Sensex opens lower amid weak global cues

Mumbai, Sep 9 (IANS) Indian equity indices opened in the red on Monday following weak global cues.

At 9.32 a.m., Sensex was down 215 points or 0.27 per cent at 80,968 and Nifty was down 78 points or 0.32 per cent at 24,773.

Broader market trends remained negative. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), 1621 stocks were in the red and 566 stocks in the green.

In early trade, Selling was also seen in the midcap and smallcap stocks. The Nifty Midcap 100 index was down 415 points, or 0.72 per cent, at 58,080, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index was down 208 points, or 1.08 per cent, at 19,067.

Among the sectoral indices, PSU Banks, metals, energy, infra and PSE were major losers. FMCG and IT were major gainers.

Hardik Matalia, Derivative analyst of Choice Broking said, "After a gap down opening, Nifty can find support at 24,750 followed by 24,650 and 24,600. On the higher side, 25,000 can be an immediate resistance, followed by 25,050 and 25,100."In Sensex, HUL, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints, TCS, HCL Tech, Maruti Suzuki, ITC and IndusInd Bank were the top gainers. NTPC, Power Grid, Tata Steel, M&M, Tata Motors and SBI were the top losers.

According to the market experts, "Market is likely to turn volatile in the coming days as indicated by the spurt in CBOE VIX by 12 per cent to 23.50. Two factors are likely to weigh on markets: one, the outcome of the US presidential elections and two, the Fed decision on rate cut. The presidential election is tight now and can go both ways.""Investors may wait and watch for clarity on these crucial developments. Meanwhile, weakness in the market can be used to slowly accumulate high-quality largecaps and defensives like pharmaceuticals," they said.

All Asian markets were in the red. Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Seoul and Jakarta were major laggards. The US markets closed in the red on Friday.The foreign institutional investors (FIIs) extended their selling on September 6 as they sold equities worth Rs 620 crore, while domestic institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 2,121 crore on the same day.