Sensex Slumps 160 Points, Nifty At 17,450; Titan, Reliance, HDFC Bank Among Top Drags

Broader markets strengthened, also helping investor sentiment, with the midcap and smallcap indices up 0.1 per cent and 0.5 per cent, respectively

The BSE at Dalal Street in Mumbai

New Delhi: The key benchmark indices edges lower on Friday morning early trade as investors booked profits after a three-day rally which saw Sensex and Nifty surge over 3.5 per cent amid weak global cues. The BSE Sensex was down 160 points at 58,647 levels, while the Nifty50 was 45 points to 17,470-mark.

However, the broader markets were trading positively, supporting the overall market breadth. Sectorally, The Nifty IT and Financial Services indices were down 0.6 per cent and 0.45 per cent, respectively. The Metal and Pharma indices were up 0.5 per cent each. The broader markets strengthened, also helping investor sentiment, with the midcap and smallcap indices up 0.1 per cent and 0.5 per cent, respectively.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.4 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei shed 0.5 per cent.

Overnight the S&P 500 lost 0.72 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.71 per cent. S&P 500 futures rose 0.14 per cent in Asian hours.

Nine of 15 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange were trading lower led by the Nifty IT index's 0.65 per cent decline. Nifty Financial Services, Bank, Private Bank, PSU Bank, and Consumer Durable indices also fell around 0.5 per cent.

Titan was top Nifty loser, the stock fell 2.12 per cent to ₹ 2,322. Tech Mahindra, Divi's Labs, Bajaj Finserv, HDFC, Bajaj Finance, Tata Consumer Products, HCL Technologies, Reliance Industries, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Infosys also fell between 0.8-1.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, Star Health and Allied Insurance Company (Star Health) made a weak stock market debut with its equity shares getting listed at Rs 845, a 6 per cent discount to its issue price of Rs 900 per share on the NSE. On the BSE, the stock opened at Rs 848.80, according to the exchange data. Investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala is a promoter of Star Health, which is India’s first and largest private standalone health insurance company.