Domestic benchmark equity indices, Sensex and Nifty, slipped 0.7 per cent each in a volatile trading session on Tuesday due to profit booking and tracking weak Asian markets.
The BSE’s 30-share Sensex lost 0.76 per cent, or 624.82 points, to close at 81,551.63. The broader Nifty ended 0.7 per cent, or 174.95 points, down at 24,826.2. During the session, the Sensex plunged 1.28 per cent, or 1,054 points, to an intraday low of 81,121.7 while the Nifty tanked 1.18 per cent, or 297.05 points, to touch a low of 24,704.1.
“The domestic market witnessed volatility and snapped a two-day rally, as investors opted for profit booking driven by valuation concerns and weakness across Asian markets. The benchmark index once again failed to decisively breach the 25,000 resistance level, reflecting the absence of positive triggers,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd.
After an initial fall, the market bounced back sharply, but once again, profit booking occurred at higher levels.
“Currently, the market is witnessing non-directional activity; perhaps traders are waiting for an either-side breakout,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research, Kotak Securities.
Of the Asian indices, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.18 per cent and South Korea’s Kospi declined 0.27 per cent.
On Tuesday, large-cap stocks underperformed, weighed down by subdued foreign institutional investors (FII) participation and lacklustre earnings from blue-chip companies. Conversely, mid- and small-cap segments remained relatively resilient, supported by better than estimated fourth quarter earnings and moderation in premium valuation.
Story continues below this ad
While the BSE LargeCap fell 0.57 per cent, the BSE Midcap and BSE Smallcap rose 0.18 per cent and 0.19 per cent, respectively.
Among sectors, the defense index outperformed, rallying over 1 percent, whereas intraday profit booking was seen in selective auto, banking, and IT stocks.
The Nifty IT ended 0.75 per cent down and the Nifty Auto lost 0.7 per cent.
The NSE companies that declined the most were Ultratech Cement (2.28 per cent), JSW Steel (2.02 per cent), ITC Ltd (1.85 per cent), Tata Motors (1.65 per cent) and Grasim Industries (1.63 per cent).