Stock Market Today: Sensex, Nifty Trade Flat; Adani Ports, NTPC Among Top Losers

Stock Market Today: At the opening bell, Nifty Healthcare led the gainers with a 0.44 per cent rise, followed by Nifty IT and FMCG, which advanced by 0.3 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively

Stock Market Today: Overnight, US equity markets closed 2024 on a volatile note

Source : PTI

Stock Market Today: The Indian benchmark indices opened in a slightly positive trajectory on Wednesday. At the time of opening, the Sensex rose by 100.99 points, reflecting a gain of 0.13 per cent, reaching a level of 78,240.00. Similarly, the Nifty increased by 20.20 points, or 0.09 per cent, to stand at 23,665.00. 

At 10 am, the Sensex dropped by 182.47 points, or 0.23 per cent, to settle at 77,956.54, while the Nifty fell by 64.45 points, or 0.27 per cent, closing at 23,580.35. Market breadth was positive, with 2,091 shares advancing, 988 shares declining, and 113 shares remaining unchanged.

At the opening bell, Nifty Healthcare led the gainers with a 0.44 per cent rise, followed by Nifty IT and FMCG, which advanced by 0.3 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively. On the downside, Nifty Auto dropped by 0.2 per cent, while the Metal and Realty sectors saw a slight decline of 0.1 per cent each.

Overnight, US equity markets closed 2024 on a volatile note, with both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 marking their fourth consecutive session of losses. This year-end pullback wiped out more than $1 trillion from the market value of large-cap stocks. Despite this decline, the S&P 500 has surged over 50 per cent since the start of 2023, delivering its best two-year performance since the late 1990s. Bond yields remained high across various maturities, though Treasuries managed a modest annual gain, smaller than that of 2023. Meanwhile, the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index had its best year in nearly a decade.

VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, highlighted that domestic equities are likely to experience near-term weakness due to muted GDP and earnings growth. The strong dollar (with the Dollar Index at 108.5 per cent) and high US bond yields may continue to drive foreign institutional investors (FIIs) to sell off in early 2025, despite the support from domestic institutional investors (DIIs). Additionally, elevated valuations and sluggish growth are expected to weigh on market sentiment.