Reserve could be considering an imminent interest rate hike.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 1.36 percent.

Meanwhile, Asian shares tumbled on Monday after major US indices posted their worst drop since Brexit on Friday amid concerns central banks will become less accommodative.12:35 pm Cairn EGM today: Cairn India's extraordinary general meeting (EGM) will be held later today where Cairn shareholders will vote on the Vedanta merger.

Anil Agarwal led-Vedanta Group needs over 50 percent of minority shareholders of Cairn India to vote in the favour of this deal. Cairn Energy Plc and Mondrian's vote, at this moment, is counted crucial to make the more than 50 percent consent.The US based invetsment manager Mondrian Investment Partners holds 3.76 percent and these two (Cairn India Plc) are among the three largest minority shareholders of Cairn India.

The other heavyweight minority shareholder, LIC, with a 9 percent stake, is also likely to vote in favour of merger. Cairn Energy Plc owns 9.8 percent stake in Cairn India

Under the revised merger terms, Cairn India shareholders will get one share of Vedanta and 4 preferential shares.12:20 pm 3 IPOs in September: To tap the upbeat investor sentiment, three firms - ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company, L&T Technology Services and GNA Axles - will hit the markets this month to raise over Rs 7,000 crore through IPO.

Bidding for shares in L&T Technology Services will open on September 12, while the same for GNA Axles would begin on September 14 and ICICI Prudential Life's public issue would be open for subscription from September 19.

The public issue of ICICI Prudential Life is expected to garner Rs 6,057 crore, L&T Technology (Rs 894 crore) and GNA Axles (Rs 130 crore).Also read - 11 Indian banks risk breaching Basel III capital triggers: Fitch

12:00 pm Market Check

Equity benchmarks continued to fall on account of weakness in global peers. Hong Kong's Hang Seng and China's Shanghai extended downtrend, falling 2-3 percent.

The Sensex was down 386.70 points or 1.34 percent to 28410.55 and the Nifty fell 129.25 points or 1.46 percent to 8737.45. The BSE Midcap plunged 2.2 percent on weak market breadth.

About three shares declined for every shares rising on the exchange.

Global markets are dealing with the fear of inaction from the European Central Bank and a hawkish tone from the US Federal Reserve. Last week, ECB chief Mario Draghi decided to leave rates on hold, but investors are bracing for an interest rate increase by the Fed in December.

The real risk to the markets is that valuations in the US and emerging markets are not justifiable, Arvind Sanger, Managing Partner, Geosphere Capital Management, told CNBC-TV18.