Sensex Tanks 430 Points, FMCG Disappoints

The Indian markets extended their losses in the last hour of trade led by heavy selling in FMCG, Capital Goods, Metal and IT stocks. The Nifty closed down by 126 points at 5980 and Sensex was 430 points lower at 19,691. Both the indices closed down in the range of 2.08%-2.14%.

The market breadth closed in the negative zone. On the NSE, 962 shares declined and 343 shares advanced.

Top NSE Gainers: NTPC emerged as the top gainer on the NSE, closing up by 0.16%. Power Grid Corporation saw 0.09% gains.

Top NSE Losers: ITC is among the top losers, down 5.12%, followed by Reliance Infra, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel and Tata Motors.

All the sectoral indices ended in negatives. FMCG, Metal, Capital Goods, Auto and Oil & Gas were the top losers.

The Asian markets closed on a mixed note. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended higher by 1.18% and Kospi was also in gains. The Hang Seng ended lower by 1.44%, followed by Straits Times and Shanghai Composite which were also in losses.

The European markets are trading lower. DAX is trading lower by 0.70%, CAC 40 is down 0.45% and FTSE 100 is down 0.29%.

Buzzers: Elder Pharmaceuticals continued its slide, crashing to the lower end of the 10% circuit filter with only sellers in the stock at Rs 225. Reports suggest that the decline in the stock in the last three trading sessions has been caused by lenders selling shares pledged by the promoters of the company.

Apollo Tyres was down by 4.46% at Rs 90 after a reporting a 10% year-on-year drop in its consolidated net profit at Rs 141 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2013. This fall was seen due to a drop in its standalone volumes and a significant increase in depreciation expenses.

Going ahead, the Nifty may stabilise around the 5950-5970 levels as it is an important support for the market.