Sensex tumbles 2,100 points, Nifty down
Indian equity market ended lower for the third straight session today as profit-booking from record highs and concerns over Iran-Israel tensions affected market sentiment.
While Sensex has lost 2,095 points, Nifty is down 606 points since February 12.
In Tuesday’s session, Sensex closed 456 points lower at 72,943 and Nifty lost 124 points to 22,147. Market cap of BSE-listed firms fell to Rs 394.31 lakh crore. India VIX, the volatility index, was up 1.12% to 12.61, signaling a rise in volatility in the stock market.
Infosys, IndusInd Bank, Wipro, Bajaj Finserv, HCL Tech and Tech Mahindra were the top Sensex losers, falling up to 3.65 per cent. Of 30 Sensex stocks, 23 ended in the red.
Shares of Titan, HUL, HDFC Bank and
Maruti were the Sensex gainers, rising up to 1.26%.
IT, banking and capital goods shares were the top losers today with their BSE indices tumbling 816 pts, 270 pts and 158 pts, respectively.
On the other hand, losses were capped by BSE consumer durables and oil and gas indices, which ended 323 pts and 197 pts higher, respectively.
Market breadth was negative with 2251 stocks rising against 1567 stocks falling on BSE. 115 shares were unchanged.
Aditya Gaggar, Director of Progressive Shares said, "A quick recovery from the lower levels helped the Mid and Smallcaps to outperform the Nifty50. A reversal can be expected as the index has formed a Spinning Top candlestick pattern at its long-term trendline support which is coupled with a 50DMA. The psychological level of 22,000 is the immediate support while the upside seems to be capped at 22,400."
Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst, LKP Securities said, "Technically, the trend has weakened as the index fell below the 21EMA.
However, following the sharp decline, the index may find short-term support within the 21930-22030 bands, where previous congestion occurred. Conversely, failure to maintain support at 21930 could exacerbate panic in the market. On the higher end, resistance for the short term is positioned at 22400."
Benchmark indices closed lower on Monday amid rising tensions between Iran and Israel. Sensex ended 845 points lower at 73,399 and Nifty lost 247 points to end at 22,272 today. Market cap of BSE-listed firms fell to Rs 394.73 lakh crore.
London stocks dived on Tuesday, with most sectors in the red, as traders pulled back expectations of rapid US rate cuts, while shares of Dr Martens and Superdry tumbled on disappointing corporate updates.
While the FTSE 100 looked set for its biggest intraday percentage drop in eight months, the FTSE 250 was on track for the biggest decline in three months.
Dr Martens slumped 31.3% to a record low after it named a new CEO and flagged a challenging fiscal 2025 on weak US demand.
The personal goods sector led sectoral losses, falling 4.1% on the news. Superdry tumbled 18.8% after it launched a turnaround plan that included an equity raise that would take the firm private.
Industrial Metal miners followed with a 2.9% fall after prices of non-ferrous metals dropped on a stronger US dollar.
The precious metal miners index was the only outlier, rising 0.9% as concerns over rising geopolitical tensions between Iran and Israel propped up demand for gold.
Investors’ expectations of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve further inclined toward September after hotter-than-expected retail sales data narrated a higher-for-longer story.
Meanwhile, unemployment in the UK edged higher in February and wages saw their weakest climb since mid-2022, bolstering bets for Bank of England rate cuts in the near future.
“The data has taken a real bite out of the FTSE 100,” said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, as the unemployment data “sort of signals that cracks have started to show in the UK labour market.”
British recruiters Hays and Robert Walters dropped 4.1% and 5.6%, respectively, following a drop in their quarterly net fees, dragged by low client and candidate confidence in major markets amid sluggish hiring conditions.