For domestic investors, foreign outflows were a concern, with the dollar remaining steady against a basket of six major world currencies.
All eyes were on Nykaa’s market debut, given the unlisted scrip was commanding a 70 per cent in the grey market.
At 9.20 am, the BSE Sensex was trading at 60,074, down 359 points or 0.59 per cent. It later fell nearly 450 points to dip below the 60,000 level, thanks to selling in banking names. The NSE barometer Nifty50, meanwhile, slipped below 18,000 to hover at 17,929, down 115 points or 0.64 per cent. The broader market, however, was not showing much weakness, with advances outnumbering declines.
Among specific shares, HDFC fell 1.38 per cent to Rs 2,900. Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank declined 1 per cent each. Hindustan Unilever (HUL), SBI, Bajaj Auto and HCL Tech fell 0.8-1 per cent. M&M advanced 1.23 per cent to Rs 903. Sun Pharma, Dr Reddy’s Labs and Bajaj Finserv were the only three other Sensex stocks that were quoting higher.
“Even though the market appears resilient, the bulls are facing major headwinds in the form of sustained selling by FIIs. The ‘buy on dips’ strategy of retail investors and DIIs is countered with the ‘sell on rally’ strategy of FIIs. This tug of war is likely to continue in the short run. If the global environment for equity turns weak, accelerated selling by FIIs can trigger a minor short-term correction in the market,” said V K Vijayakumar of Geojit Financial Services.
Provisional data showed FPIs sold Rs 2,445.25 crore worth of domestic equities on Tuesday.
“One should continue with a ‘sell on rise’ strategy. The range of 17,950-17,850 should be considered as key supports. Traders are advised to stay light and even if one wants to focus on individual stocks, proper money management is a must to follow,” said Sameet Chavan of Angel One.
Pidilite, Zomato, Berger Paints, Bank of Baroda, General Insurance Corp, Oil India, Gujarat Fluorochemicals, Crisil, Vinati Organics, Nuvoco Vistas Corp, Metropolis Healthcare, Thermax, Affle (India) and Firstsource Solutions are among the companies that will report quarterly results today.
