MUMBAI: Stock markets snapped their seven-day winning run on Wednesday, with the benchmark Sensex tumbling 728 points due to profit-taking in banking and IT shares ahead of the monthly expiry of derivatives contracts.
The 30-share BSE Sensex declined by 728.69 points or 0.93 per cent to settle at 77,288.50, with 25 of its components closing in the red. During the day, it slumped 822.97 points or 1.05 per cent to 77,194.22. The NSE Nifty dropped 181.80 points or 0.77 per cent to 23,486.85.
Over the past seven trading sessions, the BSE benchmark, Sensex, surged 4,188.28 points or 5.67 per cent, while the Nifty gained 1,271.45 points or 5.67 per cent.
Among Sensex stocks, NTPC, Tech Mahindra, Zomato, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, Infosys, Maruti, State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Reliance Industries, Hindustan Unilever, and HDFC Bank were among the major losers. IndusInd Bank, HCL Tech, Titan, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Power Grid were the gainers.
“The market experienced profit-booking after the recent rally, driven by concerns over next week’s US tariff announcements. Sectors with higher exposure to the US market, such as pharma and IT, faced selling pressure,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
Asian markets
In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, and Hong Kong ended in positive territory, while Shanghai closed lower. European markets were trading lower, whereas US markets ended higher on Tuesday.
“Markets declined after a brief pause amid mixed cues. Following an initial uptick, Nifty remained range-bound in the first half, but profit-booking in select heavyweights dragged the index lower as the session progressed. Investors are locking in gains ahead of the March derivatives contract expiry, while concerns over tariff discussions continue to weigh on sentiment,” said Ajit Mishra, SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd.
The BSE smallcap index declined 1.45 per cent, while the midcap index slipped 0.67 per cent.
Among sectoral indices, oil & gas dropped the most, falling 1.52 per cent, followed by realty (1.37 per cent), utilities (1.32 per cent), energy (1.29 per cent), bankex (1.08 per cent), BSE Focused IT (1.12 per cent), IT (1.11 per cent), and teck (0.77 per cent). Capital goods was the only sector to post gains.
On the BSE, 3,115 stocks declined, while 919 advanced and 109 remained unchanged.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs5,371.57 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.58 per cent to $73.44 a barrel.
On Tuesday, the BSE Sensex had gained 32.81 points or 0.04 per cent to settle at 78,017.19, while the Nifty eked out gains of 10.30 points or 0.04 per cent to close at 23,668.65.
