Nifty below 17,150; NSE VIX surges 11%

Equity indices traded at the day`s low with steep losses in early afternoon trade. IT stocks dragged after Infosys reported lower-than-expected Q4 results. HDFC twins were also under pressure after HDFC Bank`s Q4 earnings fell short of expectations. Firm crude oil prices and a steep rise in fresh Covid cases in India also dampened investors sentiment.

The Nifty traded below its 50 day and 200 day simple moving average placed at 17156.4 and 17164.45 respectively. These levels will act as resistance in near term.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, S&P BSE Sensex slumped 1,383.17 points or 2.37% at 56,955.50. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 362.15 points or 2.07% at 17,113.55.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index declined 1.56% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 1.25%.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On the BSE, 1,248 shares rose while 2,173 shares fell. A total of 139 shares were unchanged.

Economy:

India`s inflation based on wholesale price index (WPI) stood at 14.55% in March 2022 compared with 7.89% in March 2021.

"The high rate of inflation in March, 2022 is primarily due to rise in prices of crude petroleum & natural gas, mineral oils, basic metals, etc owing to disruption in global supply chain caused by Russia-Ukraine conflict," the Ministry of Commerce & Industry said in a statement today.

WPI grew 13.11% in February 2021, while the figure for January was 13.68%.

Meanwhile, the poverty in India is 12.3% lower in 2019 compared with 2011. The poverty headcount rate has declined from 22.5% in 2011 to 10.2% in 2019. According to policy research working paper of World Bank, poverty reduction was higher in rural areas as against urban India. Rural poverty dropped by 14.7% while urban poverty declined by 7.9% during 2011 to 2019.

Derivatives:

The NSE`s India VIX, a gauge of market`s expectation of volatility over the near term, surged 11.47% to 19.6475. The Nifty 28 April 2022 futures were trading at 17,190, at a premium of 40 point as compared with the spot at 17,150.

The Nifty option chain for 28 April 2022 expiry showed maximum Call OI of 30.8 lakh contracts at the 18,000 strike price. Maximum Put OI of 33.7 lakh contracts was seen at 17,500 strike price.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty FMCG index gained 0.19% to 38,263.75, rising for second trading session in a weak market.

Varun Beverages (up 3.56%), Godrej Consumer Products (up 1.77%), Hindustan Unilever (up 1.25%), Nestle India (up 1.02%) and Colgate-Palmolive (India) (up 0.98%) were the top gainers in FMCG space.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News