Stock Market Snaps 7-Day Winning Streak. Sensex Sheds 288 Points, Nifty At 17,656 Amid Weak Cues

Stock update: Nestle India, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finance, and Asian Paints were among the major losers on the Sensex platform

Sensex and Nifty, the two key equity benchmarks, closed in the red on Tuesday, putting a break to their seven-day rally, amid weak Asian market cues and mixed trends from European stocks.

The BSE Sensex failed to hold on the early gains and declined 288 points (0.48 per cent) to finish at 59,544. During the day, it hit a low of 59,489 and a high of 60,081. On the other hand, the broader NSE Nifty dropped 74 points (0.42 per cent) to end at 17,656.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Nestle India, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finance, and Asian Paints were among the major losers. On the flip side, Tech Mahindra, Maruti, Larsen & Toubro, Dr Reddy's, State Bank of India, and NTPC were among the winners.

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap index added 0.45 per cent, but the BSE SmallCap index slipped 0.35 per cent.

In a special one-hour Muhurat trading session on Monday to mark the beginning of Hindu Samvat year 2079, the BSE benchmark jumped 524 points to end at 59,831, while the Nifty advanced 154 points to finish at 17,730.

Elsewhere in Asia, markets in Seoul, Shanghai, and Hong Kong ended lower, while Tokyo finished higher. Stock exchanges in Europe were trading on a mixed note in mid-session deals. The pan-European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.4 per cent in early trade, with tech stocks adding 1.7 per cent. Wall Street had ended higher on Monday.

International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.27 per cent lower at $92.08 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded shares worth Rs 153.89 crore on Monday, as per exchange data.

Meanwhile, the rupee appreciated 7 paise to close at 82.81 (provisional) against the US dollar on Tuesday, as easing crude oil prices buoyed investor sentiments. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 82.71 and witnessed a high of 82.62 and a low of 82.81.

It finally settled at 82.81 against the American currency, registering a rise of 7 paise over its previous close. In the previous session on Friday, the rupee had slipped 9 paise to close at 82.88 against the dollar.