Stock Market Extends Losses For Fourth Day, Sensex Slips 221 Points, Nifty Below 19,700. Wipro Sheds Over 2%

Stock Market Update: On the 30-share platform, Wipro, HDFC Bank, UltraTech Cement, PowerGrid were among the top losers. On the flip side, IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki, SBI, M&M took the lead. 

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Thursday, closed in red for the fourth consecutive session. The stock market indices moved up and down sharply throughout the day, but ultimately ended the day at the lowest level of the day. Analysts observed that JP Morgan's decision to include Indian government bonds in its Emerging Market index weathered weak global sentiment.

At the closing bell, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 221 points or 0.33 per cent at 66,009.15, while the Nifty declined 68.10 points or 0.34 per cent to 19,674.25. 

On the 30-share platform, Wipro (down 2.32 per cent), HDFC Bank, UltraTech Cement, PowerGrid, and Sun Pharma were among the top losers. On the flip side, IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki, SBI, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Bajaj Finserv took the lead. 

The major losers on the Nifty50 also included Wipro, Dr Reddy, UPL, Cipla, and Bajaj Auto, while the gainers were IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki, SBI, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Asian Paints.

In the border market, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices settled on a mixed note with a loss of 0.17 per cent and a gain of 0.06 per cent, respectively. 

Sectorwise, the Nifty PSU Bank index jumped 3.5 per cent as the inclusion of Indian bonds in JPMorgan's Emerging Market index boosted their bond portfolios. The Nifty Auto index was the other notable gainer, up 0.21 per cent. On the downside, Nifty Pharma fell 1.5 per cent.

In the previous session on Thursday, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 570 points or 0.85 per cent to close at 66,230.24, while the Nifty declined 159.05 points or 0.8 per cent to 19,742.35. 

According to Mint, the overall market capitalization of the firms listed on BSE dropped by about Rs 5.6 lakh crore in a week, from Rsd 323.4 lakh crore on September 15 to Rs 317.8 lakh crore on September 22. This means that investors lost about Rs 5.6 lakh crore in a week due to the decline in the stock market.

Asian markets were mixed on Friday, with Seoul and Tokyo settling in the negative territory while Shanghai and Hong Kong ended in the green. European markets were trading mostly lower, while the US markets ended in negative territory on Thursday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,007.36 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.59 per cent to $93.85 a barrel.

The rupee appreciated by 18 paise to close at 82.95 against the US dollar on September 22.