Markets end flat as teleco ruling hits bank stocks

Mumbai: Market gauges Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains to close on a flat note on Friday as investors moved to the sidelines amid concerns that the Supreme Court ruling on telecom AGR issue might further aggravate stressed assets problem in the banking sector.

At the closing bell, the BSE benchmark Sensex was up 12.81 points or 0.03 per cent at 41,945.37. The index also marked its new all-time high of 42,063.93 in intraday trading, before surrendering some of its gains.

The broader Nifty, however, settled 3.15 points or 0.025 per cent lower at 12,352.35. The NSE barometer too touched its life-time intraday peak of 12,385.45 in early deals before losing momentum.

On the Sensex chart, Bharti Airtel was the top gainer, rallying 5.47 per cent, after experts said the Supreme Court's rejection of a review of its order that put Rs 1.47 lakh crore liability of past dues on telcos, will weaken Vodafone Idea's ability to compete in the Indian market; in turn, providing an opportunity for Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio to gain market share.

Shares of Vodafone Idea plunged 25.21 per cent. Ahead of their quarterly earnings, Reliance Industries and HCL Tech advanced up to 2.79 per cent, while TCS fell 0.79 per cent. Heavyweight HDFC dropped 1.23 per cent.

In percentage terms, IndusInd Bank, SBI, HDFC, ICICI Bank and L&T were among the top losers. On the contrary, Bharti Airtel, Reliance, Sun Pharma, HCL Tech and Maruti Suzuki emerged as major gainers. "As anticipated mid and small caps are outpacing the broader market.

Main indices are impacted by Supreme Court verdict on AGR, having an effect on telecom and banking sectors which are already facing NPA problem.

The pre-budget rally has been very solid on a month-on-month basis, market may consolidate in the short-term and take cues from the actual budget and on-going results," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.