Stock Market Today: Sensex Tanks Over 500 Points; Nifty Around 21,550. All Sectors In The Red

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, Infosys, TechM, Wipro, HDFC Bank, Sun Pharma, L&T emerged main losers. M&M, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, ITC, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv were the only gainers

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Wednesday fell sharply, tracking global cues. The investors were worried following hotter-than-expected US inflation data that pushed Fed rate cut hopes further back to second half of 2024. At 10.05 am, the BSE Sensex was down 524 points to 71,031. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 was trading at 21,579, down 164 points.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Infosys, TechM, Wipro, HDFC Bank, Sun Pharma, L&T emerged main losers. On the flip side, M&M, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finance, ITC, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv were the only gainers.

In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices shed 0.7-1 per cent. 

Sectorally, all the indices are trading in the red zone, led by Nifty IT, which dropped 1.7 per cent. Information Technology, Nifty Bank, and Nifty PSB indices were down 1 per cent each.

In the previous session on Tuesday, the S&P BSE Sensex rose 483 points higher at 71,555, while the NSE Nifty50 shut shop at 21,743, up 127 points.

"January's hotter-than-expected US inflation report threw the financial market into a tailspin on Tuesday and upended investors' expectations about how soon and by how much the Federal Reserve might start cutting interest rates," Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities, said.

Asian markets saw mixed trends on Wednesday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng indices trading lower, while China's SSE Composite Index gained over 1 per cent. On Tuesday, US and European stocks closed in the red.

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) were net buyers on Tuesday as they purchased shares worth Rs 376.32 crore, according to data available with BSE.

Meanwhile, The Indian rupee fell 4 paise to 83.12 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday, tracking a negative trend in domestic equities. Forex traders said the strength of the American currency and elevated crude oil prices in the international market dented investors' sentiments.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 83.11 against the dollar and touched an early low of 83.12 and a high of 83.09 in initial trade. On Tuesday, the rupee depreciated 8 paise to close at 83.08 against the US dollar.