Stock Market Today: Sensex Tumbles 724 Points; Nifty Near 21,700 After RBI Policy Meet. ITC Slips 4%

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, SBI, PowerGrid, TCS, HCLTech, Airtel, Reliance were among the lead gainers

In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index gained marginally by 0.08 per cent, while the BSE Smallcap index declined 0.44 per cent. ( Image Source :Getty )

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Thursday dropped sharply after the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI’s) call to keep repo rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent for the sixth consecutive time. The S&P BSE Sensex plunged 724 points to close at 71,428. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 settled at 21,718, down 213 points. The domestic indices hit lows of 71,230 and 21,665 during intra-day trading, respectively.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, SBI, PowerGrid, TCS, HCLTech, Airtel, Reliance were among the lead gainers. On the down side, ITC plunged 4 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank, ICICI Bank, Nestle India, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank emerged prime losers.

#ABPStockMarketWatch | Sensex tanks over 700 points, Nifty around 21,700 following RBI MPC announcements

At 04:00 PM, #Sensex tanked 724 points to 71,428 & #Nifty fell 213 points to 21,718

Here's a look at the stocks in focus:#ABPLive #ClosingBell #MarketWatch pic.twitter.com/z2Bp2yHLcB

— ABP LIVE (@abplive) February 8, 2024

In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index gained marginally by 0.08 per cent, while the BSE Smallcap index declined 0.44 per cent.

Sectorwise, Nifty PSU Bank and Media indices advanced 2 per cent, followed by 0.22 per cent gain in the Nifty IT index. On the other hand, Nifty Private Bank index tumbled 2.5 per cent.

In the previous session on Wednesday, the S&P BSE Sensex closed at 72,152, down 34 points, while the NSE Nifty50 ended at 21,931, up 1 point.

"The policy was largely on expected lines but preferred to remain cautious," Parijat Agrawal, head, Fixed Income, Union Asset Management Company Pvt Ltd, said.

In Asia, Seoul, Tokyo, and Shanghai closed in the green, while Hong Kong ended lower. European markets were trading in the green and the US markets settled with gains on Wednesday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.18 per cent to $79.07 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 1,691.02 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee closed on a flat note at 82.96 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday. As per forex traders, a negative trend in domestic equities weighed on investor sentiments.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 82.94 against the dollar and moved in a narrow range and settled for the day at 82.96 against the US currency, as the central bank retained the repo rate at 6.5 per cent for the sixth consecutive time.

During the day, the rupee touched an intra-day high of 82.89 and a low of 83 against the US dollar. On Wednesday, the local currency gained 9 paise to close at 82.96 against the dollar.