Higher oil, fall in Tata stocks drag Indian shares lower; inflation data in focus
- Nifty 50 declined 0.15% to 24,435.95 and Sensex shed 0.24% to 77,966.35
Indian shares fell on Wednesday as rising oil prices and caution ahead of domestic and U.S. inflation data weighed on sentiment, with declines in most Tata Group stocks following Chairman N. Chandrasekaran’s decision to step down adding to the pressure.
The Nifty 50 declined 0.15% to 24,435.95 and Sensex shed 0.24% to 77,966.35.
They were down 0.45% and 0.34% before the bell, when the new auction mechanism to ascertain the closing levels kicked in.
Seven of the 16 major sectors logged losses. The broader small-caps fell 0.2% and mid-caps added 0.3%.
Oil hovered around $89 a barrel, as hopes for an end to the Iran war faded after new attacks on shipping in the Middle East. India is world’s third-largest oil importer.
“Markets were already facing widespread pressure, driven by cautious sentiment (due to higher crude),” said Mayank Jain, market analyst at Share.Market by PhonePe.
The sudden exit of Tata Sons’ chairman ahead of the key August 18 Annual General Meeting piled additional downside pressure on Tata Group equities, said Jain.
Tata Consultancy Services, the country’s top software firm, fell 3.9%. Tata Motors PV, Tata Steel, Titan Company and Tata Consumer
declined between 0.5% and 1.5%.
The drop wiped off $4.6 billion from the combined market capitalisation of all listed Tata group companies on the day.
Among stocks, Hindalco and National Aluminium rose 2.8% and 8.3%, respectively, tracking a rise in global aluminium prices on Gulf supply concerns and lower inventories.
Godrej Consumer Products tumbled nearly 11.2% after the sudden exit of its chief executive, Sudhir Sitapati, just months after his reappointment.
Hospital chain operators such as Apollo Hospitals, Max Healthcare and Fortis Healthcare lost between 1.7% and 3.8% after a parliamentary standing committee recommended benchmarking private hospital room charges and introducing fixed package rates for standard medical and surgical procedures.
Domestic inflation data due after the close could reveal the effects of higher crude prices and weak monsoon rains, while U.S. consumer inflation readings is likely to guide rate trajectory.
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