Sharp cuts in Sensex, Nifty continue; ITC gains 1%, Jet falls 6%

Moneycontrol Bureau11:45 am Interview:  Even as citizens are coming to terms with the government’s demonetisation drive, Future Group’s Chief Executive Kishore Biyani says that cash payments at their retail chains have dipped and consumers are moving towards digital payment mediums.

Biyani said while sales dipped a day after the demonetisation was announced, it picked up in the days that followed. He said sales have been stabilising and cash transactions, which accounted for about 60 percent of sales, have reduced to 10-15 percent now.

The company’s supply is likely to get impacted but it's well-stocked for the next 15-20 days, Biyani said.

11:30 am Demonitisation: Speaking to CNBC-TV18 Pronab Sen, Former Advisor, Plan Panel said that up to now the government’s focus has been solely on consumption and on the retail side. “It must turn its attention to the production side,” he said, adding that if production seizes up, people’s expectations of income will go down. In turn, this could have a dramatic effect on the economy.

He also said that in the light of Rabi sowing, the impact on the rural sector could be substantial. 

Talking about the demonetisation drive, he said that we should be okay in 3-4 months if the government puts in place systems to ease out pain.

Don't miss: Buy, sell, hold: How to invest in 7 key stocks post Q2 nos?

The market is still slipping away while the Sensex down 369.23 points or 1.4 percent at 26449.59. The Nifty is down 120.10 points or 1.4  percent at 8176.20. About 295 shares have advanced, 1734 shares declined, and 73 shares are unchanged.

SBI, Wipro, Dr Reddy's Labs, ITC and ONGC are top gainers while Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Adani Ports and HDFC are losers in the Sensex. Jet Airways fell 6 percent post Q2 results.

Reliance Mutual Fund, a part of Reliance Capital, has crossed Rs 2 lakh crore in assets under management and expects big gains from demonetisation.

With this, Reliance Nippon Life Asset Management now manages over Rs 3.3 lakh crore in total AUM and retains its position as the largest asset manager in the country.

Reliance Mutual Fund (RMF) is the third fund house to cross the 2 lakh crore AUM mark after HDFC MF and ICICI MF. Overall, the industry has 43 fund houses.