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Benchmark indices snapped a three-day winning streak to close marginally lower on Thursday.
Market started off on a positive note despite global and domestic uncertainties but soon turned volatile. Indices closed lower, dragged by pharma, IT and PSU bank stocks.
The BSE Sensex closed at 58,568.51, down 115.48 points or 0.20 per cent. It recorded an intraday high of 58,890.92 and a low of 58,485.79. The Nifty 50 closed at 17,464.75, down 33.50 points or 0.19 per cent. It recorded an intraday high of 17,559.80 and a low of 17,435.20.
Breadth favours decliners
The market breadth turned in favour of the decliners, with 1,896 stocks declining on the BSE as against 1,500 that advanced while 111 remained unchanged. Furthermore, 21 stocks hit the upper circuit as compared to the three stocks that were locked in the lower circuit. Besides, 130 stocks touched a 52-week high level and 51 touched a 52-week low.
Volatility remained high with today being the last day of financial year 2022 and the settlement of monthly F&O contracts on the NSE. Investor sentiments were also impacted as hopes of a de-escalation in the Russia-Ukraine war proved shortlived and the uncertainties remain.
Ajit Mishra, VP-Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said, “Markets took a breather on a monthly expiry day and ended the last day of the financial year on a flat note. Mixed global cues triggered a flat opening, followed by range-bound move till the end.”
“We reiterate our positive yet cautious stance, citing lingering geopolitical tension between Russia and Ukraine and its impact on the global markets. Meanwhile, markets are offering opportunities across sectors, so the focus should be on identifying the sectors/themes that are gaining traction, and plan positions accordingly,” Mishra said.
JSW Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Britannia, Axis Bank and Tata Consumer were the top gainers on the Nifty 50 while Hindalco, Divi’s Lab, Apollo Hospitals, Dr Reddy’s and Reliance were the top laggards.
According to S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP securities, “Even as markets ended the last day of the financial year in a rather quiet mood, it has delivered a 19 per cent return this year on the Nifty, with two sectoral indices — Metals and Media — returning over 50 per cent. Such returns in a year when FPIs [foreign portfolio investors] have pulled out big money highlights the confidence of the Indian Investor amidst a slew of headwinds.”
FMCG in focus
On the sectoral front, while FMCG and media gained, pharma, healthcare, IT and PSU bank dragged.
Nifty FMCG was up over 1 per cent at closing while Nifty Media was up 0.81 per cent.
Meanwhile, Nifty Pharma and Nifty Healthcare Index were down over 1 per cent each. Nifty PSU Bank was down 0.77 per cent while Nifty IT was down 0.40 per cent.
Broader indices outperform
Broader indices closed in the green, outperforming the benchmarks.
Nifty Midcap 50 was up 0.64 per cent while Nifty Smallcap 50 was up 0.40 per cent. The S&P BSE Midcap was up 0.29 per cent while the S&P BSE Smallcap was up 0.31 per cent.
The volatility index softened 0.24 per cent to 20.56.
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