Stock Market Falls For 5th Day: Sensex Slips 139 Points, Nifty Holds 17,500 Amid Volatility

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform Asian Paints, L&T, IndusInd Bank, Airtel, Titan, Bajaj Finserv closed in the red. Axis Bank, ITC, Tata Motors, SBI, Tata Steel, Sun Pharma emerged winners

The key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, ended in the red as the equities showed wild moves on the monthly expiry day for the February derivatives series amid volatility.

The S&P BSE Sensex closed at 59,605, down 139 points (0.23 per cent). It hit a high of 59,960, and a low of 59,406 during the day. On the other hand, the Nifty50 index hit a high of 17,620 and a low of 17,455 during the day, before closing at 17,511, down 43 points (0.25 per cent).

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Asian Paints, L&T, IndusInd Bank, Airtel, Titan, Bajaj Finserv closed in the negative territory. On the flip side, Axis Bank, ITC, Tata Motors, SBI, Tata Steel, Sun Pharma emerged winners.

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap index dipped 0.4 per cent, while the BSE SmallCap index added 0.06 per cent.

Sectorwise, the Nifty Media index shed 2 per cent amid decline in Zee Entertainment shares. The stock tanked 14 per cent to hit a new 52-week low of Rs 176.60 per share on the BSE in Thursday’s early trade after the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) accepted IndusInd Bank’s insolvency petition against the company and admitted it into the corporate insolvency resolution process. On the upside, the Nifty FMCG index ended 0.26 per cent higher. Individually, shares of ITC hit a new summit at Rs 393.35 on the BSE amid heavy volumes.

In the previous session on Wednesday, the Sensex closed at 59,745, down 928 points (1.53 per cent). On the other hand, NSE Nifty50 ended at 17,554, down 272 points (1.53 per cent).

In Asian markets, China and Hong Kong settled lower, while South Korea ended higher. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday. European equities were trading mostly in the green during afternoon trade. The US markets ended on a mixed note on Wednesday.

International oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.32 per cent to $80.86 per barrel.

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) offloaded shares worth Rs 579.82 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, the rupee appreciated by 15 paise to close at 82.73 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, tracking its regional peers and lower crude oil prices. Forex traders said a muted trend in domestic equities and foreign fund outflows weighed on investor sentiments and restricted the appreciation bias.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.78 against the American currency and finally settled at 82.73 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a gain of 15 paise over its previous close of 82.88. During the trading session, the rupee touched a high of 82.71 and a low of 82.79 against the dollar.