Both the Nifty and the Sensex began the trading day on a muted note. The Nifty opened lower by over 150 points at 25,209.85 and the Sensex opened lower by over 450 points at 81,833.78. All sectoral indices declined in early trade. The Indian rupee opened flat at 94.04 versus Thursday’s close. Crude oil prices remained rangebound with Brent crude trading at 95 dollars per barrel (at the time of filing this copy) as investors remained concerned about the US-Iran deadlock.
India’s retail inflation accelerated to 6.09 percent in October, driven by rising food prices and supply disruptions. Economist and Founder of Nikore Associates, Mitali Nikore told Times Now Digital, “retail inflation rose to 6.09 percent in October, crossing the 6 percent for the first time in two years. Food inflation remains the biggest driver at 8.94 percent, with onion prices more than doubling and garlic up 61 percent over last year. Consumption was strong during the festive season, with traders estimating Diwali sales at close to Rs 7 lakh crore. However, this momentum is unlikely to last through the quarter. Consumer goods companies are now passing on higher input costs. Petrol and diesel costs about 8 percent more than in April, and restaurant prices are up about 10 percent. Urban households rely more on packaged food, so their cost of living is likely to rise further. Wages are not rising at this pace, so we expect household consumption to remain muted in the coming months. This implies that consumer-facing stocks will stay under pressure as companies weigh further price increases against weaker volumes.”
Stock Market Today (November 13): Sensex, Nifty Start Cautiously As Investors Track Inflation, Oil Prices, US-Iran Deadlock
