Markets Trade Marginally Lower; Telecom Stocks Drag

BSE Midcap and the BSE Smallcap indices outperformed the frontline indices to rise 0.5% each

Benchmark indices were trading marginally lower during the afternoon trade dragged by telecom stocks ahead of the Reliance Jio announcement. The company is expected to disclose fresh subscriber numbers and also an update about its current plan which offers free data until the end of March.

Meanwhile, Asian shares were trading largely flat after a holiday in US markets.

At 10: 55 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 28,616, down 46 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 8,868, down 11 points.

In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap and the BSE Smallcap indices outperformed the frontline indices to rise 0.4% and 0.5%, respectively.

The market breadth was positive as about 1336 shares advanced against 962 declining shares on the BSE.

ITC and Bharti Airtel were top losers on BSE Sensex, down 1-2% followed by TCS, Coal India, Sun Pharma and M&M while Axis Bank, Asian Paints and HUL were the top gainers.

Extending gains for the fifth straight session, JSPL was up as much as 10% in addition to 8% rally in previous session.

Jio's free data offer has hit rivals, raising concerns about competition and margins in the sector. On Tuesday, Bharti Airtel fell 2.4% while Idea Cellular was down 0.2%.

Meanwhile, Ambuja Cements fell 2.8% in its biggest intraday percentage drop since Dec. 12, 2016 on weak December-quarter sales.

However, the Nifty IT index rose as much as 1.2% to its highest since Aug. 25, 2016 at intra-day but later pared gains to turn flat. TCS on Monday announced that it would buy back shares worth up to Rs 16,000 crore ($2.39 billion) at a substantial premium, raising expectations rivals such as Infosys would follow suit.

Reference - http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/markets-trade-marginally-lower-telecom-stocks-drag-117022100318_1.html