Markets ended lower for 4th day; Sensex falls 102 points & Nifty settles at 18,115

Indian equity markets ended lower for the fourth day in a row after opening on a firm note on Friday, October 22, 2021. Strong selling was seen in IT and metal stocks while good buying was witnessed in banking and realty stocks.

The S&P BSE Sensex was down 101.88 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 60,821.62. The Nifty 50 index lost 63.20 points, or 0.35 per cent, to 18,114.90. In the intraday trade, Sensex touched a high of 61,420.13 and a low of 60,551.15 today. On the other hand, Nifty 50 touched the high of 18,314.25 and low of 18,034.35 in the intraday trade.

The Nifty Bank index closed 293.45 points, or 0.73 per cent, higher at a fresh high of 40,323.65.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap declined 0.97 per cent while S&P BSE SmallCap fell 0.97 per cent. Except for banking, finance, realty and consumer durables, all other sectoral indices ended in the red today. Huge selling was recorded in the shares of metal, healthcare, IT, technology and auto indices.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 1,327 shares rose and 1,967 shares fell. On the Nifty 50 index at the NSE, 15 shares advanced and 35 shares declined. The top five gainers on Nifty were HDFC (up 2.21 per cent), Bajaj Auto (up 1.71 per cent), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.32 per cent), Axis Bank (up 1.20 per cent) and ONGC (up 0.97 per cent). The top five losers were Hindalco (down 4.61 per cent), Coal India (down 3.65 per cent), Tata Motors (down 3.43 per cent), ITC (down 3.35 per cent) and Tata Consumer Products (down 2.75%).

The NSE's VIX index, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, fell 2.71% to 17.545.

SEBI Direction on Digital Gold

Capital markets regulator SEBI has asked investment advisers to refrain from dealing in digital gold, which is an unregulated product.

This came after SEBI noted that some registered investment advisers are engaged in unregulated activity by providing a platform for buying, selling or dealing in unregulated products including digital gold. SEBI further said any dealing in unregulated activities by investment advisers may entail action under the Sebi Act and regulations framed thereunder.

In August, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) had directed its members, including stockbrokers, to discontinue the sale of digital gold on their platforms by September 10. The direction came after the capital markets regulator noted that certain members are providing a platform to their clients for buying and selling digital gold.

Economy

Textiles Ministry today issued the Notification for setting up of seven PM MITRA Parks. The scheme aims to realise the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi of building an Aatmanirbhar Bharat and to position India strongly on the Global textiles map.

The ministry said, PM MITRA Parks is envisaged to help India in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of building resilient infrastructure, promoting sustainable industrialization and fostering innovation.

PM MITRA is inspired by the 5F vision of the Prime Minister. The '5F' Formula encompasses - Farm to fibre; fibre to factory; factory to fashion; fashion to foreign. This integrated vision will help further the growth of the textile sector in the economy.

In the US, the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell last week to a new low point since the pandemic erupted. Unemployment claims dropped 6,000 to 290,000 last week, the third straight drop, the Labour Department said Thursday. That is the fewest people to apply for benefits since March 14, 2020, when the pandemic intensified.

UK retail sales fell unexpectedly for a fifth month as consumer confidence plunged, adding to evidence that the economic recovery is losing momentum. The volume of goods sold in stores and online fell 0.2 per cent last month, the Office for National Statistics said on Friday. Economists had expected an increase of 0.6 per cent. It is the longest period of consecutive monthly declines on record and came despite panic buying for fuel during a supply crisis.

The figures both shed light on the weakness of spending and indicate a big shift in consumption patterns. While overall volumes remain above pre-pandemic levels, sales dropped for both clothing and department stores.

Food and fuel sales increased and there was a monthly gain for clothing stores. Bank of England policymakers are concerned that supply shortages and consumers splashing out after the end of lockdown are fanning inflationary pressure. Financial markets anticipate the central bank will lift interest rates next month, though BoE Chief Economist Huw Pill said the decision was "finely balanced."