Sensex, Nifty drift lower on profit booking

Mumbai: Equity market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Thursday due to selling pressure in index majors Reliance Industries, L&T and HUL as investors turned cautious ahead of the inflation data announcement. Besides, weakness in the rupee and foreign fund outflows hit investors' sentiment, traders said.

The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex declined 236.18 points or 0.29 per cent to settle at 81,289.96. During the day, it dropped 314.5 points or 0.38 per cent to 81,211.64. The NSE Nifty dropped 93.10 points or 0.38 per cent to 24,548.70. The market capitalisation (mcap) of BSE-listed companies declined by Rs2.31 lakh crore to Rs4,58,15,894.65 cr (Rs458.15 lakh cr or $5.40 trn).

“Investors traded with caution ahead of the announcement of inflation and IIP data and steadily cut their equity bets. There is a lack of confidence amongst investors due to global uncertainty, rising US bond yields fuelling fund outflows, and persisting conflicts in the Middle East and West Asia,” said Prashanth Tapse, senior V-P (research), Mehta Equities Ltd.

“Markets closed slightly lower on the weekly expiry day, shedding nearly half a per cent amid mixed signals. The market awaits a fresh catalyst to resume its rebound, while rotational buying in key sectors like IT and banking keeps recovery hopes alive,” added Ajit Mishra, Sr V-P (research), Religare Broking Ltd.

The BSE smallcap gauge tanked 1 per cent, and the midcap index declined 0.56 per cent.

“The market continued to remain range-bound ahead of domestic CPI data and a weakening rupee. Though inflation is anticipated to drop, investors are maintaining a close vigil on the vegetable prices, which will determine the future rate trajectory. Meanwhile, the Nifty IT index reached a new high after US inflation data met expectations, boosting hopes for a Fed rate cut next week,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.

Among the 30-share Sensex blue-chip firms, NTPC, Hindustan Unilever, Tata Motors, Maruti, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, Asian Paints and State Bank of India were the biggest laggards. Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Adani Ports and Tata Consultancy Services were among the gainers.