Key indices trade with limited losses; IT shares decline

The key equity indices continued to trade with limited losses in mid-morning trade. The Nifty traded below the 17,650 level. IT shares witnessed across the board selling.

At 11:27 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was down 113.1 points or 0.19% to 59,613.91. The Nifty 50 index lost 26.65 points or 0.15% to 17,634.50.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.07% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.37%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1,888 shares rose and 1,389 shares fell. A total of 143 shares were unchanged.

Investors turned cautious as uncertainty over the path of U.S. monetary policy largely outweighed optimism over an economic recovery in China. Focus is now on the Fed`s Beige Book report, due later on Wednesday, for the central bank`s take on the state of the U.S. economy.

Market concerns about rising interest rates returned in recent sessions as hawkish comments from Fed officials and indications of some economic resilience in the US stoked apprehension about when the Fed Fed will pause its rate hike cycle.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty IT index fell 1.16% to 26,851.80. The index had gained 0.59% to end at 27,166.95 yesterday.

Coforge (down 2.18%), LTI Mindtree (down 2.12%), HCL Technologies (down 1.72%), Infosys (down 1.51%) and Tech Mahindra (down 1.02%) were the top losers.

Among the other losers were Mphasis (down 0.89%), Wipro (down 0.82%), L&T Technology Services (down 0.79%), Tata Consultancy Services (down 0.73%).

Stocks in Spotlight:

Rattanindia Enterprises surged 4.97%. The company announced that it has launched direct-to-consumer (D2C) apparel fashion brands business with its wholly owned subsidiary, Neobrands.

Tata Elxsi shed 0.34%. The company said that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati to jointly work on developing and commercialising solutions for the electric mobility market.

Prestige Estates Projects advanced 2.07%. The company`s wholly owned subsidiary, Prestige Exora Business Parks acquired 51% stake in Dashanya Tech Parkz.

Som Distilleries & Breweries jumped 4.86%. The company said it started commercial production at its expanded capacity at the facility in Hassan, Karnataka.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks are trading mixed on Wednesday as Wall Street`s earnings season continued and U.S. Federal Reserve officials delivered mixed signals on future rate hikes.

Overnight in the US, all three major indexes closed near the flatline as investors digested earnings reports, including from Goldman Sachs and Bank of America.

Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic reportedly said that he sees one more rate hike of 25 basis points, before pausing to see its impact on the economy. This would take the U.S. Federal Funds rate to 5% to 5.25%. Bostic`s words come as St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard reportedly told that he favors a higher terminal rate of between 5.50% and 5.75%.

Meanwhile, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will deliver in a speech the economic priorities for the U.S. on China, as per reports. Yellen will deliver a speech at Johns Hopkins University`s School of Advanced International Studies on Thursday.

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