Sensex drops 427 pts; Nifty ends below 17,650; VIX jumps 6%

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with deep losses on Friday, sliding for the fourth straight session. Firm crude oil prices, negative global cues and relentless selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) put pressure on domestic shares. The Nifty settled above 17,600 mark after hitting the day`s low of 17,485.85 in mid-afternoon trade. Barring the Nifty FMCG index, all the sectoral indices on the NSE ended in the red. Media, PSU banks, consumer durables and realty stocks were under pressure.

The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tumbled 427.44 points or 0.72% to 59,037.18. The Nifty 50 index fell 139.85 points or 0.79% to 17,617.15. Both these indices have fallen 3.7% in four straight sessions.

The NSE`s VIX index, a gauge of the market`s expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 6.16% to 18.89.

Selling was wide spread. The BSE Mid-Cap index declined 2.01% and the BSE Small-Cap index skid 1.96%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,016 shares rose and 2,362 shares fell. A total of 88 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

In last 24 hours, India registered 3,47,254 new COVID-19 infections in a day, according to the Union Health Ministry data on Friday. The country reported 703 new deaths taking the death toll to 4,88,396. The country recorded 2,51,777 recoveries, taking the total number of recoveries to 3,60,58,806. The active cases comprise 5.23% of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has decreased to 93.50%, the ministry said.

Numbers to Watch:

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 6.621% as compared with 6.608% at close in the previous trading session.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 74.4325, compared with its close of 74.51 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 4 February 2022 settlement fell 0.18% to Rs 48,294.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, fell 0.08% to 95.66.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for March 2022 settlement fell $1.43 at $86.95 a barrel. The contract fell 6 cents, or 0.07% to settle at $88.38 a barrel in the previous trading session.

Foreign Markets:

Shares in Europe and Asia declined on Friday, tracking declines on Wall Street overnight. Britain`s GfK Consumer Confidence Index sank to -19 in January from -15 in December, its lowest reading since February 2021, as soaring inflation and the prospect of further interest rate hikes dampened the outlook.

Meanwhile, Japan`s inflation data released on Friday showed that core consumer prices rose 0.5% in December compared to a year earlier, as fuel and raw material costs increased, as per reports.

US stocks moved lower on Thursday, giving up their sharp gains from earlier in the session, as Wall Street continues to struggle this year in a rising interest rate environment.

Concern that the Federal Reserve will aggressively move to raise rates this year took toll on the market. Investors are anxiously awaiting the U.S. central bank`s policy meeting next week for new details on how it will tackle inflation.

Buzzing Segment:

The Nifty Media index fell 3.47% to 2,228.25. The index has fallen 4.14% in two sessions.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises (down 5.53%), DishTV India (down 4.62%), TV18 Broadcast (down 3.81%), Nazara Technologies (down 3.4%), Sun TV Network (down 2.45%), Network18 Media & Investments (down 2.37%), Hathway Cable & Datacom (down 1.79%), PVR (down 1.76%) and INOX Leisure (down 1.29%) tumbled.

Stocks in Spotlight:

India`s largest conglomerate Reliance Industries (RIL) fell 0.03%. RIL will announce its quarterly results today.

JSW Steel (down 2.32%), Bandhan Bank (down 1.55%), Gland Pharma (down 2.06%) and Vodafone Idea (down 1.24%) will also announce their quarterly results today.

Biocon added 3.49%. The company`s consolidated net profit jumped 17.68% to Rs 219.60 crore on a 17.05% surge in revenue from operations to Rs 2,174.20 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q3 FY21.

Hindustan Unilever (HUL) gained 2.68%. The FMCG major posted 16.76% rise in standalone net profit to Rs 2,243 crore on 10.43% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 12,900 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q3 FY21.

Polycab India slumped 6.40%. The company`s consolidated net profit rose 1.38% to Rs 248.40 crore on 22.78% increase in net sales to Rs 3,371.99 crore in Q3 December 2021 over Q3 December 2020.

PNB Housing Finance hit a lower circuit of 5% at Rs 463 after the company`s consolidated net profit declined 18.9% to Rs 188 crore on 21.1% fall in total income to Rs 1,495.61 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q3 FY21.

Sasken Technologies tumbled 11.20%. The company`s consolidated net profit fell 19.33% to Rs 30.08 crore 2.19% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 106.27 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q2 FY22.

Kajaria Ceramics dropped 5.79%. The company`s consolidated net profit rose 3.05% to Rs 124.73 crore on a 27.42% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 1,068.23 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q3 FY21.

Shoppers Stop surged rose 4.76% after the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 77.32 crore in Q3 FY22 as against net loss of Rs 25.11 crore in Q3 FY21. Net sales rose 33.82% to Rs 958.11 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q3 FY21.

Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) dropped 5.61%. The company`s consolidated net profit jumped 21.59% to Rs 283.39 crore on a 9.68% surge in revenue from operations to Rs 1,938.03 crore in Q3 FY22 over Q3 FY21.

Havells India tumbled 5.22%. The company registered a 12% decline in standalone net profit to Rs 306 crore in Q3 FY22 from Rs 349 crore posted in Q3 FY21. Net revenue increased by 15% to Rs 3,652 crore in Q3 FY22 from Rs 3,166 crore posted in Q3 FY21.

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