Sensex, Nifty open weak on caution ahead of Donald Trump inauguration; Axis Bank tumbles

Indian stock markets opened weak on Friday, tracking SGX Nifty, Asian markets and global stocks, ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration as the 45th President of the United States. BSE Sensex was down 0.23% at 27,244.55 points and NSE Nifty was down 0.25% at 8,414.35 points in early morning trade. Asian equities slipped as caution prevailed in financial markets ahead of the US President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, even as China’s fourth-quarter economic growth beat expectations and Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen took a less hawkish policy stance.

US stocks were also restrained as the investors maintained caution, with the major indexes posting losses of as much as 0.4%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average down for its fourth straight session.

Bank stocks are likely to remain in focus through the day, following the announcements of quarterly results by Axis Bank, Yes Bank and Federal Bank yesterday.

Axis Bank shares tumbled, and were trading at Rs 457.8 down 5.37% from the previous close. Earlier yesterday, Axis Bank announced weaker than expected third quarter financial results post trading hours. It said fiscal third quarter net profit fell 73.3% on-year to Rs 579.6 crore, amid rising NPAs and falling margins. The fall in net profit was sharply larger than most analyst estimates. Reuters, in an analyst poll, forecast the net profit for the quarter at Rs 779 crore.

Yes Bank shares rose, and were trading up 1.96% at Rs 1,373.90, after its third quarter results beat analyst estimates. Yes Bank said yesterday that net profit in the fiscal third quarter 2016-17 rose about 30.6% on-year to Rs 882.6 crore, primarily driven expansion in net interest margins, helped by efficiency and productivity gains.

Other than Axis Bank, Tata Motors DVR, ICICI Bank, Ambuja Cements and Bharti Infratel were the top losers on NSE Nifty, with all the four stocks down between 1% and 2%.

In gainers, while Yes Bank was the top gainer, Idea Cellular, Cipla, IndusInd Bank and GAIL were the other major gainers, up 1.2%-1.6% each.

As per provisional figures, foreign institutional investors (FIIs)/ Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) sold shares worth net Rs 132.26 crores on January 19, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth net Rs 379.63 crores.