Stock Market: Indices Halt 3-Day Winning Run; Sensex Sheds 359 Points, Nifty Ends At 16,585

Stock update: On the BSE, M&M was the top gainer with 3.61 per cent, followed by NTPC, PowerGrid, TechM, Tata Steel, ITC, ICICI Bank, Wipro, and others

New Delhi: The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Tuesday snapped three-day winning run ahead of the gross domestic product (GDP) numbers for the quarter ended March 31 amid weak global cues. The domestic indices dropped in line with the global peers after a surging inflation reading in Germany heightened fears of looming interest rate hikes.

The 30-share BSE Sensex sank 359 points to close at 55,566, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 77 points down to end at 16,585.    

In the broader market, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices rose 0.5 per cent and 0.7 per cent, respectively.  

On the BSE, M&M was the top gainer with 3.61 per cent, followed by NTPC, PowerGrid, TechM, Tata Steel, ITC, ICICI Bank, Wipro, and others. On the flip side, Sun Pharma was the prime loser, down 3.11 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank, HDFC twins, Titan, Infosys, SBI, Reliance, TCS, and others.

On NSE, 10 out of the 15 sector gauges settled in the red. Sectorwise, the indices ended on a mixed note with the Nifty Realty index climbing 2.2 per cent, while the Nifty PSU Bank index falling 1.1 per cent.

In the previous session on Monday, the Sensex rallied 1,041 points (1.90 per cent) to settle at 55,925, while the Nifty jumped 308 points (1.89 per cent) to close at 16,661.

Elsewhere in Asia, markets in Seoul, Shanghai, and Hong Kong settled with gains, while Tokyo ended marginally lower.

Markets in Europe were trading mostly lower during the afternoon trade. Stock markets in the US were closed for a holiday on Monday.

Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 1.64 per cent to $123.66 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors turned net buyers as they bought shares worth Rs 502.08 crore on Monday, as per stock exchange data.

"Domestic market failed to hold on to recovery mode as it was awaiting the release of GDP data. A hike in oil prices due to the EU's ban on Russian oil imports would act as a headwind in taming global inflation. Changes in policy by central banks would be a major factor to be monitored in the coming days," Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services told the PTI.