Markets Trade on a Negative Note

The Global Markets emanate negative vibes this morning. U.S. stocks slumped, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index down for a sixth day, as slower- than-forecast growth in manufacturing erased a rally triggered by speculation lawmakers will raise the debt ceiling. European stocks dropped 10 percent from this year’s high, becoming the first major region to enter a so-called correction, as falling Spanish and Italian bonds showed the debt crisis is spreading and U.S. manufacturing trailed forecasts. This morning Asian stocks fell for a fourth day in five after a report showing the slowest growth in U.S. manufacturing in two years soured the earnings outlook for Asian exporters even after lawmakers approved legislation to raise the nation’s debt limit before a threatened default. Oil climbed from the lowest in more than a month as the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation to raise the government’s debt ceiling and avoid a default in the world’s biggest crude-consuming nation. Gold may advance toward a record as concern that global economic growth may be slowing overshadowed a U.S. debt deal reached in time to avert a default, spurring demand for wealth protection. Copper rebounded from the biggest drop in two months as a prolonged strike at the biggest mine for the metal tightened global supplies, while speculation of increased imports by largest consumer China boosted demand. The markets started in the red owing to the negative cues from the global markets at large. The Sensex started at 18,247, down 67 points and the Nifty lost 25 points to start at 5,492. In the broader markets, the smallcap has opened flat with a positive bias while the midcap index opened down 0.3%. As the selloff in the rate sensitives continued, the Sensex slipped 176 points at 18,137 and the Nifty came off 51 points at 5,465. The one sector doing well in an otherwise subdued market is the fertilizer stocks. All the scrips listed on the BSE are trading in the green. Chambal Fertilizers up 4.5%, National Fertilizers up 3% and Nagarjuna Fertilizers adding 2% are the top gainers. Bajaj Auto up 0.4% and ONGC up 0.1% are the only gainers among the Sensex stocks in the opening trades. The top losers among the Sensex stocks are Jaiprakash Associates, DLF, Sterlite,Reliance Infrastructure, L&T, Hindalco and Wipro losing 1-2%. The market breadth is negative. Of the total 1294 stocks traded on the BSE, 812 stocks have declined while 438 advanced.