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Benchmark indices closed on a negative note on Monday, erasing all gains after recording fresh highs during the early trade.
Market which rallied ahead during the opening trade, slipped into red, dragged by profit-booking in IT and financials. Indices plunged further during closing hours ahead of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s press conference at 3 pm today.
The BSE Sensex, which recorded a fresh all-time high of 53,126.73 in early trade, closed at 52,735.59, down 189.45 points or 0.36 per cent. It hit an intraday low of 52,673.50. The Nifty 50 closed at 15,814.70, down 45.65 points or 0.29 per cent. It recorded a fresh all-time high of 15,915.65 and a low of 15,792.15.
Gainers outnumber losers
The breadth of the market continued to remain positive with 1,863 stocks advancing, 1,457 declining and 154 remaining unchanged on the BSE. As many as 536 securities hit the upper circuit and 297 the lower circuit; 448 hit their 52-week high while 24 touched a 52-week low.
Binod Modi, Head Strategy at Reliance Securities, said, “Domestic key benchmark indices traded in a range bound today ahead of FM Nirmala Sitharaman’s conference, while Nifty managed to record fresh all-time high in the initial trade hours. Notably, profit booking in IT and select financials led market to contract from today’s high. However, PSU banks, pharma and metals witnessed sharp rebound.”
Dr Reddy, Hindalco, Divi’s Lab, Tata Steel and Tech Mahindra were the top gainers on the Nifty 50 while HDFC Life, Titan, TCS, Shree Cements and Coal India were the top laggards.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said, "After opening at a record high, the domestic markets slipped into the negative zone tracking cues from global peers due to spike in Covid cases across Asia. PSU banks were in focus in anticipation of progress in privatisation.”
“The market got volatile in the closing hour, ahead and during the FM announcement, though it was focused on the Covid-19 relief package mainly for healthcare and stressed sectors, which will benefit the broad economy," added Nair.
PSU Bank, metals and pharma shine
On the sectoral front, PSU Bank, metals and pharma managed to extend gains through the day as IT and financials dragged.
Nifty Metal was up 1.28 per cent while Nifty Pharma was up 1.27 per cent. Nifty PSU Bank recorded the highest gains of 2.40 per cent among the sectoral indices.
Meanwhile, Nifty IT was down 0.49 per cent. Nifty Bank was down 0.01 per cent while Nifty Financial Services was down 0.33 per cent.
Mid & small-cap stocks gain
As for broader indices, mid-cap and small-cap stocks continued to witness buying momentum. Nifty Midcap 50 was up 0.57 per cent while Nifty Smallcap 50 was up 0.51 per cent.
The S&P BSE Midcap was up 0.40 per cent while the S&P BSE Smallcap was up 0.46 per cent.
Notably, the volatility index rose 0.26 per cent to 13.40.
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