Share markets in India witnessed selling pressure during closing hours and ended their trading session on a negative note. Sectoral indices ended on a negative note with stocks in the metal sector and telecom sector witnessing most of the selling pressure.
At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood lower by 218 points (down 0.6%) and the NSE Nifty closed down by 73 points (down 0.7%). The BSE Mid Cap index ended the day down 0.7%, while the BSE Small Cap index ended the day down 0.4%.
The rupee was trading at 71.02 against the US$.
Asian stock markets finished on a mixed note. As of the most recent closing prices, the Hang Seng was up by 0.2% and the Shanghai Composite was down by 0.2%. The Nikkei 225 was up 0.6%.
Note that while the markets are witnessing selling pressure lately, the SIP flows into Indian stock markets are on the rise. Have a look at the chart below. It plots the month SIP contributions over the 31-month period between April 2016 and October 2018.
SIPs Continue to Rise Despite Market Correction
During the above period, SIP contributions have grown from Rs 3,122 crore in April 2016 to Rs 7,985 crore in October 2018, growing at a compounded annual rate of 46%.
Currently, there are about 2.49 crore SIP accounts through which investors regularly invest in various Indian mutual fund schemes. As per AMFI data, the mutual fund industry added an average of about 10.05 lakh SIP accounts each month during the financial year 2018-19, with an average SIP size of about Rs 3,200 per SIP account.
If the trend in SIP inflows remains steady, it will provide the much-needed buoyancy to the Indian markets which have been witnessing an exodus of foreign investors.
In the news from pharma space, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals share price was in focus today as the company said it has received final approval from the USFDA for Atovaquone which used for prevention and treatment of a type of pneumonia.
