Bleak US consumer data casts shadow over markets

Mumbai: Equity benchmarks retreated on Thursday after a two-day rally, mirroring a weak trend overseas after lacklustre US consumer data fanned fresh concerns over global growth. A weak rupee and foreign fund outflows further weighed on sentiment, traders said. The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 187.31 points or 0.31 per cent to settle at 60,858.43. During the day, it tumbled 329.19 points or 0.53 per cent to 60,716.55. The broader NSE Nifty dipped 57.50 points or 0.32 per cent to end at 18,107.85.

"Domestic indices snapped their previous gains amid negative sentiments from their global counterparts. Weak US consumer data and hawkish comments from the Fed's policymakers on Wednesday hammered investor risk appetite. Lingering fears of recession dragged global bourses down, leaving the market volatile, said Vinod Nair, head (research) at Geojit Financial Services.

"Domestic equities reacted to weak US economic data and hawkish commentary from US Fed. After two days of positive momentum, Nifty opened lower and consolidated throughout the session. We expect market to consolidate in a range on back of global volatility. However, inline Q3 FY23 earnings so far has capped the downside," said Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Wednesday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 319.23 crore, according to exchange data. In the broader market, the BSE smallcap gauge declined 0.24 per cent while the midcap index dipped 0.06 per cent. Among sectoral indices, utilities declined 1.23 per cent, power went lower by 1.02 per cent, FMCG (0.83 per cent), consumer durables (0.80 per cent), consumer discretionary (0.69 per cent) and telecommunication (0.64 per cent). Energy, industrials, capital goods, metal, oil & gas and realty were the gainers.

Asian Paints was the top loser in the Sensex pack, slipping 2.64 per cent after the company reported a 6.4 per cent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,097.06 crore for the December quarter. IndusInd Bank, Tata Motors, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Titan, Hindustan Unilever, UltraTech Cement, and Nestle India were among the other major laggards, shedding as much as 1.89 per cent.