MUMBAI: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled nearly 1 per cent on Tuesday, weighed down by a broad-based selloff amid persistent foreign fund outflows and rising geopolitical uncertainties.
Domestic markets remained on the back foot for the third straight session as investors exited energy, financial and IT shares. The weakness was visible across segments, with the selloff appearing both deep and wide.
In a volatile trading session, the 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 636.24 points or 0.78 per cent to close at 80,737.51. During the day, it had slumped 798.66 points or 0.98 per cent to 80,575.09. The NSE Nifty fell 174.10 points or 0.70 per cent to settle at 24,542.50.
Out of the total stocks traded on the BSE, 2,266 declined, 1,731 advanced and 147 remained unchanged.
“The domestic market stayed in negative terrain amid mixed global cues, geopolitical issues and a volatile currency market driven by a weak dollar. Profit-booking is evident across sectors except real estate, which was supported by expectations of a rate cut by the RBI,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
“Mid and small-cap stocks are facing relatively less consolidation compared with large caps, thanks to stronger earnings growth and moderation in premium valuations.
While short-term consolidation is likely to continue, strong domestic-oriented companies may outperform amid external volatility,” he added.
Among Sensex constituents, Adani Ports declined 2.42 per cent. Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, NTPC, IndusInd Bank, Maruti, Tata Consultancy Services and UltraTech Cement were also among the top laggards. Mahindra & Mahindra emerged as the only gainer.
Adani Group companies
All 11 listed Adani Group companies closed in the red. On Monday, the group said it does not handle any cargo from Iran or any Iranian-owned ship at any of its ports, dismissing reports linking its entities to Iranian LPG trade as “baseless and mischievous.”
The BSE midcap index dropped 0.52 per cent, while the smallcap index dipped 0.07 per cent.
Among sectoral indices, power fell 1.50 per cent, followed by utilities (1.42 per cent), bankex (0.89 per cent), energy (0.88 per cent), capital goods (0.87 per cent), financial services (0.80 per cent) and teck (0.68 per cent). Commodities and realty were the only gainers.
“The Nifty continues to consolidate with no clear direction in sight. Investors appear to be awaiting decisive cues from the RBI’s upcoming interest rate decision,” said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities.
Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs2,589.47 crore on Monday, as per exchange data.
“The ongoing foreign fund outflows, coupled with weak global cues such as geopolitical tensions and uncertainty over trade deals, are keeping markets under pressure,” said Ajit Mishra, SVP – Research at Religare Broking.
Among Asian markets, Shanghai’s SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended higher, while Japan’s Nikkei closed lower. South Korean markets remained shut. European shares were trading lower. US indices closed higher overnight.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.28 per cent to $64.81 a barrel.
On Monday, the Sensex had plunged 796.75 points or 0.97 per cent during the day before closing 77.26 points or 0.09 per cent lower at 81,373.75. The Nifty had ended 34.10 points or 0.14 per cent lower at 24,716.60.
