On Tuesday, share markets in India opened on a positive note but ended the day in red.

The BSE Sensex closed lower by 61 points to end the day at 33,857. While the broader NSE Nifty ended the day higher by 5 points to end at 10,426 levels.

Among BSE sectoral indices, IT stocks fell the most by 1.6%, followed by telecom stocks at 1.1%. TCS and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the top losers.

Top Stocks in Action Today

HDFC share price is likely to be in focus today after the mortgage lender said that it will sell over 4% stake in its asset management arm HDFC Asset Management Co. Ltd (HDFC AMC) through an initial public offer (IPO).

Interglobe Aviation share price is among the stocks to watch today, after the aviation regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) ordered the grounding of 8 of its planes.

CPI Inflation at 4-Month Low

In the latest development, India's retail inflation fell to a 4-month low of 4.44% in February on cheaper food articles and lower cost for fuel.

Based on Consumer Price Index (CPI), retail inflation was at 5.07% in January. In February 2017, however, it was 3.65%. It was 4.88% in November last year.

Data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed that the rate of price rise in the consumer food segment was lower at 3.26% in February, as against 4.7% in the previous month.

Inflation in vegetables was 17.57% last month, down from 26.97% in January, and for fruits it was 4.8% (as against 6.24%).

Milk and its products too were less expensive with inflation print of 4.21%, cereals and products at 2.1%, meat & fish at 3.31% while for eggs the prices grew at a slower pace of 8.51%.

Retail inflation, measured by Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the main price gauge that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) tracks. February's data is an indication that prices are at a safe distance from the apex bank's upper tolerance level of inflation at 6%.

Last month, the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) estimated inflation at 5.1% in the quarter ended March, including the impact of house rent allowance. It also estimated the retail inflation for 2018-19 in the range of 5.1-5.6% during April-September and 4.5-4.6% in the second half of the year.

The RBI's monetary policy statement is one of the most tracked events in the financial world. With both core and retail inflation easing to new lows, a rate cut in key interest rates was widely expected.

IPO Buzz

State-owned Bharat Dynamics opened its initial public offering for subscription yesterday.

The defence public sector company has fixed the price band between Rs 413 and Rs 428 per equity share for its IPO to raise around Rs 9.6 billion. The government will sell a total of 22.5 million shares of Bharat Dynamics, diluting its stake by about 12%, in the issue that closes on March 15.

As this is an offer for sale by the Government of India, the entire proceeds from the IPO will add to the divestment kitty.

Speaking of company's background, Bharat Dynamics was incorporated in 1970. It is engaged in making surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs), underwater weapons, launchers, countermeasures and test equipment.

It is the sole manufacturer for SAMs in India, torpedoes and ATGMs. The company is the sole supplier of SAMs and ATGMs to the Indian armed forces. It is also engaged in the business of refurbishment and life extension of missiles manufactured.

The company operates three manufacturing facilities located in Hyderabad, Bhanur and Visakhapatnam. It is setting up two more manufacturing facilities at Ibrahimpatnam (near Hyderabad) and Amravati in Maharashtra. The proposed units will be used to manufacture SAMs and very-short-range air defence missiles (VSHORADMs), respectively.

To know our view on this IPO, you can read our IPO note on Bharat Dynamics Ltd (requires subscription)

Global Financial Markets Await Key Economic Data

Global financial are still digesting moves from the US President Donald Trump as he signed declarations which would implement tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. The tariffs are expected to take effect in the coming weeks and will see a 25% charge placed on steel, and 10%levy on aluminum however, Canada and Mexico are exempt from these tariffs.

Market participants are now awaiting macro-economic data including the small business optimism index and inflation as measured by the consumer price index (CPI) in the US.