At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex closed higher by 75 points, while the NSE Nifty finished higher by 17 points. S&P BSE Midcap and S&P BSE Small Cap also ended the day lower by 0.1% and 0.7% respectively.
Major Asian markets finished on a negative note as of the most recent closing prices. Stock markets in Japan and China ended the day higher by 0.9% and 0.8% respectively. Oil prices were trading at US$ 47.89 a barrel at the time of writing. The rupee was trading at 67.70 against the US$.
Sectoral indices finished the day on a mixed note with stocks from healthcare and oil & gas sectors witnessing maximum selling pressure, while stocks from banking and automobile sectors witnessed buying interest.
As per an article in Business Standard, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) in its recent report stated that Jubilant FoodWorks' Domino's Pizza, Subway and McDonalds are selling pizzas and burgers made of toxic breads.
Reportedly, the bread contains toxins such as potassium bromate and potassium iodate. Further, Potassium bromate is a category 2B carcinogen which can cause cancer. While, potassium iodate could trigger thyroid disorders.
Further, bread products of Britannia too were found with high amount of these two toxins. The use of these chemicals is banned in many countries for being hazardous to public health.
CSE tested 38 commonly available branded varieties of pre-packaged breads and ready to eat pizza breads of popular fast foods from Delhi. 84% of these samples tested positive with potassium bromate/iodate. The findings were re-confirmed by testing of samples through an external third party laboratory.
The FSSAI will now look into the matter and take necessary actions. We will keep a track on this issue and update you on the same. The stock of Jubilant FoodWorks and Britannia ended the day lower by 4.2% and 1% respectively.
In another news update, Maruti Suzuki maintained its leadership position in the domestic passenger vehicle (PV) market in the month of April 2016. Seven of its models featured in the top ten selling brands last month.
As per the latest data from Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, Maruti's Alto retained the top position followed by Swift and Wagon R. Other models to make it to the list include Baleno, Celerio, Omni and Dzire.
Reportedly, Honda Cars India's City, Mahindra's Bolero and Hyundai's Eon failed to make it to the top ten list. They had featured in the top ten passenger vehicle list in the same period of last year.
The huge positive for Maruti is that the new models are gaining traction. Models such as Vitara Brezza and Baleno are witnessing long waiting periods, indicating a strong demand for these models.
Speaking about cars, Vivek Kaul has written an interesting article correlating car sales to black money.
Going forward, the response from new models will be the key things to watch out for. The stock of Maruti Suzuki ended the day lower by 0.2%.
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