Share Market Today News: Sensex falls 288 points, Nifty ends at 17,656; FMCG, financials weigh

On the Sensex pack, Nestle India, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC), Reliance Industries (RIL), Bajaj Finance and Asian Paints were the biggest losers on Tuesday while Tech Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki India, Larsen & Tourbo (L&T), Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, State Bank of India (SBI) and NTPC were the top gainers.

Among sectors, the Nifty FMCG index fell 1.03 per cent, Nifty Private Bank declined 0.84 per cent, Nifty Financial Services slipped 0.78 per cent.

In the broader market, S&P BSE MidCap index ended at 25,040.86, up 111.02 points (0.45 per cent) while the S&P BSE SmallCap settled at 28,747.94, down 100.48 points (0.35 per cent).

“The domestic market pared its early gains with FMCG and private banks pressuring the benchmark. Market attention has shifted to central bank policy announcements since the European Central Bank is expected to hike interest rates at its upcoming policy meeting. The impending US GDP data will give additional clarity to the expectation that the Fed will temper its aggression in regard to rate hikes,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Global Markets (from AP)

Shares were mostly lower in Europe and Asia on Tuesday as investors geared up for a slew of corporate earnings reports. Shares rose in Paris and Tokyo but fell in Shanghai and in London, where the FTSE 100 fell as Britain’s third prime minister this year, Rishi Sunak, prepared to take office and appoint a Cabinet to grapple with the UK’s economic and political crises.

US futures edged 0.1 per cent higher but oil prices fall back. Markets remained jittery over the outcome of a Communist Party congress in China, where key reformers were excluded from the highest ranks of ruling party leadership. Hong Kong’s benchmark edged 0.1 per cent lower, to 15,165.59, failing to hold onto early gains after a 6.4 per cent selloff the day before. The Shanghai Composite index fell less than 0.1 per cent to 2,976.28. Chinese stocks have fallen after a Communist Party congress in Beijing where leader Xi Jinping gave himself an unprecedented third five-year term and installed key allies as top ruling party leaders, vanquishing officials viewed as pro-market reformers.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index rose 1 per cent to 27,250.28, while the Kospi in Seoul lost 0.1 per cent, to 2,235.07. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.3 per cent to 6,798.60. Taiwan’s benchmark lost 1.5 per cent.

On Wall Street on Monday, stocks extended gains from last week as investors geared up for a heavy week of earnings from big technology companies. The S&P 500 rose 1.2 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 1.3 per cent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite closed 0.9 per cent higher. The Russell 2000 index climbed 0.4 per cent.