Indian stocks steady

01 Sep, 2018

Indian shares ended little changed on Friday, as global sentiment remained muted after US President Donald Trump made fresh trade threats against China, while gains in tech and healthcare were offset by losses in energy and financial stocks.
The benchmark BSE index closed down 0.12 percent, while the broader NSE index ended 0.03 percent higher. Both indexes marked a sixth straight weekly gain, with the BSE closing 1 percent higher and the NSE ending 1.07 percent firmer.
The BSE index gained 2.76 pct in August, while the broader NSE index climbed 2.85 pct, having hit 11 record highs this month.
The indexes posted their biggest monthly gain for August since 2014.
Shares of Dr.Reddy's Laboratories Ltd, top gainer on the Nifty index, ended 4.7 percent higher, while Reliance Industries Ltd closed 2.8 percent lower.
"Indian markets are also a little sluggish, trying to go up because of a few sectors which are leading the pack, but overall because of the global scenario, most of the markets are down," said Siddharth Sedani, VP, Head Equity Advisory, Anand Rathi.
HCL Technologies Ltd rose as much as 3.7 percent to become the top gainer on the Nifty index, while Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd gained 2.2 percent in morning trade.
"The rupee depreciation is the main factor driving healthcare and IT sector," Sedani said.
The rupee fell to a record low of 71 per dollar in opening trade on Friday, tracking weakness in almost all other Asian peers as the latest round of US-China trade tensions dulled investor risk appetite and boosted the dollar.
India's Idea Cellular Ltd rose as much as 6.1 percent after it completed its merger with Vodafone's India unit after approval from the National Company Law Tribunal.
Yes Bank Ltd fell as much as 3.8 percent to its lowest since May 11 after uncertainty around the continuation of its MD and CEO, Rana Kapoor.
Jet Airways (India) Ltd also fell as much as 2.4 percent, extending losses to a third straight session, after the Registrar of Companies sought comments in response to a complaint.

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