IT shares weigh on markets

Markets continued to trade flat with negative bias in late morning deals weighed down by information technology and FMCG major ITC.

The S&P BSE Sensex was down 28 points at 25,708 and the Nifty50 was down 12 points at 25,708.

In the broader market, the BSE Midcap and Small Cap indices were up 0.3%-0.5% each.

Market breadth was strong with 1,463 gainers and 839 losers on the BSE.

IT majors Infosys and TCS were down over 1% each contributing the most to the Sensex losses because of the sharp hike in visa fees by the US.

FMCG majors ITC and HUL were also down over 0.5% each amid profit taking after recent gains.

Financials firmed up led by private banks. ICICI Bank pared early losses and was up 1.6%. Other gainers include Axis Bank and SBI which rose 0.4%-1.4% each.

Tata Motors was marginally up on reports that the company is working on partial hybrids and fully-electric systems for its future range of passenger vehicles.

In the midcap space, GMR Infra, Sun TV Network, JSW Energy and JP Associates were the top gainers.

Gujarat NRE Coke, Reliance Ind. Infra, MIRC Electronis and Shilpa Medicare were the top gainers in the smallcap segment.

Among other shares, Mangalam Drugs & Organics shares were locked in lower circuit for the 10 straight trading session, down 5% at Rs 265 on the BSE. According to disclosure filed by the company, the promoters had sold nearly two lakh shares worth of Rs 6 crore through open market during last week.

Markets trimmed early losses and were trading rangebound as gains in pharma shares helped offset most of the losses in IT majors.

The S&P BSE Sensex was down 11 points at 25,725 and the Nifty50 was down 8 points at 7,826.

In the broader market, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices were up 0.3%-0.4% each.

" For the Nifty resistance is at 7,854 above 7,885 and 7,911 while support is at 7,794 below 7,766 and 7,749," Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services said in a note.

Meanwhile, the government introduced the 'Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2015', or the bankruptcy Bill, in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The Bill is one of the steps that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has identified as crucial for India to improve ease of doing business. The Bill has been introduced as a money Bill, which means it will not have to be passed in the Rajya Sabha, where the government has struggled to get legislative work done.

STOCKS IN FOCUS

BSE IT index was the top loser along with FMCG index down 0.6% each. BSE Healthcare and Consumer Durables and Power indices were the top gainers up 0.5% each.

Sun Pharma was up over 1% amid short covering after the sharp decline in the previous session after the company said that it has received a warning letter from US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) for its manufacturing facility located in Halol in Gujarat.

Among other pharma stocks, Dr Reddy's Labs and Cipla were up 0.3%-0.7% each.

Tata Motors was trading with marginal gains on reports that the company is working on partial hybrids and fully-electric systems for its future range of passenger vehicles.

Other Sensex gainers include, SBI, AXis Bank and HUL among others.

IT majors Infosys, TCS and Wipro were down on the back of sharp increase in US visa fees.  Almost all Indian IT companies would pay between $8,000 and $10,000 per H-1B visa from April 1, when the next annual H-1B visa filing session starts, thus making it unsustainable for them.

ICICI Bank was down 0.5% after sharp gains of over 3% in the previous session.

Among oil shares, Reliance Industries was down 0.2% while ONGC eased 0.7%.

Other Sensex losers include, HDFC and ITC down 0.4% each.

Among other shares, Housing Development and Infrastructure (HDIL) is trading higher by 5% at Rs 74, extending its previous day’s 6% rally on the BSE, after the real estate developer sold development rights of its land parcel at Kurla to DK Realty (India) for Rs 650 crore.

Marcio has dipped 6.5% to Rs 217 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on profit booking after the stock turned ex-bonus today in the ratio of 1:1 i.e. one bonus equity share for every one share held.