FIRST TRADE: Sensex down nearly 150 pts, Nifty below 19,800; HUDCO shares slip 9%

Stock market today: Domestic equity indices on Wednesday, October 18, opened on a subdued note but slipped later as conflict in the Middle East intensified and worries of a prolonged high-interest rate regime after better-than-expected US retail sales data hurt sentiment.

At the time of filing this report, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 136.93 points, or 0.21 per cent, at 66,278.89, and the NSE Nifty was up 33.25 points, or 0.17 per cent, at 19,778.25.

In the broader market, the Nifty Mid Cap 100 and Small Cap 100 opened in positive territory.

Nifty Bank was down 0.04 per cent at 44,391.6.

BUZZING STOCKS 

Tata Elxsi stock was up over 2 per cent post-Q2 results.

Aditya Vision shares were up over 1 per cent after bulk deals.

Conversely, L&T Technology Services shares were down over 3  per cent after it lowered its revenue growth guidance for the current fiscal.

Bajaj Finance shares were down over 1 per cent after it reported a mixed set of results.

HUDCO shares were down over 8 per cent a day after the government announced that it would sell up to a 7 per cent stake in the company.

Syngene International shares were down nearly 4 per cent after it reported Q2 results.

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance shares were down over 2 per cent after its Value of New Business margins were lower.

GLOBAL MARKETS

The Nasdaq dipped and benchmark US Treasury yields surged on Tuesday as robust economic data and strong third-quarter earnings suggested the Federal Reserve may keep policy tight for longer than expected.

All three major US stocks wavered throughout the session, but the S&P 500 and the Dow closed essentially flat, while interest rate-sensitive mega-cap stocks weighed on the Nasdaq, which posted a modest loss.

(With agency inputs) 

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