Selling pressure in metal, media, financials, private lenders and auto weighed on the buying in defensive bets like PSUs, IT, FMCG and Pharma space.
The 30-share pack Sensex declined 206.93 points or 0.34 per cent to close at 61,143.33. Its broader peer NSE Nifty50 gave up 57.45 points or 0.31 per cent to 18,210.95. Broader markets outperformed.
Echoing weak global sentiments, domestic indices slipped into negative terrain in today’s choppy trade, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. “Bleeding financial stocks dragged the market despite improvements in asset quality and favourable results. Stagflation worries and a flare-up in US-China tensions forced global investors to trade cautiously ahead of the announcement of another batch of Q2 corporate earnings,” he added.
Market at Glance
- Asian Paints climbed 4 per cent in the wake of price hike.
- Q2 Results impact: Axis Bank tanked 6 per cent as s loan growth lagged key peers.
- India VIX, a barometer of volatility and fear, spiked marginally but remained below 17.
- TTK Prestige zoomed 18 per cent as the company board approved stock split.
- IRB Infra hits the lower circuit after the board approved fundraising plans.
Factors driving the market
Bad news: Despite a good set of numbers in Q2 from the domestic lenders, the financial sector is bleeding. Improvements in asset quality failed to boost morale.
Inflation worries at the global level dampened the investors’ sentiments. A new flare in US-Sino tension is likely to jitter the riskier assets further.
Volatility is expected to remain high due to the scheduled monthly derivatives expiry and highly busy result-oriented session on Thursday.
Among the bluechip names, Asian Paints was the top gainer, rising 4.12 per cent, followed by UPL which advanced 3.75 per cent. Divis Labs, SBI Life, Cipla, Infosys, Ultratech Cement, Sun Pharma, SBI and ITC were among other top gainers.
Axis Bank was the top loser in the Nifty pack, falling about 6.5 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance which shed 4.8 per cent. ONGC, Tata Motors, Bajaj Finserv, Hindalco, IndusInd Bank, HUL and JSW Steel were others that settled 2-3 per cent lower.
The broader market outperformed their headline peers. Nifty midcap 150 index gained 0.11 per cent and Nifty Smallcap 100 index advanced over half a per cent. The Nifty 500 index ended marginally lower.
TTK Prestige, Sequent Scientific, Vardhman Textile, Eclerx, Gujarat Alkalies, GNFC, Laxmi Machine Works, Timken India, Blue Dart, Zensar Technologies and Jammu Kashmir Bank were the top gainers from mid and smallcap indices, climbing in the range of 6-18 per cent.
IRB Infrastructure, PNB Housing, Zee Entertainment, Ashoka Buildcon, National Aluminium, Grindwell Norton, Amber Enterprises and KEI Industries were among the major losers from the broader space falling in the range of 4-10 per cent.
European markets were trading lower. London-based FTSE was down 0.2 per cent while Paris and Frankfurt shed 0.25 per cent each. In Asia, all major indices settled lower. Shanghai and Hongkong bleed the most.
