Markets fall in early trade on weak Asian equities

After a weak beginning, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 164.36 points to 61,708.63 in early trade. The broader NSE Nifty dipped 44.4 points to 18,359.

Equity benchmark indices fell in early trade on November 16 amid weak trend in other Asian markets. After a weak beginning, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 164.36 points to 61,708.63 in early trade. The broader NSE Nifty dipped 44.4 points to 18,359.

From the Sensex pack, Tata Steel, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, Bajaj Finserv and Asian Paints were the major laggards. Dr. Reddy's, Maruti, Tata Consultancy Services and UltraTech Cement were among the winners in early trade.

Elsewhere in Asia, markets in Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong were trading lower. Wall Street had ended in the positive territory on November 15.

"While the undertone of the market remains cautious to intra-day volatility, cooling U.S. inflation, sluggish crude oil price, expectations of slow pace of rate hikes by the U.S. Fed and hopes of easing coronavirus restrictions by China could further boost investors' confidence," said Prashanth Tapse, Research Analyst, Senior V-P (Research), Mehta Equities Limited.

The BSE benchmark climbed 248.84 points or 0.40% to settle at 61,872.99 — its lifetime high — on Tuesday. The Nifty advanced 74.25 points or 0.41% to finish at 18,403.40.

International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.25% lower at $93.63 per barrel. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded shares worth ₹221.32 crore on Tuesday, as per exchange data.