Share Market Today: Sensex Settles Below 73K, Nifty Marginally Lower, PSU Bank Leads

Share Market Today: The two key benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Wednesday settled lower following the sentiment from the early trading hours. Both the indices traded on a flat note amidst volatility as the session started and further declined as the day progressed.

By the end of the trading session, the indices closed in red. The S&P BSE Sensex settled the day under the 73K mark at 72,987.03, declining close to 120 points, while the NSE Nifty50 ended trading at 22,210.20, inching down by almost 8 points. 

In the last trading session on Tuesday, the indices closed higher, backed by a rally in auto, metal and banking stocks. The Sensex closed trading at 73,105, climbing up more than 300 points, while the Nifty settled for the day at 22,218, increasing 114 points.

Stock updates

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Bharti Airtel, PowerGrid, NTPC, M&M, and HCL Tech emerged as gainers. On the downside, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, HDFC Bank, JSW Steel, and Sun Pharma remained among the laggards. 

On the Nifty50, Coal India emerged as the largest gainer with an increase of over 4 per cent, while Tata Motors dominated in red at a loss of almost 2 per cent.

In the broader markets, the indices closed majorly in green. The Nifty Microcap 250 led the indices with a gain of 1.15 per cent.

Sectoral updates

Sectorally, the Nifty PSU Bank emerged as the frontrunner, surging by 1.42 per cent, followed by Realty at 1.02 per cent. Amongst those in red, the FMCG and Media indices fell 0.91 per cent and 0.51 per cent respectively.

Macro Movements

The Indian rupee settled 1 paisa higher at 83.50 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) remained net sellers on Tuesday and dumped equities worth Rs 4,065.52 crore, official exchange data revealed. Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, noted, "We expect the rupee to trade with a slight negative bias on the weak US Dollar and expectations that the US Dollar may rise again if inflation remains sticky and retail sales jumps. FII outflows and a rise in crude oil prices may also weigh on the rupee."