All major sectors succumbed to selling pressure while Auto stocks showed some resistance on the back of sequential growth in auto sales numbers during January. US futures were under pressure following weak earnings numbers reported by Facebook.
The 30-share pack Sensex declined 770.31 points or 1.29 per cent to close at 58,788.02. Its broader peer NSE Nifty advanced 219.80 points or 1.24 per cent to 17,560.20.
Following the sell-off, equity investors were left poorer by Rs 2.57 lakh crore, as the total market cap of BSE-listed firms, which reflected investor wealth, slid to 268.07 lakh crore.
“Market is witnessing a pause in its momentum as the focus now shifts away from budget to interest rate/inflation. Overall we remain positive on the market. From a sector perspective, we expect infra, construction, cement, capital goods, affordable housing, logistics and Defence to remain in focus,” said Siddhartha Khemka, Head – Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.
Market at a glance:
- Jubilant Foodworks declined further 3 per cent after weak Q3
- MAS Financial jumps 20 per cent on strong show in December quarter
- Bharat Dynamics zooms 3 per cent on signing Rs 3,100 cr contract with Army
- M&M Financial tanks 5 per cent as Q3 net profit falls 10 per cent QoQ
- India VIX, a barometer of future volatility, inched up by 3 per cent
Among the bluechip names, Hero MotoCorp was the top gainer, rising 2.30 per cent. Bajaj Auto, Divi’s Labs, Maruti Suzuki, ITC and SBI were other gainers of the day.
HDFC was the top loser in the Nifty50 pack, falling 3.50 per cent. ONGC, SBI Life Insurance, Grasim Industries, Infosys, L&T, Bajaj Finserv and Kotak Mahindra Bank were other stocks that ended in the red.
Broader market indices ended lower, outperforming their headline peers. Nifty Smallcap index fell 0.34 per cent and Nifty Midcap declined 0.96 per cent. Nifty 500, the broadest index on NSE, ended down 1.03 per cent.
“Markets have been experiencing volatile swings despite the positive bias and we expect this trend to continue citing choppy global markets and prevailing earnings season. Participants should maintain their focus more on risk management and add quality stocks on dips.”
Amber Enterprises, Balaji Amines, Balrampur Chini Mills, TVS Motor, Coromandel International and Dalmia Baharat were top gainers from mid and smallcap indices, climbing in the range of 2-9 per cent.
Godrej Properties, M&M Financial Services, L&T Tech Services, MCX, VIP Industries and Welspun India were major losers from broader market space, falling in the range of 3-7 per cent.
Barring Nifty Auto index, all sectoral indices ended lower on NSE. Nifty IT index declined 2.05 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty which fell 1.74 per cent. Nifty Financial Services and Nifty Private Bank indices were other major losers.
Market breadth was in favour of gainers as 1,704 stocks ended in the green, while 1,653 names settled with cuts. As many as 175 securities hit 52-week highs, mostly from the smallcap space. Meanwhile, 11 names hit 52-week lows, mostly from the microcap space. About 470 stocks hit upper circuit limits and 160 lower circuit limits.
European markets were trading lower. London-based FTSE fell 0.06 per cent while Paris and Frankfurt declined 0.31 per cent and 0.50 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Japan and Indonesia ended in the red.
