The Indian stock market wrapped up another tough trading session on Thursday, 13 March, as global jitters kept investors on edge. The Sensex slid 201 points (0.27%) to close at 73,828.91, while the Nifty 50 dropped 73 points (0.33%) to settle at 22,397.20. While this marks the fifth straight day of losses, the decline has been relatively modest, with the Sensex shedding just 0.70% over this period.
A mix of weak global cues and capital outflows has weighed on investor sentiment. However, India’s stock market is holding up better than some of its global counterparts. Analysts suggest that an improving macroeconomic outlook and fair valuations in large-cap stocks are keeping things from getting worse.
Big names like Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, Infosys, Zomato, and Tata Motors were the biggest drags on the Sensex.
Adding to the market’s slow momentum, trading will be closed on Friday, 14 March, due to the Holi holiday.
Vinod Nair of Geojit Financial Services noted that a shorter trading week, coupled with a selloff in the US market, created some unease. However, India remains relatively stable, thanks to its strong economic fundamentals.
Nair added that while concerns about a potential recession in the US are looming, they haven’t significantly impacted Indian markets yet. Factors such as easing inflation, potential rate cuts, and increased government spending could provide some stability going forward.
In the Nifty 50 index, 38 stocks ended in the red. The biggest losers were:
Shriram Finance (-2.66%)
Hero MotoCorp (-2.26%)
Tata Motors (-2.04%)
On the flip side, a few stocks managed to buck the trend:
BEL (+1.18%)
SBI (+0.68%)
Cipla (+0.40%)
Most sectoral indices ended lower, with real estate, media, and auto stocks bearing the brunt:
Nifty Realty (-1.83%)
Nifty Media (-1.50%)
Nifty Auto (-1.10%)
While the Nifty Bank index remained flat, the PSU Bank index managed a small gain of 0.43%. However, private banks weren’t as lucky, with the Private Bank index slipping 0.14%.
What Were the Most Traded Stocks?
Stocks that saw the most action in terms of volume included:
Vodafone Idea (40.87 crore shares)
MTNL (7.60 crore shares)
SEPC (7.3 crore shares)
YES Bank (6.25 crore shares)
Zomato (6.1 crore shares)
Despite the overall downturn, some stocks hit new peaks. A total of 57 stocks, including Avanti Feeds, Sarda Energy & Minerals, and Kamat Hotels (India), reached fresh 52-week highs. On the flip side, 309 stocks slumped to their lowest levels in a year, with notable names like LTIMindtree, Tata Elxsi, IDFC First Bank, and Astral among them.
With markets closed on Friday for Holi, investors will be looking to next week for signs of stability.
(By arrangement with livemint.com)
