Opening Bell: Markets open lower due to weak global indications; metal index loses shine

The recent rate hike by the US Fed has further led to more FII selling in the domestic market, selling shares worth Rs 5,517.08 crore on Friday. On Monday, domestic equity market benchmark indices, BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 opened in red following the sharp fall in SGX Nifty.

Asian markets opened lower on Monday as US stock futures were cautious on rate worries, while a tough lockdown in Shanghai caused worries about global economic growth and possible recession. Oil prices dropped in early Asian trade as investors tracked talks at the European Union on a Russian oil embargo which is likely to tighten global supplies.

The Sensex was down 612.05 points or 1.12% at 54,223.53, and the Nifty was down 174.50 points or 1.06% at 16,236.80. About 816 shares have advanced, 1434 shares declined, and 138 shares are unchanged. India VIX advanced 4.25% trading at 22.15 in the first few minutes of the trading session.

On Nifty, the only gainer was Cipla whereas the lop losers comprised Tech Mahindra, Hindalco Industries, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and JSW Steel. Meanwhile, on Sensex, the only gainers were Power Grid Corporation of India and Titan being 0.94% and 0.1% up, respectively while the top losers dragging the index were Tech Mahindra, Axis Bank, TCS, Tata Steel and Wipro.

In the broader markets, at 9.30 am BSE Mid Cap and Small Cap indices fell sharply, being down 2.12% and 2.38%, respectively. In the BSE Midcap index, the top stocks pulling down the index were Tata Power, Endurance Technologies, Canara Bank, Mindtree and RBL Bank whereas, in the BSE Smallcap index, Privi Speciality Chemicals, Indostar Capital Finance, Vikas Lifecare, Apollo Tricoat Tubes and Cigniti Technologies were the top stocks dragging the index.

On the sectoral front, indices opened lower with BSE Power, BSE Metal, BSE Utilities and BSE Industrials indices declining more than 2% whereas the rest of the indices lost more than 1%. The top metal stocks losing their shine were APL Apollo Tubes, Steel Authority of India, NMDC, JSW Steel and Tata Steel.