Stock Market: Sensex Plunges 498 Points, Nifty Settles Below 16,500; IT, Consumer Stocks Down

Stock update: Infosys (3.5 per cent), Axis Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Dr Reddy’s Lab, Wipro, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Larsen & Toubro were the biggest laggards on the BSE

Sensex and Nifty, the two key equity benchmarks, on Tuesday extended their fall for the second straight session, mostly dragged by IT, consumer stocks. On the other hand, investors on Tuesday remained apprehensive ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy outcome on Wednesday.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 498 points (0.89 per cent) to end at 55,268, while the broader NSE Nifty50 shut shop at 16,484, down 147 points (0.88 per cent).

On the 30-share BSE platform, Infosys (3.5 per cent), Axis Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Dr Reddy’s Lab, Wipro, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Larsen & Toubro were the biggest laggards. On the flipside, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, Power Grid, and Bajaj Finance were among the gainers.

In the broader markets, Midcap and Smallcap shares finished on a weak note as Nifty Midcap 100 fell 1.25 per cent lower and Smallcap shed 1.48 per cent.

On NSE, 14 out of the 15 sector gauges settled in the red. Sub-indexes Nifty IT, Nifty FMCG, Nifty Consumer Durables, Nifty Auto, and Nifty Pharma underperformed the NSE platform by falling as much as 2.83 per cent, 1.39 per cent, 1.29 per cent, 1.18 per cent, and 1.18 per cent, respectively

The overall market breadth stood negative as 1,156 shares advanced, while 2,170 declined on the BSE.

Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services, said the Fed, which is expected to maintain its aggressive rate hike of 75 bps (basis points), and recession fears, especially in western markets, weighed on market sentiment. “Even though the domestic market is showcasing strength, the spill over effect from the western market is inevitable,” Nair added.

In the previous session, Sensex had declined 306 points (0.55 per cent) to close at 55,766 on Monday, while Nifty had moved 88 points (0.53 per cent) lower to settle at 16,631.

In Asian markets, Tokyo ended marginally lower, while Shanghai, Seoul, and Hong Kong settled higher. Markets in Europe were trading mostly lower during mid-session deals. The US markets had ended on a mixed note on Monday. Stocks in Asia mostly traded higher, while US stock futures indicated a lower start for Wall Street.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 1.38 per cent to 106.6 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded shares worth Rs 844.78 crore on Monday, as per exchange data.