Sensex Slips 115 Points, Nifty Settles Below 17,500; Indices Up Over 18% In FY22

The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices, meanwhile, outperformed the frontline indices and closed 0.3 per cent higher each

New Delhi: The domestic equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Thursday ended day’s trade in the negative zone, snapping three straight sessions of gains amid volatility.

The 30-share BSE Sensex skidded 115 points to close at 58,569, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 34 points lower to settle at 17,465.

The indices swung between gains and losses during the intraday deals before settling in the red amid the expiry of futures and options (F&O) contracts for March.

M&M, JSW Steel, Britannia, HUL, Axis Bank, Tata Consumer Products, ONGC, Hero MotoCorp, and IndusInd Bank were the leaders on the Nifty today, rallying upwards of 1 per cent each.

On the flipside, Hindalco tumbled 5 per cent, followed by Divis Labs, Apollo Hospitals, RIL, Wipro, Eicher Motors, Dr Reddy's Labs, and Cipla.

The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices, meanwhile, outperformed the frontline indices and closed 0.3 per cent higher each.

Seven out of the 15 sector gauges, compiled by NSE, ended in the red. Nifty Pharma and Nifty Healthcare Index underperformed the index by falling as much as 1.17 per cent and 1.29 per cent, respectively.

"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 this year," S Ranganathan, head of research at LKP Securities told the PTI.

In the previous trade, the 30-share Sensex surged 740 points (1.28 per cent) to settle at 58,683. Similarly, the NSE Nifty climbed 172 points (1 per cent) to settle at 17,498.

Elsewhere in Asia, equity exchanges in Shanghai, Tokyo, and Hong Kong ended lower, while Seoul settled with gains. Markets in Europe were mostly trading lower.

European stocks were mixed on the last trading day of March, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 hovering fractionally below the flatline by mid-morning. On Wall Street, Dow Jones and S&P 500 Futures were flat while Nasdaq Futures were up 0.4 per cent.

Stock exchanges in the US ended on a negative note in the overnight session.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude tumbled 5.09 per cent to $107.68 per barrel on reports that the US was considering releasing a record 180 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were buyers as they bought shares worth Rs 1,357.47 crore on net basis on Wednesday, according to stock exchange data.