Taking Stock | Market sinks deeper into the red; Sensex tanks 843 points, Nifty below 17,000

The Indian equity benchmarks fell for third straight session on October 11 on weak global cues and selling across sectors as investors turn risk-averse fearing an economic slump.

The recent escalation in the Russia-Ukraine war and the Bank of England’s decision to extend bond purchase also hit the sentiment.

At close, the Sensex was down 843.79 points, or 1.46 percent, at 57,147.32, and the Nifty was down 257.50 points, or 1.49 percent, at 16,983.50.

"Investors are becoming risk-averse due to rising geopolitical turmoil as well as worries about the global economic slump. Investors' caution ahead of the announcement of inflation data prevented a better-than-expected start to IT earnings from improving market mood," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

As compared to global counterparts, domestic selling was not as aggressive since FII selling was primarily absorbed by DIIs, he added.

Stocks and sectors

Divis Labs, IndusInd Bank, Nestle India, JSW Steel and Eicher Motors were among the top Nifty losers. Axis Bank, Adani Enterprises and Asian Paints were the top gainers.

All sectoral indices ended in the red. Nifty bank, auto, metal, PSU bank, energy, information technology and pharma were down 1-2 percent.

On the BSE, metal, information technology and realty indices were down 2-3 percent. Auto, capital goods, FMCG, healthcare, oil & gas and power were down a percent each.

Broader indices mirrored the benchmarks, with BSE midcap and smallcap indices falling over a percent each.

A short build-up was seen in United Spirits, Divis Laboratories and Delta Corp.

Despite the gloom,  more than 150 stocks touched their 52-week high on the BSE. These include Chalet Hotels, Jai Corp, Omax Autos, Reliance Industrial Infrastructure, Tata Chemicals and Ujjivan Financial Services.

Among individual stocks, a volume spike of more than 200 percent was seen in Intellect Design Arena, Divis Laboratories and Aurobindo Pharma.

Outlook for October 12

Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking

Markets remained under pressure and lost nearly one and a half percent amid the prevailing corrective phase.

Pressure in the IT pack, combined with a slide in index majors across sectors, weighed on the sentiment. In line with the move, the broader indices, too, lost nearly 2 percent each.

As we do not see any respite on the global front, any disappointment on earnings or the macroeconomic front can put further pressure on Indian shares.

On the index front, we are now eyeing 16,800 in the Nifty and a decisive break would reverse the recovery trend. Traders should align their positions accordingly.

Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head, Technical Research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas

The Nifty is witnessing a short-term consolidation, within which it is oscillating with sharp swings in both directions. A minor bounce in the last week fizzled out near the 50 percent retracement of the entire September decline as well as near the key daily moving averages. Thereon, the index started sliding down again.

On October 11, the index breached 17000 on a closing basis. Thus, it is set to test the swing low, which is near 16750.

The Nifty is expected to attract buying support again near the support zone of 16,800-16,750. On the higher side, 17,250-17,300 kept the bounce in check for the last couple of sessions and can continue with its role of resistance in the short term.

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.