Nifty, Sensex fall by half percent; Nifty below 25,000 bar

Indian shares showed considerable volatility during Wednesday's trading session as investors braced for the August US consumer inflation report that could help determine the scale of an expected interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve next week.

During the session, the Nifty 50 index fell by 0.50 percent, slipping below the 25,000 mark to close at 24,915 points. Out of the 50 constituent stocks, 13 ended in positive territory. Notable gainers included Bajaj Auto, LTI Mindtree, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance, and Britannia Industries, which saw a rise between 1 percent and 4 percent.

Similarly, the S&P BSE Sensex declined by 0.53 percent, settling at 81.485 points. The broader Nifty midcap 100 index remained flat at 59,021 points.

Top midcap gainers

Among the top midcap gainers, Suzlon Energy led with a 5 percent increase, followed by CG Power and Industrial, which rose by 4.6 percent. JSW Infrastructure and Page Industries also saw gains of 4.5 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively.

Conversely, the Nifty smallcap 100 index fell by 0.8 percent to 19,163 points. Major losers included HFCL, IRB Infrastructure, Welspun Living, Swan Energy, and Aarti Industries, which experienced declines ranging from 4.2 percent to 5 percent.

Tata Motors stock tumbled 6 percent in today's session to ₹970 levels after the global brokerage firm UBS retained its 'Sell' rating on the stock, citing the drop in JLR sales. UBS pointed out that demand for JLR models is waning, with current order levels now falling below those seen before the pandemic.

This trend suggests a potential cooling in JLR’s recent success, and UBS anticipates that discounts for the Range Rover may increase as a result. According to the company's Q1 earnings report, the JLR order book fell to 1,04,000 units, down from 1,33,000 vehicles in Q4 in last financial year.

Today's fall in the stock price was the biggest in five weeks, which caused the stock to lose 12.15 percent in September so far after a 4 percent drop in August. From its high of ₹1,176 per share, it has decreased by 18 percent.

Bajaj Group stocks shine

Shares of Bajaj Group companies, including Bajaj Auto, Bajaj Finance, and Bajaj Finserv, emerged as the top performers in the Nifty 50 index today, with gains of up to 5 percent. This surge in group stock comes in the wake of strong investor interest in the Bajaj Housing Finance IPO, which has seen robust subscription levels across various investor segments.

As of the third day of the IPO, it has been oversubscribed by more than 47 times, with the Grey Market Premium (GMP) indicating a 96 percent premium. Among the group stocks, Bajaj Auto reached an all-time high in today’s trading, with its shares hitting ₹11,501 apiece—a gain of 4.3 percent from the previous close.

(By arrangement with livemint.com)