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Indian Market Commentary

Indian Shares Edge Lower On Weak Asian Cues

By RTTNews Staff Writer   ✉  | Published:  | Google News Follow Us  | Join Us
rttnewslogo20mar2024

Indian shares are subdued in early trading on Monday, tracking weak Asian cues as investors await a slew of Chinese data for direction. Also, risk appetite diminished somewhat due to selling in commodities triggered by a strong dollar amid speculation that the Federal Reserve has a plan for unwinding its $85-billion-a-month bond-buying program.

Japanese shares are rallying on a weaker yen after the G-7 officials avoided criticizing Japan for pursuing bold reflationary policies.

Closer home, investors await consumer inflation data due out later today and wholesale inflation numbers slated for release tomorrow to see if the RBI has room for further policy easing as the UPA government gears up for 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

The benchmark BSE Sensex is currently down 133 points or 0.66 percent at 19,989, while the broader Nifty index is at 6,072, down 35 points or 0.57 percent from its previous close.

ITC is leading the decliners in the Nifty pack with a 2.4 percent loss, while ACC, HDFC, IndusInd Bank, PNB, DLF, TCS and BHEL are down over a percent each.

Bank of Baroda, Bank of India and Reliance Power are subdued ahead of their quarterly results today. Dena Bank is tumbling 3.5 percent and JK Cement is retreating 4.2 percent on disappointing results.

DLF is losing 1.4 percent on news that it will raise up to Rs. 1,888 crore through a share sale to institutional investors on May 14.

Maruti Suzuki is down half a percent even as the Japanese yen slid to a fresh 4-1/2-year low against the dollar. Tata Power is edging down 0.3 percent as it signed a pact with Clean Energy Invest AS and IFC Infra Ventures for developing hydro projects in Georgia.

Dr Reddy's Laboratories is rallying 2.3 percent and Asian Paints is adding a percent, while Cipla, NTPC and Axis are up about half a percent each. Unichem Laboratories is rising 2.3 percent as it reported a 34 percent rise in fourth-quarter net profit.

Benchmark indexes Sensex and the Nifty rose slightly to their highest level in 28 months during a special trading session on Saturday, driven by renewed FII inflows. Cigarette major ITC hit a record high, while drug makers like Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy's and Lupin rose 2-4 percent. Oil marketing stocks were in focus after companies hiked diesel prices by Rs 1.02 per liter, the fourth hike in prices since January.

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Market Analysis

Global Economics Weekly Update - Jun 08-12, 2026

June 12, 2026 17:14 ET
Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.