Closing Bell: Sensex ends below 36700, Nifty at 10855 after RBI cuts repo rate by 35 bps, Indiabulls Housing Fin dips 13%

Sensex heatmap at close: HUL, Yes Bank top gainers, M&M, Tata Steel, Tata Motors top losers##Sensex heatmap at close: HUL, Yes Bank top gainers, M&M, Tata Steel, Tata Motors top losers

Closing Bell: Sensex ends below 36700, Nifty at 10855, Indiabulls Housing Fin dips 13%##Closing Bell: Sensex ends below 36700, Nifty at 10855, Indiabulls Housing Fin dips 13%

The Sensex settled 286.35 points lower, or by 0.77 percent, at 36,690.50, while Nifty was down 92.80 points, or 0.85 percent, at 10,855.50. The Nifty MidCap index settled 0.75 percent lower, while the Nifty Bank slipped over a percent. Except IT and pharma, all other sectoral indices ended in the red led by metal, auto, energy and infra. BSE midcap and smallcap index ended with marginal loss. Indiabulls Housing, M&M, Tata Steel, Tata Motors and BPCL were among major losers on the Nifty, while gainers were Zee Entertainment, Cipla, HUL, Yes Bank and Hero Motocorp.

These NSE stocks hit their 52-week highs or lows on August 7

Largecap IT, FMCG will attract capital in short-to-medium term, says Pioneer Investcorp##Largecap IT, FMCG will attract capital in short-to-medium term, says Pioneer Investcorp

Sandeep S Shenoy, a strategist at Pioneer Investcorp, shared his analysis on the fundamental side of the market as well as specific stocks and sectors. Speaking about consumers and FMCG, Shenoy said, “That seems to be the only sector which seems to have not de-grown, marginal growth to some slightly optimistic growth is also being visible out there. Valuations is very rich there, but they are generally considered to be the defensive sector. It is the largecap IT and FMCG or consumer goods which will be the once which will attract capital in the short to medium term.” READ MORE

Adani Ports Q1 net profit rises more than 46% on a yearly basis##Adani Ports Q1 net profit rises more than 46% on a yearly basis

Market update: Sensex, Nifty edge lower, banks, auto decline##Market update: Sensex, Nifty edge lower, banks, auto decline

The BSE Sensex traded 129.70 points, or 0.35 percent, lower at 36,847.15, and the Nifty 50 was down 39.85 points, or 0.36 percent, at 10,908.40 at 2.33 pm. The NSE Midcap index was down 0.43 percent, while Smallcap index was up 0.08 percent. Among the sectoral indices, banking and financial services and auto fell 1 percent to 2.3 percent. Pharma was up over 1 percent and media advanced nearly 3 percent.

Jammu & Kashmir Bank surges 20% after Modi government scraps Article 370##Jammu & Kashmir Bank surges 20% after Modi government scraps Article 370

Shares of the Jammu & Kashmir Bank Ltd are locked in 20 percent upper circuit on Wednesday, quoting at Rs 45 per share on the NSE. The stock has seen an upward trend over the last two days and has risen almost 32 percent during the period. READ MORE

Here's a quick round-up fo what has so far happened in the markets today##Here's a quick round-up fo what has so far happened in the markets today

-Benchmark equity indices, the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50, rose after the Reserve Bank of India cut repo rate by 35 basis points, against street expectations of 25-basis point cut, and retaining its "accommodative" stance. 

-The Sensex, however, soon turned negative, giving up 37,000 zone, dropping almost 98 points. The Nifty was trading around 10900, down 37 points 14.05 pm. 

-Yes Bank shares rose nearly 8 percent to Rs 92 per share on Wednesday following a report the lender is likely to raise funds through qualified institutional placement soon.

-Shares of Indiabulls Housing Finance slipped 8.54 percent intraday on Wednesday after the company reported disappointing first-quarter earnings of the fiscal year 2020.

-Gold prices touched a more than six-year high on Wednesday, as the trade war between China and the United States showed no signs of abating, boosting the appeal of safe-haven assets. 

-Titan Company’s shares fell 4.65 percent to hit a six-month low of Rs 998 after the company, in a post-earnings conference call, indicated that demand for jewellery has slowed down since the second half of June and has remained sluggish in July.

Central Bank of India will achieve net NPA threshold of PCA framework by FY20, says CEO Pallav Mohapatra##Central Bank of India will achieve net NPA threshold of PCA framework by FY20, says CEO Pallav Mohapatra

Central Bank of India reported a turnaround performance in the first quarter of FY2020. Pallav Mohapatra, MD & CEO of the bank, spoke about the results and shared outlook for FY20.

“We are putting a tight control on further slippages and we are sure that by the end of Q2 we will be much below March quarter,” said Mohapatra. READ MORE

Shares quoted at Rs 19.90 on NSE, up 14.37 percent, after opening at Rs 18.75. It hit the day's high at Rs 20.65, close to its upper price band of Rs 20.85. 

Zensar Technologies expects better deal wins in FY20, says CEO Sandeep Kishore##Zensar Technologies expects better deal wins in FY20, says CEO Sandeep Kishore

RPG group IT firm Zensar Technologies reported a near 6 percent drop in net profit for the quarter ended June 30. Sandeep Kishore, MD and CEO of the company, spoke about the financial results.

“We have delivered a pretty good set of number in our Q1. It is about 19 percent or so in constant currency. We are executing quite well to our strategy. We have always maintained that our big focus is built around digital, the entire living digital platform and the enterprise digital capabilities that we are enabling for our customers has turned out to be quite well. All regions have delivered pretty consistent growth,” he said. READ MORE

Shares quoted at Rs 223.95, up 2.31 percent on NSE, after opening at Rs 219.10, up from its Tuesday's close of Rs 218.90. The stock hit the day's high of Rs 227.95 and low at Rs 217.35.

Stock market in a bear phase: What should portfolio investors do?

Jammu & Kashmir Bank shares locked in 20% upper circuit##Jammu & Kashmir Bank shares locked in 20% upper circuit

Shares of Jammu & Kashmir Bank were locked at 20 percent upper circuit on Wednesday a day after reports made rounds that the government is looking at options to strengthen the Srinagar-based lender.

Cummins' Q1 net profit of Rs 152.3 crore 15.4% less than CNBC-TV18 poll##Cummins' Q1 net profit of Rs 152.3 crore 15.4% less than CNBC-TV18 poll

Amid market selloff, foreign investors quietly double up on life insurance bets##Amid market selloff, foreign investors quietly double up on life insurance bets

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have sold over Rs 16,000 crore in Indian equities after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman raised the surcharge tax for the super-rich in the Union Budget. But the equity market selloff did not deter FPIs from raising their stakes in life insurance companies. The FPI stakes in the three major insurance companies have doubled in the last one year. READ MORE

Yes Bank shares jump 8% over report lender may raise funds##Yes Bank shares jump 8% over report lender may raise funds

Yes Bank shares rose nearly 8 percent to Rs 92 per share on Wednesday following a report the lender is likely to raise funds through qualified institutional placement soon. The private sector lender's shares have surged in the last two days, rising almost 12 percent during the period. READ MORE