Markets@10: Gains fade, Sensex drops below 80,000 after initial rise

The Indian stock market started off with good gains this morning, but after an hour, the major indices turned negative, with the Bank Nifty also losing ground.

The Nifty began at 24,343, fell to 24,207, then rose to 24,260, before dropping below 24,170. The Sensex started at 80,415, briefly rose to 80,482, and then fell to 80,059, eventually dipping below 79,940. The market is expected to remain volatile.

The realty, IT, and metal sectors helped lift the market, while the auto, pharma, and healthcare sectors saw losses.

Adani Group stocks initially rose but later declined. Adani Green fell by 8%, Adani Power by 3%, Adani Energy by 5%, Adani Total Gas by 3%, Adani Enterprises by 3.5%, Adani Wilmar by 2.5%, and NDTV by 1.5%. ACC and Ambuja Cement also dropped by 1.5%. GQG Partners, which holds a significant investment in Adani Group, rose in Sydney this morning but only gained 0.5% by the afternoon. Over the past five days, its stock has lost 14%.

The Union Cabinet announced yesterday that it would cancel the bank guarantee requirement for spectrum purchased before 2022. Vodafone Idea, the biggest beneficiary of this move, saw its share price jump by 18%. Airtel and Reliance Jio also stand to benefit, and Indus Towers rose by 5%.

Hindustan Unilever shares increased by 2% following the announcement that it would separate and list its ice cream business.

The Cabinet also approved railway projects worth Rs 7,927 crore, benefiting public sector railway companies such as RVNL.

Shares of Cochin Shipyard rose by 5%.

Hitachi Energy shares gained 8% after it won a large power line contract from Power Grid Corporation.

Shares of New India Assurance Company rose 5% after the Income Tax Department refunded Rs 1,945 crore.

The rupee opened with gains today, with the dollar trading at Rs 84.24, down by 5 paise. It later strengthened slightly to Rs 84.22.

Gold update

Gold rose to $2,630 per ounce in the global market. In Kerala, the price of gold jewellery fell by Rs 960 to Rs 56,640 per pound.

Crude oil saw a slight increase, with Brent crude rising to $73.28.