Mumbai :Mirroring weakness for the fifth straight day, the benchmark BSE Sensex today went down over 181 points to end the day at 26,656.83 — a one-month low— after lacklustre results from L&T and ITC rekindled worries over the financial health of India Inc.
The Nifty too struggled to break free, which closed below the 8,100-mark weighed down by losses in heavyweights.
ITC figured in the list of worst performers as it sank over 4 per cent after its quarterly numbers failed to move investors. The FMCG major posted a marginal rise in standalone net profit at Rs 2,431.25 crore for the September quarter.
There was more pain as diversified group L&T fell 4.11 per cent as its second quarter net profit fell short of market expectations.
Thanks to a positive start by the November derivatives series, the 30-share Sensex jumped around 105 points in early trade. But soon after, selling pressure following weak earnings took a toll as the index settled lower by 181.31 points, or 0.68 per cent, at 26,656.83 — its weakest close since October 1.
Vedanta tumbled the most while M&M, BHEL, Bharti Airtel, and Tata Motors lost ground too.
The gainers included NTPC, ICICI Bank and Dr Reddy’s.
The NSE Nifty closed below the 8,100-mark by falling 45.95 points, or 0.57 per cent, to 8,065.80 — also its lowest closing since October 1.
On a weekly basis, the Sensex lost 813.98 points, or 3.05 per cent, and the NSE Nifty plunged 229.70 points, or 2.84 per cent—their worst weekly performance in two months.
“Market was dragged down by subdued quarterly earnings by key corporates like capital goods major Larsen & Toubro and FMCG heavyweight ITC. Breakdown of commodity prices across the world, weak global cues and a weak rupee weighed on sentiment,” said Gaurav Jain, Director, Hem Securities.
Sectorally, the BSE capital goods index was hit the hardest, down 2.65 per cent, followed by FMCG, realty, auto and metal.
Broader markets too came under pressure, with the BSE small-cap losing 0.78 per cent and mid-cap 0.13 per cent.
Meanwhile, foreign investors bought shares worth Rs 174.12 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.
Earlier in the day, major Asian indices ended mixed amid concerns over US Fed’s rate hike trajectory as it indicated raising rates at its policy-setting meeting due in December.
European stocks were trading a tad lower in their early trade, taking cues from Asia.
PTI