Equities close flat as caution looms ahead of earnings season

Mumbai, Oct 9 (IANS) Key Indian equity indices -- the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty50 -- on Monday closed on a flat note with marginal gains on the back of healthy buying in consumer durables, banking and FMCG stocks.

According to market observers, the key indices traded range-bound as investors remained cautious ahead of the earnings season for the July-September period, which starts later during the week.

The wider Nifty50 of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) reclaimed the psychologically important 10,000-mark intra-day to touch a high of 10,015.75 points.

On a closing basis, the Nifty50 was up 9.05 points or 0.09 per cent at 9,988.75 points.

The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE closed at 31,846.89 points -- up 32.67 points, or 0.10 per cent. It touched a high of 31,935.63 points and a low of 31,781.75 points during intra-day trade.

The BSE market breadth was bullish -- 1,520 advances and 1,187 declines.

"Nifty saw a range-bound day and closed the day with minor gains of 9 points. Broad market indices like mid-cap and small-cap also showed subdued movement today with a minor positive bias,"Deepak Jasani, Head - Retail Research, HDFC Securities, told IANS.

"The small-cap index outperformed in both the NSE and the BSE and closed higher."

In terms of the broader markets, the S&P BSE mid-cap index slipped by a mere 0.04 per cent, while the small-cap index gained 0.62 per cent.

"Major Asian markets have ended on a positive note, barring the Hang Seng and Set Composite. In Europe, FTSE 100 traded slightly lower and DAX and CAC 40 traded higher," Jasani added.

On the currency front, the rupee strengthened by 2-3 paise to close at 65.35-36 against the US dollar from its Friday's close at 65.38.

In terms of investments, provisional data with the exchanges showed that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold scrips worth Rs 475.11 crore while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased stocks worth Rs 55.42 crore.

"Benchmark index Nifty hit 10,000 in early noon trade but gave up most of its gains in afternoon trade. Consumer sector lead the way, but gains were capped as corporate results kick off later this week," said Dhruv Desai, Director and Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls.

IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is expected to be the first blue chip to come out with its second quarter (Q2) results on October 12.

Sector-wise, the S&P BSE consumer durables index surged by 162.94 points, followed by banking index by 83.30 points and FMCG index by 65.97 points.

On the other hand, the S&P BSE oil and gas index fell by 156.68 points, energy index by 26.13 points and utilities index by 14.17 points.

Major Sensex gainers on Monday were: Coal India, up 1.81 per cent at Rs 281.45; Hindustan Unilever, up 1.37 per cent at Rs 1,222; Dr. Reddy's Lab, up 1.34 per cent at Rs 2,409.75; Kotak Bank, up 1.34 per cent at Rs 1,051; and Adani Ports, up 1.16 per cent at Rs 393.40.

Major Sensex losers were: Power Grid, down 1.68 per cent at Rs 201.35; ONGC, down 1.58 per cent at Rs 170.95; Reliance Industries, down 0.73 per cent at Rs 830.75; NTPC, down 0.68 per cent at Rs 174.25; and Bajaj Auto, down 0.58 per cent at Rs 3,128.15.