The benchmark domestic equity indices ended in negative territory for second straight session in a rangebound trade today. The 30-share index at the Bombay Stock Exchange, Sensex, dropped 239 points, or 0.29 percent to close at 81,312. The National Stock Exchange Nifty-50 declined 74 points, or 0.3 percent to settle at 24,752.
Meanwhile, the broader market indices at the BSE ended mixed. The Mid-Cap index slipped over 0.2 per cent, while the Small-Cap index advanced half per cent.
In the Sensex index, 20 out of 30 companies ended lower. In the top laggards, ITC slid over 3.1 per cent, IndusInd Bank lost almost two per cent, and Nestle India shed almost 1.8 per cent. Among the top gainers, Bajaj Finance rose over one per cent, Bharti Airtel added more than 0.6 per cent, and ICICI Bank advanced over 0.4 per cent.
In sectoral indices at the BSE, 13 out of 21 sectors edged down. In the top laggards, FMCG declined over 1.3 per cent, Metal as well as Auto, both slipped over 0.6 per cent each, and Consumer Durables dipped almost 0.6 percent. Among the top gainers, Telecommunication jumped 1.4 per cent, Industrials climbed over half per cent, and Capital Goods added over 0.3 per cent.
The overall market breadth at the BSE was positive as shares of 2,022 companies advanced, shares of 1,928 companies declined, while shares of 156 companies remained unchanged. At the National Stock Exchange, 51 companies hit their 52-week high, while 17 companies hit their 52-week low.
IndusInd Bank, Apollo Hospitals, UltraTech Cement, Hindalco, and Nestle India were among the top laggards of the Nifty50 constituents, ending down in the range of 1.93–1.62 per cent. Conversely, HDFC Life, Bharat Electronics, Bajaj Finance, Hero MotoCorp, and Bharti Airtel were among the gainers, ending higher in the range of 1.51–0.63 per cent on Wednesday.
Among the broader market indices, the Nifty Midcap100 ended lower by marginally 0.02 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap100, on the other hand, ended with a gain of 0.33 per cent. On the sectoral front, shares of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies were under pressure. The Nifty FMCG index was the top sectoral laggard, ending down by 1.49 per cent. Notably, FMCG giant ITC settled lower by 1.17 following a large block deal by British American Tobacco plc (BAT), which sold a 2.5 per cent stake in the company, thereby relinquishing its veto power in the diversified Indian conglomerate.