Indian share markets fell sharply in the post-noon trading session. Majority of the sectoral indices are trading in the red with metal and power stocks being the biggest losers.
BSE-Sensex is down 211 points and NSE-Nifty is trading 64 points down. BSE Mid Cap is trading 1.1% down and BSE Small Cap index is trading down by 1.2%. The rupee is trading at 61.89 to the US dollar.
As per a leading daily, India's current account deficit (CAD) widened to a five-quarter high of 2.1% of GDP for the quarter ended September 2014. The CAD in the preceding quarter was at 1.7% of the GDP. Slowdown in merchandise exports and higher gold imports led to a sharp rise in CAD for the quarter. Merchandise exports slowed down to 4.9% in September 2014 quarter from 11.9% in the corresponding quarter last year. However, higher gold imports pushed up merchandise imports that grew by 8.1% in September 2014 quarter vis-a-vis 4.8% fall in year-ago quarter. Last month, the government removed the 20:80 restrictions on gold imports that required traders to mandatorily export 20% of the imported yellow metal. The Reserve Bank of India has said that it is comfortable with the current account deficit scenario on account of lower crude prices. Brent crude prices dropped below $ 68 a barrel which is a five-year low after Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries decided against cutting output.
Most of the automobile stocks are trading in the red with Eicher Motor and Ashok Leyland being the biggest losers whereas Maharashtra Scooters and Tube Investments are among the few stocks trading in the green. As per data released by Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), domestic passenger car sales grew by 9.5% to 1.56 lakh units for the month of November. Two wheeler sales increased by 4.9% to 13 lakh units, but motorcycle sales were down by 3.1% to 8.53 lakh units for the month. The overall vehicle sales were up by 5% to 16 lakh units in November.
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 "Metal & power stocks take a beating". 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!