Rising covid cases in some pockets brought renewed fears of a possible second wave of infections and lockdown that led to selling. Weak global cues also dented market sentiment.
The 30-share pack Sensex fell 494.93 points or 0.85 per cent to close at 50,889.76. The index hit a day’s low of 50,624.33. Its broader peer NSE Nifty fell 137.20 points or 0.91 per cent to 14,981.75.
“Profit Taking was evident throughout the day as we witnessed several pivotals succumbing to selling pressure as traders feared rising covid cases in Maharashtra. The PSU bank index which rose 12 per cent in the last two days shed 5 per cent today,” said S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities.
Market at a glance
- India VIX, barometer of volatility, rises 3.28% to 22.25 levels
- RIL gains nearly 1% as it plans to hive off petrochemical biz
- PSU banks see profit-booking after three day rally; Central Bank of India down 10%
- ONGC faces bears’ wrath as oil explorer tumbles 5%
- 249 stocks hit 52-week highs: Adani Ports, GAIL, Hindalco, HPCL, Jubilant Foodworks and Tata Power among others
Equity investors lost Rs 1.81 lakh crore as the total market cap of BSE-listed companies came down to Rs 204.11 lakh crore.
Among the bluechip names, UPL was the top gainer, rising 2.56 per cent. Dr Reddy’s Labs, IndusInd Bank, HUL, GAIL, NTOC, TCS, Reliance Industries and Nestle India were other gainers.
ONGC was the top loser in the Nifty pack, falling 5.06 per cent. Tata Steel, Hero MotoCorp, SBI, Tata Motors, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Auto, Eicher Motors and JSW Steel were others that ended in the red.
Broader market indices ended with cuts underperforming their headline peers. Nifty Smallcap fell 0.92 per cent and Nifty Midcap dropped 1.62 per cent. Nifty 500, the broadest index on NSE, dropped 1.01 per cent.
IDFC First Bank, Tata Chemicals, Gujarat Gas, IDFC, Sterlite Technologies and Karur Vysya Bank were top gainers from mid and smallcap indices, climbing in the range of 3-8 per cent.
Indian Bank, Blue Star Company, IOL Chemicals, Bank of India, LIC Housing Finance and BHEL were major losers from broader market space, falling in the range of 4-10 per cent.
All sectoral indices on NSE were trading with cuts. Nifty PSU Bank was the top loser, down 4.76 per cent. Nifty Auto and Nifty Bank were others that fell more than 2 per cent each.
Market breadth was in favour of losers as 1,182 stocks ended in the green, while 1,779 names settled with cuts. As many as 249 securities hit 52-week highs, mostly from the smallcap space. Meanwhile, 36 names hit 52-week lows, mostly from the microcap space. About 275 stocks hit upper circuit limits and 254 lower circuit limits.
European markets were trading with gains at the last count. London-based FTSE was up 0.02 per cent while Paris and Frankfurt rose 0.53 per cent and 0.50 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Hong Kong, South Korea, Indonesia and China ended in green, while other markets registered losses.
