Mid-day Mood | Indices struggle with losses as IT, banks spoil mood; Nifty below 19,700

Stock Market Today

The Indian benchmark indices opened on a negative note on October 13 and continued to trade lower as of afternoon trade, plagued by weak cues from global markets and sharp losses in heavyweight information technology and banking counters.

Markets across Asia and the US were also under pressure as the US September consumer price index cemented the view that inflation had turned sticky, denting sentiment. The US September inflation rate rose 3.7 percent on the year, which was in line with market expectations.

Meanwhile, stock-specific cues in the local market lacked enough positivity to trigger an uptrend in the market.

Around noon, the Sensex was down 337.19 points or 0.51 percent at 66,071.20, and the Nifty was down 97.00 points or 0.49 percent at 19,697.00. About 1,597 shares rose, 1,449 fell, and 121 were unchanged.

"The downturn in the market can be attributed to key negative factors, such as Infosys's weak guidance and rising geopolitical tensions. Examination of Nifty's options data reveals a specific trading range, with 20,000 serving as a notable resistance level," said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities.

"In these uncertain times, it is advisable to maintain a cautious optimism, with the consideration of aggressive long positions only if Nifty manages to surpass the critical level of 19,889," Tapse added.

Stocks and sectors

The spotlight in today's trade was on the IT pack as they kickstarted the July-September earnings season. Shares of index-heavyweight Infosys dropped 2.5 percent after the IT major surprised the Street with a cut in its growth guidance, a second in a row, despite reporting healthy numbers.

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HCLTech also followed suit and revised its revenue estimates for FY24 lower, however, as the move was already anticipated by market participants, it did not trigger a downturn in the stock. Instead, the scrip was the top gainer on the Nifty50, up over 2 percent.

However, the guidance cuts have hinted towards a difficult situation for the entire IT sector in the coming quarters, which also translated into a fall in the Nifty IT index, which was down around a percent.

Banks were also sharply hit, especially Axis Bank and State Bank of India, which were down around 2 percent each after brokerage firm UBS Securities downgraded ratings for the two stocks.

Trade in the broader market was also muted as both the Nifty Smallcap 100 and Nifty Midcap 100 indices were flat.

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