Markets trade cautiously ahead of major economic data; Metal outperforms, pharma stocks nosedive; Tata Steel in lead; Sun Pharma, Bajaj Auto drag

A broad-based selloff across sectoral indices was recorded in benchmarks Sensex and Nifty 50 with exception of metal stocks that outperformed counterparts.

A cautious tone was seen in Indian markets during the opening bell of Wednesday amid mixed global cues as traders await US inflation data. India is also set to announce its CPI inflation and factor output numbers for July and June 2021 tomorrow. A broad-based selloff across sectoral indices was recorded in benchmarks Sensex and Nifty 50 with exception of metal stocks that outperformed counterparts. Realty, media, pharma and auto stocks underperformed most.

At around 09.43 am, Sensex is trading at 54,440.06 down by 114.6 points or 0.21%. The index has touched an intraday high and low of 54,758.74 and 54,431.32 respectively.

Nifty 50 performed at 16,257 lower by 23.10 points or 0.14%, after touching intraday high and low of 16,338.75 and 16,247.25 in the early trade.

In terms of sectoral indices, on BSE, the Metal index soared to near 440 points or 2.2%. Meanwhile, the Healthcare index nosedived over 415 points.

Top bulls on Sensex were - Tata Steel surging 2.5% followed by Power Grid and NTPC soaring 1.6% and 1.09%. SBI jumped nearly 1%, while Axis Bank and HDFC Bank were marginally up.

Top bears on Sensex included - Sun Pharma, Tech Mahindra and Bajaj Auto plummeting by over 1% each. Stocks like Dr Reddy's Lab, ITC, Kotak Bank, Titan, Bajaj Finance, M&M, L&T, Maruti Suzuki, Nestle and ICICI Bank dipped between 0.5-1%.

Companies that are set to announce their June quarter earnings today and will be in focus are - Cadila Healthcare, Aptech, Aries Agro, Ashiana Housing, Aster DM Healthcare, Antony Waste Handling Cell, Bajaj Electricals, Bata India, BF Utilities, Birla Cable, Bharat Road Network, CESC, CreditAccess Grameen, Cummins India, Endurance Technologies, Equitas Holdings, Force Motors, Greaves Cotton, HEG, IDFC, India Cement, Kolte-Patil Developers, Lemon Tree Hotels, Novartis India, Pidilite Industries, PNC Infratech, Rupa & Company, Take Solutions, VIP Industries, and VA Tech Wabag.

The government will announce CPI Inflation for July 2021 tomorrow. India's consumer price index inflation has stayed over the RBI's target band for the second month in a row. The provisional CPI inflation data comes at 6.26% in June 2021 compared to the final 6.30% in the previous month.

Also, the government will present IIP or factory output data for June 2021 tomorrow. Index of Industrial Production (IIP) rose 29.3% in May 2021. The quick estimates of the index with base 2011-12 stands at 116.6 in May 2021 compared to 90.2 in the same month last year.

On the global front, Japan's Nikkei 225 outperformed by zooming over 150 points. Hong Kong's Hang Seng and Australi's S&P/ASX saw modest gains, while China's Shanghai Composite index was marginally up. However, BSE Sensex and South Korea's KOSPI traded lower.

On Wall Street, overnight, US indices settled at fresh highs as Democrats passed an infrastructure bill for about $1 trillion which sees a cyclical rebound and take Dow Jones higher by over 160 points. Bond yield regains momentum on the upside hitting 1.32% which prompts profit booking in technology with Nasdaq closing lower by 70 points.