Opening Movers: Benchmark indices trade marginally lower; IT index slips more than 1%

In the previous trading session on Monday, BSE Sensex advanced 465.14 points or 0.80% to close at the 58,853.07 level whereas its broader peer, Nifty50, gained 127.60 points or 0.73% to close above the 17,500 mark. Oil prices were seen trading lower on Wednesday, after industry data showed the US crude inventories unexpectedly gained last week, signalling a potential hiccup in demand. 

On Wednesday, the domestic benchmark indices opened marginally higher on a positive note. Sensex was up 10.92 points or 0.02% at 58863.99, and the Nifty was up 7.90 points or 0.05% at 17533. Nestle, SBI Life Insurance, Cipla, ICICI Bank, and Sun Pharma were among the major gainers on the Nifty, while losers were NTPC, Asian Paints, Adani Ports, HCL Technologies and Infosys. 

Meanwhile, the broader markets also traded flattish. BSE Midcap and BSE Small cap indices were 0.26% and 0.10% lower, respectively. ABB India, IGL and Whirpool were the top midcap gainers whereas Chemcon Speciality Chemicals, Fine Organics and Fairchem Organics were the top small-cap gainers. On the sectoral front, the indices were trading marginally lower with the BSE IT Index seeing a drag of almost 1.3%. eClerx, Subex and Persistent Systems were the top stocks dragging the IT index. Meanwhile, Allsec Technologies decently outperformed the IT index zooming around 3.4%. 

Investors are likely to turn their eyes towards the shares of Coal India, Hindalco Industries, Eicher Motors, Tata Consumer Products, IRCTC, Abbott India, Patanjali Foods, Max Healthcare, Zydus Lifesciences, NHPC, Cummins, and SAIL which are among the companies that will announce their quarterly earnings today. The shares of NTPC are likely to be in focus as the company plans to seek shareholders' approval to fundraise Rs 12,000 crore through the issuance of non-convertible debentures. 

In the first hour of the trading session, JSW Energy rose around 2.09% on the news regarding JSW Neo Energy Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of JSW Energy, has agreed to acquire a portfolio of 1,753 MW of Renewable Energy generation capacity from Mytrah Energy (India) Private Limited (MEIPL) comprising of 17 SPVs and 1 Ancillary SPV. On the other hand, the shares of One97 Communications (Paytm) fell by more than 1% despite the announcement related to a partnership with Piramal Capital and Housing Finance to expand the distribution of merchant loans to the small cities and towns of India.