Nifty50, Sensex extend losses for the third straight session – Easy Trip Planners, Bank of Maharashtra top gainers; Cochin Shipyard top loser

• India’s benchmark indices Nifty50 and Sensex extended their losses for the third consecutive day.
• While Sensex ended 519 points lower at 61,145 points, Nifty fell 148 points to 18,160.
• However, Nifty PSB continued on its upward trajectory with a gain of 1.4% during the day.

India’s benchmark indices Nifty50 and Sensex extended their losses for the third consecutive day, with the IT, realty and metal sectors declining the most. While Sensex ended 519 points lower at 61,145 points, Nifty fell 148 points to 18,160.

Investors remain concerned about global economic slowdown post fresh Covid-19 cases in China.

“Nifty continued its down move on Nov 21 for the third consecutive day. It fell the most in 11 days (down 0.81% or 147.7 points at 18159.9). Investors globally fretted about the economic fallout from fresh Covid-19 restrictions in China, with resulting risk aversion benefiting bonds and the dollar and about the likelihood of future monetary tightening and the impact on future economic growth,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.

On the other hand, Nifty PSB continued on its upward trajectory with a gain of 1.4% during the day.

“On the domestic front, PSU banks and metals were in the limelight. PSU banks especially many mid and smaller ones are undervalued and hence attracting buying interest. These banks reported better quarterly numbers along with improving balance sheets and increasing traction in loan growth,” said Siddhartha Khemka, head - retail research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, explaining the continued rally in PSU banks.

US Fed on investors’ minds
Markets began the week on a negative note with selling pressures across several pockets including information technology, auto, metals, pharmaceuticals and real estate.

Demand concerns due to the fresh Covid-19 outbreaks in China had an impact on crude oil prices as well. Brent crude oil price fell 0.46% on Monday to $87.22 per barrel.

“Investors were cautious ahead of US Fed minutes to be released on Wednesday, which would give insights into the central bank’s future rate hike stance given the softening inflation,” Khemka added.

Metal stocks fail to shine
Metal stocks were the talk of the day as the government withdrew export duty on steel products and iron ore.

Jindal Stainless was the top gainer, with its shares rising by 9.2% during the day’s trade to ₹182. NMDC and SAIL posted relatively moderate gains, with their shares gaining between 1.2-3.5% during the day.

However, despite the gains made by some metal stocks, the Nifty Metal index closed the day with a decline of 0.8%. Analysts at Nomura believe the withdrawal of export duty will not significantly push up the export prices as demand is already low in the global markets and the export prices are largely in line with global peers.

Further, analysts see global development to provide cues to the Indian markets amid no major domestic event in the near term.

“This week markets are expected to be lacklustre in the absence of any major domestic event, while the monthly derivatives expiry may induce some volatility. Hence investors would track global cues including Fed minutes, oil prices, and US bond yields,” said Khemka.

Among Nifty500 space, EasyMyTrip operator Easy Trip Planners was the top gainer with shares of the company spiking 20% as the stock traded at ex-dividend and ex-bonus.

The company’s board has fixed November 22 as the record date to finalise the shareholders eligible for bonus shares and stock split. Bonus shares are approved at 3:1 ratio along with stock split in the ratio of 1:2.

In Nifty50, the BFSI sector dominated the list of top five active stocks by value. This includes ICICI Bank, HDFC, Bajaj Finance and HDFC Bank, while Reliance Industries was the only other non-BFSI stock to find a place here.

Foreign institutional investors (FII) were net sellers, pulling out ₹1,594 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) were net buyers, with an investment of ₹1,263 crore.

SEE ALSO: Metal stocks have a mixed day after export duty withdrawal – Jindal Stainless, Apollo Tubes, SAIL stocks rise; Tata Steel, JSW Steel drag
Capital-intensive, cyclical and value stocks to continue their outperformance