Investors woke to a bearish start in Mumbai’s stock exchanges on Tuesday, as Sensex and Nifty commenced trading in negative territory. Precisely at 9:23 AM, Sensex declined 175 points (0.21%) to 83,098, with Nifty mirroring the slide by 78 points (0.31%) to 25,572. The metal sector stole the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, dragging Nifty Metal and Commodities indices to lead the losers.
A host of indices followed suit downward: Nifty Private Bank, Oil & Gas, Financial Services, Realty, Services, Infra, Energy, and PSU Bank. This synchronicity suggests interconnected pressures from rising costs and dimming growth outlooks.
Conversely, Nifty India Defence, IT, Pharma, and FMCG held firm in green, drawing inflows from risk-averse portfolios seeking refuge.
Smallcap and midcap actions were at odds—Nifty Smallcap 100 up 5.60 points at 17,056, Nifty Midcap 100 down 125 points at 59,597—illustrating nuanced strategies among retail and institutional players.
Sensex movers included gainers Asian Paints, Infosys, BEL, Indigo, HCL Tech, ITC, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Sun Pharma, SBI, L&T, and Titan, fueled by earnings optimism. Decliners comprised Eternal, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Trent, HDFC Bank, and NTPC, pressured by valuation concerns.
Internationally, mixed Asian signals with Tokyo and Hong Kong advancing, Bangkok retreating. Commodities trended lower: Brent crude $68.39 (-0.38%), WTI $63.39 (-0.27%). Gold fell 1% to $4,969/oz on Comex, silver 2% to $75/oz.
The session’s direction hinges on intraday developments, including FII flows and macroeconomic releases, as traders navigate this choppy terrain.