Markets close with losses; Sensex ends 196 points & Nifty closes below 17,000

Equity indices reversed intraday gains and ended with modest losses on Tuesday, November 30, 2021. The Sensex closed below 57,100 and the Nifty ended below the 17,000-mark.

The S&P BSE Sensex fell 195.71 points, or 34 per cent, to 57,064.87. The Nifty 50 index declined 70.75 points, or 0.41 per cent, to 16,983.20. Nifty Bank closed 281.15 points, or 0.78 per cent, lower at 35,695.30.

In the broader markets outperformed the Sensex at the BSE, the S&P BSE MidCap and S&P BSE SmallCap rose 0.29 per cent and 1.45 per cent, respectively.

Buyers outpaced sellers. On the BSE, 1,772 shares rose and 1,428 shares fell. On the Nifty 50 index at the NSE, 22 shares advanced and 28 shares declined. The top five gainers on Nifty were Power Grid (up 3.12 per cent), Shree Cement (up 3.07 per cent), Bajaj Cement (up 2.07 per cent), Titan (up 2.01 per cent) and Tata Consumer Products (up 1.96 per cent). The top five losers are Tata Steel (down 4.01 per cent), Kotak Bank (down 3.10 per cent), JSW Steel (down 2.69 per cent), Adani Ports (down 2.65 per cent) and Bajaj Auto (down 2.07 per cent).

The World Health Organization said that the Omicron variant is likely to spread further and poses a very high global risk.

Economy

India's Q2 GDP numbers are slated for release later today.

China's factory activity unexpectedly picked up in November, growing for the first time in three months as raw material prices fell and power rationing abated. The official manufacturing PMI was at 50.1 in November, up from 49.2 in October, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

US lawmakers on Tuesday are expected to grill the heads of the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department over stubbornly high inflation and the possible impact of the new Omicron Covid-19 variant on what both officials view as a strong economy. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen are due to testify before the US Senate Banking Committee today in the global day to discuss the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. They will also appear before the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee on Wednesday. Both released their prepared testimony late on Monday, with Mr Powell projecting 5 per cent growth this year but noting the new variant poses downside risks to economic activity and jobs and raises uncertainty around inflation. Ms Yellen warned lawmakers failure to deal with the debt limit would "eviscerate" the recovery.