Broader markets decline; Asian markets edge higher

The key equity barometers continued to trade near the flat line amid bouts of volatility in mid-morning trade. The Nifty continued to trade below the 16,150 mark. IT shares fell for the second consecutive session.

At 11:26 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 25.08 points or 0.05% to 54,077.69. The Nifty 50 index added 1.70 points or 0.01% to 16,126.85.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index slipped 0.84% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 1.36%.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On the BSE, 941 shares rose and 2133 shares fell. A total of 123 shares were unchanged.

Investors awaited the release of minutes from the last U.S. Federal Reserve meeting, due later today. The minutes will give more clues on whether the monetary tightening would continue. Investors are worried about a potential U.S. recession caused by the monetary tightening.

Buzzing Index:

IT stocks were trading in the negative zone, with the Nifty IT index falling 734.75 points or 2.58% to 27,796.75. The index has declined 4.41% in two sessions.

Among the index components, Mphasis (down 5.81%), Mindtree (down 4.67%), Larsen & Toubro Infotech (down 4%), Coforge (down 3.93%) and Tech Mahindra (down 3.92%) were the top losers.

Concurrently, L&T Technology Services (down 3.15%), Tata Consultancy Services (down 2.67%), HCL Technologies (down 2.29%), Wipro (down 2.14%) and Infosys (down 0.88%) edged lower.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Aster DM Healthcare surged 10.36%. The company`s consolidated net profit jumped 114.7% to Rs 226.27 crore on a 14% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 2,727.79 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21.

Inox Wind slipped 1.46%. The board of the wind turbine maker has approved issuance of 990 rated, listed, secured, redeemable, non-convertible debentures (NCDs) having a face value of Rs 10 lakh each, aggregating up to Rs 99 crore. The NCDs will have coupon rate of 9.75% per annum payable annually with a tenure till 30 April 2025.

Global markets:

Asian stocks traded higher on Wednesday.

New Zealand`s central bank has announced yet another 50 basis point rate hike. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announced Wednesday its decision to hike its official cash rate by 50 basis points to 2%.

″A larger and earlier increase in the [official cash rate] reduces the risk of inflation becoming persistent, while also providing more policy flexibility ahead in light of the highly uncertain global economic environment,� the RBNZ has reportedly said in a release announcing the rate hike.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq finished in the red on Tuesday as worries that aggressive moves to curb decades-high inflation might tip the US economy into recession dampened investors` risk appetite.

Investors continued to assess the global macroeconomic outlook as they await the minutes from the last U.S. Federal Reserve meeting, due on Wednesday, which could give clues on whether the monetary tightening would continue.

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