Barring South Korea (up 0.6%), most major Asian stock markets have opened the day on a weak note with Japan (down 2%) and China (down 1.9%) leading the losses. The Indian share markets have also opened the day on a negative note. Stocks in the banking and information technology space are leading the losses. However, consumer durables stocks are trading firm.
The Sensex today is down by around 100 points (0.5%), while the NSE-Nifty is down by around 30 points (0.5%). While the BSE Mid Cap index is trading down by 0.04%, the BSE Small Cap index is up by around 0.3%. The rupee is currently trading at Rs 62.18 to the US dollar.
PSU Bank stocks have mainly opened the day on a weak note with Oriental Bank of Commerce, Dena Bank and Central Bank of India leading the losses. As per a leading financial daily, public sector bank employees are set to go on a two-day strike from January 20, 2014. As such, operations at all the PSU banks and regional rural banks are likely to be affected. The strike call has been given by United Forum of Banks Unions (UFBU), demanding wage revision and the resolution of certain other issues. UFBU is an umbrella organisation of nine bank employees and officers unions. It must be noted that the wage revision of public sector bank employees has been due since November 2012. There are 27 public sector banks in India, with about 50,000 branches and employee base of about 8 lakh.
Major information technology stocks have opened the day on a weak note with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Tech Mahindra leading the losses. Leading Indian IT firm TCS has announced that it is setting up the world's largest corporate learning and training center. The proposed TCS Learning Campus would have a total capacity to train 15,000 professionals at one time and 50,000 professionals annually. The center will be located in Thiruvananthapuram, on a 97-acre property in the Technopark area of the city. The campus will be built over an area of 6.1 million square feet. It will feature residential accommodation for professionals and faculty at the center.
For information on how to pick stocks that have the potential to deliver big returns, download our special report now!
Read the latest Market Commentary
Equitymaster requests your view! Post a comment on "Indian share markets open weak". Click here!
Comments are moderated by Equitymaster, in accordance with the Terms of Use, and may not appear
on this article until they have been reviewed and deemed appropriate for posting.
In the meantime, you may want to share this article with your friends!