Stock Markets Go South For 8Th Session

Mumbai – Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty closed lower on Tuesday after a volatile session, marking the eighth consecutive session of southward movement due to relentless foreign fund outflows and caution ahead of the RBI's interest rate decision.

Giving up early gains, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 97.32 points or 0.12 per cent to settle at 80,267.62. During the day, it hit a high of 80,677.82 and a low of 80,201.15. In eight trading days, the Sensex has tanked 2,746.34 points or 3.30 per cent.

The 50-share NSE Nifty fell by 23.80 points or 0.10 per cent to 24,611.10.

Trading remained subdued on the monthly expiry day and markets moved in a narrow range. Metal, auto and banking stocks, particularly PSU banks, advanced while realty and consumer durables shares faced selling pressure.

Caution prevailed in the market ahead of the RBI's interest rate decision on Wednesday, analysts said.

“The domestic market traded within a narrow range on the monthly expiry day, as investors exercised caution ahead of the RBI's policy. The market made an attempt to stabilize after last week's sustained decline,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments, said.

Market participants are keenly awaiting the RBI's commentary for insights into future interest rate trajectories, although a status quo on rates is widely expected, Nair added.

Among Sensex firms, ITC, Bharti Airtel, Trent, Bajaj Finserv, Titan and Reliance Industries were the major laggards.

However, UltraTech Cement, Adani Ports, Tata Motors, Bharat Electronics, Bajaj Finance and Hindustan Unilever were among the major gainers. In Asian markets, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled in positive territory, while South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 index ended lower.

In the broader market, shares of Man Industries (India) Ltd tanked 10.6 per cent after Sebi barred the company and its three senior executives from accessing the securities markets.

The BSE midcap gauge ended marginally higher by 0.04 per cent, while smallcap index ended flat, almost unchanged.

Among sectoral indices, telecommunication tanked 0.93 per cent, realty by 0.79 per cent, consumer durables by 0.78 per cent, teck by 0.50 per cent, FMCG by 0.39 per cent and utilities by 0.35 per cent.

Metal jumped 1.11 per cent and commodities climbed 0.65 per cent, while financial services (0.27 per cent), auto (0.30 per cent), and bankex (0.22 per cent) also advanced.

“Indian equities ended the session on a flat note as investors remained cautious, with many choosing to stay on the sidelines, awaiting fresh catalysts to push benchmark indices beyond near-term resistance levels. In the absence of new triggers, market momentum remained subdued.

“Looking ahead, all eyes are on the Reserve Bank of India's upcoming monetary policy decision, which is expected to be a key driver of near-term sentiment,” Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

Markets in Europe were trading on a mixed note. US markets ended higher on Monday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,831.59 crore on Monday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought stocks worth Rs 3,845.87 crore, according to exchange data.

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