Indian equity markets snapped a two-day winning streak on May 15 as profit booking, rising crude oil prices and the rupee’s fresh record low weighed on investor sentiment.
The benchmark indices ended lower amid weak global cues and renewed inflation concerns following the recent fuel price hike.
The BSE Sensex fell 161 points, or 0.21 percent, to close at 75,237.99
The NSE Nifty 50 declined 46 points, or 0.19 percent, to settle at 23,643.50
Investors lost more than ₹2 lakh-crore in market capitalisation in a single session
Total BSE market capitalisation fell to ₹460.5 lakh-crore from nearly ₹463 lakh-crore in the previous session
The market came under pressure due to:
Profit booking after the recent rally
A sharp rise in crude oil prices
Continued weakness in the rupee
Weak global sentiment after US President Donald Trump concluded his China visit without major trade breakthroughs
Concerns over inflation after the latest fuel price hike
Brent crude climbed above $108 a barrel after surging nearly 3 percent during the session.
Meanwhile, the Indian rupee slipped to a fresh record low and closed at 95.94 against the US dollar after briefly falling below the 96 mark.
Selling pressure was broad-based across sectors.
Major losers: Metals, Oil and gas, PSU banks, Realty, Energy and Commodities. All these sectoral indices fell more than 1 percent.
Sectors that gained: IT stocks outperformed, with the BSE IT index rising over 1 percent
Infosys
Tech Mahindra
Power Grid
Tata Steel
Eternal
Reliance Industries
Midcap and smallcap stocks also weak. Broader markets also ended in the red:
BSE Midcap index fell 0.48 percent
BSE Smallcap index declined 0.37 percent
The benchmarks also ended the week with losses, snapping a two-week winning run.
Sensex declined 2.7 percent for the week
Nifty 50 dropped 2.2 percent
Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments said investors have turned cautious due to rising bond yields, rupee weakness and fuel price hikes, which have revived inflation worries.
He added that strong March quarter earnings and improved valuations are helping limit the downside.
Rupak De of LKP Securities said the Nifty is showing a bearish pattern with lower tops on daily charts.
Key levels to watch:
23,500
23,300
23,150
23,800
23,850
Analysts said a sustained fall below 23,500 could trigger sharper selling pressure in the near term.
(By arrangement with livemint.com)
