Indian shares drop a second day in a row
10:46, 17 November 2021
Indian shares finished lower for a second straight session Wednesday amid the lack of fresh cues.
The National Stock Exchange’s (NSE) Nifty50 index closed 0.56% lower at 17,898.65 points, while the S&P BSE Sensex ended 0.52% lower at 60,008.33 points.
- The Nifty Realty Index, comprised of 10 home and office builders including Godrej Group firm Godrej Properties lost 1.64%
- The Nifty Oil & Gas index, a basket of 15 stocks including fuel retailer Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), fell 1.46%
- The Nifty Pharma index, comprised of 20 medicine manufacturers including Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, dropped 1.28%
The Indian rupee was trading 0.23% higher to the US dollar, to INR74.28 at 16:00 hours local time (UTC+5:30).
On the Nifty50
Shares of coatings major Asian Paints, the nation’s leading carmaker Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), and the SBI Life Insurance Company were the top gainers, adding 2.36%, 2.36%, and 2.35% respectively.
But stock in chemicals manufacturer UPL, oil-to-retail conglomerate Reliance Industries (RIL), and drug maker Cipla were the top losers, shedding 3.18%, 2.19%, and 2.09% respectively.
On the Sensex
MSIL, Asian Paints, and the Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) were the biggest gainers, adding 2.77%, 2.47%, and 2.08% respectively.
The country’s third-largest private lender Axis Bank, RIL, and the Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMB) were the biggest losers, shedding 1.95%, 1.91%, and 1.51% respectively.
Expert’s views
“The jump in headline wholesale price inflation in October was due almost entirely to higher commodity prices, but we think they are now close to peaking,” said London-based Capital Economics’ Asia economist Darren Aw.
“While the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will be wary that wholesale prices remain elevated, there’s still scope to keep policy accommodative given the much lower rate of headline CPI inflation,” Aw wrote in a 15 November note to clients, published on his firm’s website.
Read more: SpiceJet’s shares drop amid Boeing settlement
Related topics