Sensex down 22 points amid lackluster trades

The market remains quite subdued amid lackluster trades this morning with investors not showing any big interest in building up positions.

Select stocks from consumer durables, oil, power and capital goods sectors are finding some support. Information technology, automobile, healthcare and metal stocks are mostly flat. Bank, realty and FMCG stocks are a bit weak.

The Sensex is now down 21.60 points or 0.12% at 18,495.74. The Nifty is down with a loss of 6.20 points or 0.11% at 5621.55.

In the currency market, the rupee declined, extending losses to a fourth successive session. In early trades, the currency eased to 55.36 against the U.S. dollar, losing 15 paise. On Thursday, the partially convertible Indian currency ended at 55.21, a two-month low, recording a loss of 9 paise.

BHEL is trading 1.7% up thanks to sustained buying at the counter. Hero Motocorp is up 1.2%. Hindustan Unilever, Reliance Industries, Tata Power, HDFC, Bajaj Auto and Tata Consultancy Services are up with modest gains.

GAIL India, ICICI Bank, ONGC, Tata Motors, ITC, Wipro, Sterlite Industries, Larsen & Toubro and HDFC Bank are down 0.3% - 1.2%.

Pharma stocks Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Dr Reddy's Laboratories are up 1.1% and 0.6%, respectively. Wockhardt, Strides Arcolab and Aurobindo Pharma are up with modest gains.

Ranbaxy Laboratories and Cipla are down 1.6% and 1.4%, respectively. Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is down 0.8% and Opto Circuits is trading lower by 1.2%.

This morning, the Cabinet endorsed the recommendations of a Group of Ministers on a revised National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy , giving shape to a long-pending issue. The government did not give out details of the decision.

According to sources, the Cabinet has imposed a cap on prices of 348 essential medicines at the arithmetic average of prices of all drugs in a particular segment with more than one per cent market share, in line with the GoM’s new recommendations.

Hindustan Copper is down as much as 16.2% at Rs 223.30 following the government setting a floor price of Rs 155 per share for its Offer of Sale, at a steep discount to the stock's closing price on Thursday.

MMTC is down 3.3%. ING Vysya Bank, Dabur India, Unitech, L&T Finance Holdings and Jubilant Foodworks are trading lower by 1% - 1.4%.

Jet Air India is up nearly 7% on strong buying support. Crompton Greaves is up almost 4% and Berger Paints is trading higher by 3.2%. Bajaj Finserv, Pantaloon Retail, Asian Paints, Adani Enterprises, Indian Hotels, Britannia Industries, McLeod Russel, JP Infratech, Zee Entertainment and Ashok Leyland are also up with strong gains.

The Suzlon Group has bagged contracts for 39.9 MW projects from Gujarat State Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd and Bharat Electronics Ltd. The projects comprise 19 units of Suzlon's S95-2.1 MW wind turbines, the company said. Suzlon Energy shares are currently trading at Rs 15.30, unchanged from Thursday's closing price.